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Ni-oh gets some changes, and I'm unsure how I feel about it

Ni-oh gets some changes, and I'm unsure how I feel about it

So, I've recently learned of some changed to Ni-oh after the alpha last month and some surveys that went out

I wanna talk about the addition of tutorials. I realize how greatly this can aid new players and thus bring in a bigger audience, and tutorials are such a staple of games these days its almost shocking this game didn't come with one. That said, just going in blindly and figuring things out on my own and with my friends who were also playing it was great fun. 

I guess this isn't a refute piece or anything like that. I'm not trying to say "They shouldn't have a tutorial because you're supposed to figure stuff out and learn as you go, blah blah blah." No, I don't agree with that at all, tutorials are extremely helpful for new players and if done right, they could be instrumental in determining how far this game goes. Being a new Intellectual Property (IP), Ni-oh can't really afford to skip things like tutorials and early game balance. This may emulate Dark Souls in a way, but Dark Souls has 3 installments, 4 if you count the series origin Demon's Souls (a lot of people seem to forget the 's in Demon's Souls but its there). Even Bloodborne gave a little bit of teaching after your first encounter with the giant wolf, assuming you died like the rest of us and didn't try to bare-hand the entire first area, you crazy people. 

My point is, though I understand the importance of tutorials early on to teach the player how the game operates, I also think it was fun to just run in, fall on my face, learn from it and try again. Especially learning with my friends. We'd share tips back and forth about our favorite tactics, spirits, weapons, and enemies. One friend told me his favorite thing to do to low level enemies (and none of them were really "low level", they were just not as advanced as bigger or stronger enemies, all of them could kill you in a few quick slashes if you weren't paying attention) was to fight bare-handed, steal their weapon by blocking as they attacked, and kill them with their own sword, or presumably axe but that would be considerably harder. Until he told me about that, I hadn't even known that was possible. He'd simply discovered it by taking on the first enemy you meet off the boat bare-handed because he hadn't realized the corpse in front of you gives you a weapon. I'd spent the next 20-30 minutes working it out until I'd gotten it. Their weapons was mostly junk compared to what I'd looted from other enemies by then, but it was still great fun!

Thinking on my own and figuring things out for myself was the point of Ni-oh and, aside from the samurai-era wartime Japanese setting, it was what drew me in the most. I'll still buy Ni-oh and play it extensively, as I'm still incredibly interested in the game, but I may just go through with the tutorials turned "Off" if that's an option. Not something I'd ever thought about doing before, but I think it will be more fun to discover than be taught. Starting to understand the feelings of a particular Kinda Funny writer I've always admired a bit more now...

Taking weekends off

I Hate Non-News

I Hate Non-News