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Outcasted Advantages
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Important question
For any of you who weren't on Tengaged AND did not have any friends here before you joined:
How easy was it to get the hang of Kovaze? What would you improve about the new user experience?
If you were on Tengaged / had friends here and still had a difficult experience, feel free to also share :)
34 votes, 383 points
Comments
Currently still a new user, never played tengaged. I feel like it would be very hard for me to immerse myself into the website if I didn’t already know people here. The competitions are very speed reliant, and given that it’s social strategy games taking place in an environment where everybody knows each other, and you have no chance to compete with their competitive ability because there’s no way to practice the games, they’re all based on speed, and the instructions read a bit poorly until you’ve played it at least once or twice, and you also have a little chance to disrupt the social game because everybody already knows each other and six to what they know, it’s hard to get into the games because it feels like you’re just fighting a losing battle constantly and on all sides. I think that allowing a practice round before the actual competition takes place could help alleviate this so that new players can get a feel for the game they’re about to play before it matters in terms of the competition. I think also more strategy, minigame or luck base comps could be quite beneficial. things that remain equitable regardless of times played.
Another thing I forgot to mention, as someone else said already I am not a fan of the use of AI art on the site as well as by users. This is just a personal opinion of course and I don't expect people to conform to my view on it. But there are a lot of people opposed to using AI for art and designs, and those are potentially people who could be users on here but get pushed away.
Hello! So I was never on tengaged and didn't even know about it. Kovaze was an entirely new experience for me. Some of my thoughts and feedback: 1. When I joined, the comps did not really have explanations. This made it a lot harder to know what to do, and I had to ask people for instructions etc. Now they do have instructions which is helpful! 2. Before the recent new comps were added, I felt like there was too much emphasis on being fast in games. This naturally gives a big advantage to people who have been on here longer, and makes it harder for new players to stay invested and not discouraged. Water tank is a great new addition in that regard. I hope we can get more comps that are not focused on being fast. I know Words is gone right now but even for something like that, I think there should be way more words added because the good players basically know the word list already. 3. As others said, it would be nice to have an area to practice the competitions. Even if it's just a different comp each day in the practice area, it would motivate new players to improve and stick around. 4. Hysteria is my favorite, but it takes too long to fill. Frenzy has a similar problem. I would ideally play these more than Race or Arena, but they are not available as much. I don't know what exactly can be done about this though. 5. Some of the finer details like how the water and food work in Outcasted should be mentioned somewhere, like on a guide page or FAQs page. Including info about how tie breakers work exactly, how many idols there are etc. 6. I have met many nice people on here and made new friends who have been kind and helpful! But unfortunately, just for me personally, I do not have a great view of the community as a whole. That's not something reflective of the site itself and not really something one can control, but worth pointing out as a somewhat newer player here. Overall it was not easy getting into the site as a new player, and I had to rely a lot on guidance from other players. But the games here are inherently fun which kept me around and wanting to learn more and improve!
I just want to share one thing about the competitions on Kovaze. SO many of them are speed based. If you aren't fast, you can't be competitive in comp based games. I love water tank as it's a precision game. I would love more mini games that are stategy based and have no element of speed. I think only 30% of comps should be speed based at the most. Thanks for taking in all this feedback to make Kovaze even better for new players. <3
I’m tg but having a hard time making friends
I was on tengaged very briefly. I think if I didn’t know Raava cherry justini and had their help I would’ve had a really hard time making friends I think adding the explanations to the mini games was a really good move for new players though! I miss boutiques because it can be really hard to make enough coins to buy from shops bc there’s lots of comp beasts and social games are very hard for new players
alicat aw hugs
I wasn’t on Tengaged and only knew of CarltonRS and I would say for me personally it was a little tough to get used to things especially in the beginning. I think for the new user experience maybe a way for them to practice comps? I could use that now tbh with the new comps bc I suck at all of them 😆
The site should have a free market and not a hyper competitive toxic one that prioritizes shop owners providing exclusive items to a small group. I quit Tengaged way back when because the shop system was frustrating and at a certain point trying to wiggle my way into already existing social groups didn't seem worth it anymore.
