Speeding Around the Learning Curve
Or, Introducing New Players to the Pleasure and Complexity of Non-Gateway Games
Let me set the scene: its game night. The board is out, the pieces are distributed. You’re waiting on one more guy . . . who texts you. He’s bringing a friend, and that friend’s game experience ends at Monopoly. You look down at your table, with its board, expansion board, four draw piles, leveled currency system, and fifteen-page rulebook…
Now, you can box everything up and pull out Settlers of Catan, or you can forge ahead. Choose your own adventure, and choose wisely:
If you decide to grab a gateway game instead, read “Qualities to Look for in a Gateway Game”
If you choose to Continue With Your Game, read on.
1. Sample a few rounds.
“The game seems confusing up front, but you’ll get it after a couple turns.” Heard that one before? Yeah, we all have – and in most cases it’s true. It is not, however, particularly instructive. The stumbling-in-the-dark approach puts new players at an even greater disadvantage than they’re at to begin with; they have to spend their precious first turns learning the rules before they can even begin to develop a strategy. At that point, it may be too late for victory.
So why not just make the first few rounds not count? Or play a couple of sample turns to let the new players get their feet under them? Unless you’re playing an extremely long game, going through an extra two rounds isn’t going to break your time budget, and most games are random enough that you won’t ruin any surprises by testing things out.
Of course, this method won’t cover every eventuality. Something will inevitably come up in the real game that didn’t come up in the samples, but at least the new players will be better prepared.
2. Seek aide(s).
Graphical aides, that is. Charts, diagrams, and images that can be handed out to new players are invaluable when introducing someone to a complex game. Generally these are placards or sheets explaining things like turn order, actions, definitions, and win/loss conditions, and they vary in level of detail. Even the most descriptive ones will never replace a careful teacher, but these aides help answer simple questions before anyone actually asks them – a fact that both experienced and new players will enjoy.
Some developers include these with the game (e.g. Race for the Galaxy or Small World), but more often you’ll have to look online to find these add-ons. Boardgamegeek.com is a great resource for player-made guides, and we’ve made sure to include links to useful aides in our game reviews.
3. Practice artful omission.
If you’re a rules guy, you’re going to hate this one, but trimming your rules spiel will make a huge difference to a new player’s experience. I’m not advocating leaving out important details, but ask yourself if it’s all information that a new player would need to begin the game. If it’s not, hold off. In Power Grid, for instance, certain aspects of play don’t arise until the last third of the game and, therefore, don’t need to be extensively covered at the very beginning. In fact, if you use this method in conjunction with some of the others, you may not have to explain much of anything up front.
4. Talk the walk.
Explain everything you’re doing as you’re doing it, including the ramifications on your score – in fact, take all those words you omitted from your rules lecture and slide them back in here. It’ll be even better if you describe your strategy in vivo. By doing this, you not only familiarize new players with the basic gameplay, but you also clue them in to tactics that they might not otherwise notice until much later. While you may sacrifice a few points if other players take advantage of your transparency, there’s no better way to introduce a new player to the depth of a complicated game.
5. Focus!
Not on the game . . . ok, well, not only on the game. Pay attention to your newbs. Do they seem confused? Lost? Bored? Have they been able to pull off any good moves, or are they still floundering? If you’re not sure how they’re doing, ask them. Don’t be afraid to mention if you see an occasional move that they might not be aware of, but be careful not to overstep your bounds and play for them. If they want to build a road even though you would build a farm, it’s not the end of the world – whether it works or doesn’t, they’ve learned something.
So, now you’re well armed with strategies to integrate new players. Your job isn’t quite over yet, though! There are also a few traps to avoid when teaching. Here’s a short list:
1. Don’t just let them win.
Not only is this a patronizing move, but it’s also not actually helpful. A major component of teaching a new game (or anything, really) is modeling: demonstrating through your actions and strategies how to play the game. You can’t do this if you’re not playing well, and you really can’t do this if you’re purposefully playing poorly. Don’t go out and target the newbie, sure, but don’t avoid him either. You might spare some feelings here and there, but my guess is that if he gets upset over losing his first play-through, the problem lies more with him than with you or the game.
2. Don’t be a rules lawyer.
Wait, we’re using THAC0 instead? What the hell is THAC0?
We all know one – that guy who spends game night buried in the rulebook. Cheating may never be acceptable and new players need to learn the boundaries of the game, but cut them some slack. If they draw two cards instead of one or play out of turn, point it out and move on. Presumably, the point of teaching them the game is so that they can play with you again in the future. If you spend the entire game criticizing, it’s doubtful that they’ll even want to.
3. Don’t get angry – get creative.
As an avid member of the Can-We-Please-Play-Arkham-Without-A-Newb-Just-This-Once-Ahhh-This-Is-Taking-Forever Club, I’m not going to preach tolerance and love all across the board here. Sometimes playing with someone new is frustrating: setup takes longer, turns lose their flow, strategies are interrupted, etc. If you’re feeling yourself losing your patience though, a slight change of attitudes and goals on your part will likely be more effective in the long run. Look at the play-through as a way to test alternative strategies – ones that you might not risk in an ordinary game. Don’t lose on purpose (see above), but get creative, try something new – experiment and you might just discover something that you can carry back to your more experienced friends later.
Now that you have familiarized yourself with these new player suggestions, you should have the requisite knowledge to venture further into Nerdland.
If you choose to continue bravely onward, turn to Page 42.
If you feel you are not properly prepared, you may Go Back to Page 1.