(i) In the PDA's Survival Checklist entry, amend step #8 to read "Find or construct a more permanent habitat (refer to Quick Start Guide)". The solution is straightforward and will take very little effort. You want a player to build a crude seabase as quickly as possible to keep the logistics functioning and the cycle of positive emotions flowing, and for that, you need to make it more obvious that a tube alone is good enough for those players who don't read a tool description.
Beginnings are such delicate times, to steal a line from Dune. Some reading this might roll their eyes and call me an idiot, but I'm just going to point at that 33% drop-off in players who bought the game, installed it, booted it up, and then quit before attempting one of the most basic, satisfying aspects of the game. That frustration is going to lead less invested players to quit. During those 1-2 hours, frustration is mounting quickly: since the player's instinct is to collect everything in sight, the lifepod's storage fills up almost immediately, and no seabase means managing a bunch of tiny floating storage lockers. I tried to wait until I found a room module, which of course takes a good 1-2 hours before stumbling across the multipurpose room blueprint on the floating island. Without any size reference and without knowing that a tube would grow supports when placed, I assumed when I reviewed the building menu that I was looking at passageways between functional rooms, not freestanding structures - useless on their own. As careful as I was to read data entries throughout the game, it never occurred to me that the description for my basic tools would contain critical plot instructions. The "Quick Start Guide" in the data entry for the Habitat Builder mentioned starting with a basic compartment, but I never even saw that data entry. But looking at the menu in the Habitat Builder, it was not at all clear that a single tube section is, totally alone, a functioning base within which I could build storage lockers. I was careful to read the survival guide on my PDA, which mentions the importance of building a seabase, I wanted to build a seabase because it seemed like a cool thing to do, and I desperately needed the storage. There's no guarantee they all quit for the same reason, but I can't help noticing that the drop-off happened at a point that nearly caused me to quit for good, too. But only 48% of players built a basic seabase which means that fully a third of all players who bought this game, installed it, and jumped in the water, quit before engaging in one of the first and most basic, satisfying activities. That said, looking at the plot-based achievements, it's interesting (i) that only 8.5% of players finished the game, and (ii) that the biggest drop-off occurs between players jumping in the water and players building their first crude seabase, which shouldn't be separated by very much gameplay.ħ5% of players jump in the water, which I assume means 25% of players bought it on sale and haven't installed, or finished playing during the beta before achievements activated. Long version: for the record, I just finished the game and I love it it's in my lifetime Top 100.
without researching tips and tricks, and without any involvement in the online community) aren't realizing that they can make a seabase out of a single tube section, and are quitting out of frustration over storage issues. Short version: a significant number of new players attacking the game cold (i.e.
Apologies for the dramatic title, but I think it's justified.
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