I would like to be able to play the challenges so I know what to expect and get better. I am nervous to join a game as I don’t know how to play the mini games. Zwooper used to have a practice area, plus you could just go there to play, win points, if games took a long time to fill.
I’ve said this many times and received a lot of similar comments from other users but the amount of potential users ik who were really turned off from even trying out a game bc of the “ai slop” really is a lot and that’s just general website design
Lowkey kinda frustrated with how long frenzy takes to fill… one of mine took 2 hrs. Is there a way to fix this issue?
I'm not who this blog is for but I'll still throw in two cents: - A new user who is eager is going to have questions upon questions, most pages should have a ? at the top to help curb most of them, in other words your FAQ is spread out to where it is relevant, and this includes within games - On the topic of games, the main thing I think Tengaged has you beat on currently is the first 1 to 2 week experience, which is the window that a new user is deciding whether this place is worth their time. Frenzy and Fastings are sort of equivalents in that it mostly requires only the eagerness of the user to participate to do well, but like theworldofjj said, Frenzys take a WHILE to fill. I'd say to take the number needed to start one down to somewhere between 9 and 11, reducing the prizes and number of jury spots too. The quicker you can get a user to play a game, the higher chance they want to play another. They don't want to sit in a lobby for hours. Tide's idea of a 4 person quick battle could also be good! - Another way to get a new user to keep coming back is a long starter-friendly game. Outcasted is too complicated for a newer user, and Arena is not friendly for new users to do well, which is discouraging and I think a net negative. Castings was perfect since you could introduce the player to the challenges, but it was only a small fraction of the performance of the user for the game day. If the new user was eager and talkative, they could survive a long while, and they'll keep coming back with not only the updates, but maybe for the other users they are getting to know. Overall, I'm saying Arena needs to get moved away from newer users, and more and more this site needs its Castings or its equivalent. - Hysteria is a slightly better new user game than Arena in my opinion, idk what the point requirements are but I'd give Hysteria to a new user to play before Arena. Hysteria feels like such a dead game that takes ages to fill, there's got to be some way to bring some life to it. Making it a long game is one thing I'd try out. - To echo NicoRobin, if a feature is inactive (boutiques, auctions, the buy button within gift shops for everyone except the owner of the shop), let's hide it for now - And lastly to echo TonyT a bit, maybe a starter shop that never closes or sells out where any user can buy some really basic male, female, and unisex clothes and accessories for cheap, just so new users can expand their closet early. They would need to be able to afford one of these items after doing a few games, these items should be extremely accessible. You want to get that halo effect (a term you should know if you don't) quickly, and buying that first item that they EARNED is one way to accomplish that. Make it so they must do at least one game to buy these items. And if they sucked at those first few games? Maybe unlock a different item or two automatically in their closet to encourage them to keep trying.
And if you get nothing else from this, I hope you receive that your goal to strive for should be to get the halo effect strengthened as many times as possible on a new user within the first 15 to 30 minutes of usage. Sitting in a dead Frenzy lobby doesn't accomplish that. Getting a bad Arena placement because they don't know the challenges doesn't accomplish that. Being told they can't buy a single design for themselves for a long time doesn't accomplish that, assuming they don't want to spend money.
The hardest thing for me to figure out was the mechanics of Outcasted (hunting, morale, penalties, balancing water/food) and Royale (what camo was, navigating the map, popups, etc). A FAQ or Game Modes 101 tab would have been super helpful.
