Enhancing Onboarding Experience for First-Time Players in a Multiplayer Video Game
A multiplayer team-based action game, Game A, had nearly 40% of new players drop off before completing the first game. Onboarding systems had not been updated since beta testing. There was friction around early missions & team formation.
Goal
The research goal was to understand where players struggle during onboarding and identify opportunities to increase confidence, mastery, and early social engagement.
Key research questions:
What challenges do first-time players face when navigating the onboarding experience?
How effectively does the game teach core mechanics systems during the first session?
At what points do new players feel confident?
At what points do new players feel confused?
How do players discover and interpret features such as team formation and loadout customization?
What are the early signals of long-term engagement?
What are potential drop-offs within the first 7 days?
Project Overview & Contributions
Duration: 6 weeks
Role: Senior User Experience Researcher
Responsibilities:
Collaborated with game desginers, producers, and UX strategists to define research goals and success metrics around first-time player experience
Designed and led a three phase research plan, including heuristic evaluation, remote usability testing, and a 7-day diary study
Created all research materials: discussion guides, observation templates, diary prompts, and recruitment screeners
Recruited and segmented 18 participants across three distinct player profiles (Social Gamers, Solo Explorers, and New-to-Genre Players)
Moderated 1:1 usability sessions over Zoom, facilitating live gameplay observations and capturing player reactions
Monitored participant engagement throughout the diary study, ensuring daily submissions and quality depth
Synthesized behavioral patterns and emotional touch points into actionable insights
Deliverable:
Produced a detailed report including video highlights, key findings, and recommendations
Presented findings to cross-functional teams including game design, narrative, UX, and product management
Research Design
The study was a three phase mixed methods study designed to capture both first impressions and longer-term engagement patterns.
Phase 1: Heuristic Evaluation - The objective was to identify usability issues in onboarding user interface
Phase 2: Remote Usability Testing - The objective was to observe the players’ first-time experiences (1.5 hours)
Phase 3: Diary Study- The objective was to track daily sentiment and player behavior (7 day study)
Participants
I recruited 18 participants to ensure both qualitative depth and segment diversity within project scope. Participants were screened to meet these criteria:
Regular gamers (2-10 hours/week)
Never played this game previously
Using console, with optional use of companion mobile application
3 player segments: (N=6 per group)
Social Gamers - primarily plays multiplayer games
Solo Explorers - focus on the story or skill-based games
New-to-Genre Players - unfamiliar with team-based or action heavy games
Research Phases
This study was conducted in three sequential phases to capture both live reactions and evolving player sentiment over time. Each phase was designed to build on the last, starting with expert evaluation, followed by observed gameplay, and concluding with self-reporting.
Phase 1: Heuristic Evaluation
Goal: Identify usability issues in the onboarding experience before user testing
Conducted expert walkthrough of the game’s tutorial, menu system, and first mission
Evaluated using a customized heuristic framework based on established game UX principles such as consistency, clarity, and learnability
Identified early pain points and potential obstacles that could impact comprehension, progression, and motivation
Findings helped shape observation focus areas for usability testing in Phase 2
Phase 2: Remote Usability Testing
Goal: Observe real-time behaviors and first impressions during onboarding
18 participants joined 90 minute moderated sessions via Zoom
Players shared their screen and controller input while completing the first 45 minutes of gameplay
Captured how players approached tutorials, interpreted feedback, and interacted with interface systems
Observed frustration, missed features (e.g., gear, squad invites), and verbalized confusion or hesitation
Collected live quotes and video highlights for analysis and reporting
Phase 3: 7-Day Diary Study
Goal: Track ongoing player sentiment, confidence, and feature discovery over time
Participants submitted short reflections over 7 consecutive days (minimum of 3 entries)
Prompts focused on the gameplay experience, skill progression, and social interactions
Revealed when momentum dropped (typically around Day 3) and helped players persist (e.g., joining a team, mastering a skill)
Observation of evolving context and player narratives beyond the first session
Key Insights & Recommendations
The research uncovered several core challenges that impacted players’ onboarding experience, confidence with game systems, and early engagement— particularly around tutoarials, UI clarity, and social play. Listed below are recommendations delivered for the study.
Players struggled to absorb critical information during onboarding: The onboarding tutorial introduced too many mechnaics too quickly, resulting in confusion, skipped steps, and missed systems like upgrading options (e.g., gear, weapons).
Interface inconsistencies hid key systems from players: Players struggled to locate and understand key features such as team formation when switching between console and companion mobile app.
Players needed more social nudges early in the game: While team play was a core part of the game, most players did not discover or engage with it until several minutes later, if at all. Players who joined teams within the first 2 sessions showed higher engagement and overall satisfaction.
Confidence came from mastering mechanics, not collecting rewards: Players felt more motivated when they overgame challenges and not when they earned badges. This was most consistent of the participants in the new-to-genre segment.
Early friction led to hesitation or abandonment: The majority of disengaged players dropped off between Days 2-3, when gameplay became more complex without additional support. Many didn’t feel confident enough to continue experimenting.
Recommendations:
Break onboarding into staged tutorials that introduce mechanics contextually (e.g., unlock team features only after solo play). Provide “hands-on” learning moments immediately after new concepts are introduced to increase comprehension.
Redesign navigation for consistency across platforms and devices. Highlight essential features (e.g., gear, team, mission) with fewer clicks/taps and add visual cues (e.g., “New!” tag) to help players locate key features.
Introduce social “matchmaking’ nudges after the first tutorial mission (e.g., “Play this next mission with others and earn 2x”). Show suggested players or one-click invites to reduce the amount of time spent on team formation.
Reward skill mastery with contextual feedback (e.g., “Great combo!” or “Perfect streak!”). Track and reflect personal growth metrics (e.g., time survived, accuracy) along traditional rewards to help players recognize progress.
Offer a re-engagement moment on Day 2 such as a dynamic message or mission suggestion. Tailor the message to player behavior (e.g., “Looks like you’re ready to join a team!”).
“I didn’t even know I had different weapons. That whole section looked locked.”
“I didn’t even think about teaming up until it popped up on like Day 4. That made it way more fun.”