When I first joined the site, I was very confused with the shops until I got some answers with my first blog. I saw all these beautiful and exciting avatars, and was excited to customize my own. But once the shops opened for the next round, I was disappointed. There were only a few male avatar items, but I was just happy to get anything at that point as I was dying to change my avatar. The vending machine was sort of helpful in getting designs, but then I never really wore much of what I got out of it. Maybe you could give some users the power to vote on 1/3 of the items you're considering putting in there, so that there's a bigger chance someone would using the vending machine based on the preferences of other users as well. In terms of games, Frenzy as a beginner game was an ok experience. It did remind me of playing Fast Survival on Zwooper, which was also a quick beginner game, but personally I get overwhelmed by these fast-paced games. I was also discouraged by the PM system, because you have to manually select the user you would like to message every time. I wish it stayed on the same user and you would only need to select again if you left the page or refreshed. I got over it and just see it as a minor inconvenience from time to time, but I would still appreciate not having to re-select who I'm talking to in a short span of time. In terms of integrating with the site and making friends, it was a bit depressing seeing all these friend groups just easily talking to one another. It makes me wish that I joined Kovaze earlier or was part of Tengaged at some time, as it kind of felt like you needed those credibilities at first. Although I think that's the standard with these reality TV sites anyways. But I'm not someone who fits in easily so I think I would've struggled in this aspect regardless (:
i came from tg and still get so confused lol, there kinda needs to be better defined rules and an overview on structure in games, namely - outcasted especially after merge & honestly that game in general is not user friendly, ive played twice and had to ask like 50 questions during it - royale (as an outsider i will literally never play bc idk whats going on) - practice links for challenges if possible as there's a HUGE gap - i like that you can see top blogs for past day/week/etc but i think having certain blogs of yours auto-pinned is a good idea. like i spent 10 minutes this weekend *knowing* that a race tournament was underway but no idea if i was able to join races because i couldn't find a clear answer i think you're doing a lot right but as a relatively new user i remember blogging about how this website, though pretty, can be really hard for new users without detailed instructions in game modes. and i'd imagine smaller things like gift shops would confuse me even more if i didnt come from tg genuinely happy to give any further feedback or work on implementing a solution to some of these points raised by me & others, there's a lot of potential w this website and this is something i've felt passionate about lol
I was kind of a loner and just did my own thing looking for anyone to accept me during my time, so when I got here I still had my guard up because of how much emotional damage I was dealt with before and I hoped that this was much different now that I was older and in an environment that I felt comfortable in (irl). With that being said, I was able to adapt to an extent because I just click around, explore, and ask, but I do know not everyone is like me. I think a starter guide for new players would be nice sort of like in some Gatcha games where they have beginner wishes for new players to set the ropes. So when someone joins a pop up is like "Welcome to Kovaze" first thing you need to do is dress up your avatar. Once they do that then they can start Frenzy with detailed rules on how the game is (maybe an infographic on how the game is) and then go from there. Maybe once they complete the "Starter Quests" they can earn the starter package which is like Koinz and Diamonds. Moving forward I do think the features of stuff should have instructions. I'm still confused a bit on shops sometimes and other elements of the games. I know people are confused on the gift shop stuff. I remember when I first joined and saw a gift shop item for 1 Koinz, I was like ooo I should snag this and was confused at first on why I couldn't get it till it was eventually explained to me. If there was a question mark button that explained the difference then I wouldn't have clicked the buy button 100 times thinking something was wrong with my shitty internet. Some stuff has not been updated and I don't want to look like boo-boo the fool when I think I know something when clearly I don't. Also if there is a feature that we are not using anymore, I think it should be removed like auctions and boutiques. I don't know what your plan is with them, but I think hiding them at this point (idk how that works with coding so if that is the reason then ignore this) would be great because if new players see this and are interested, it gives them false hope because it is a feature that is currently disabled for a reason they have no clue and they may not play scavenger hunt to find out why. Overall the biggest thing is accessibility/communication. Not everyone is a mind reader so having things to help with that will be helpful in the long run and make people less frustrated. The more user friendly it is the better...now they have to do some effort, but I think there is a happy medium to it.
Not from Tengaged, found this site randomly and i have a few thoughts: First, I met a lot of cool people on Frenzy games. I like that they’re one of the first you play to earn points before exploring the others, but I’m noticing they don’t fill. It’s always a little disheartening to see new players wait for hours. I’ve been unable to play one because I don’t always have the time for them to fill. Not sure how to fix that, but I definitely saw an excitement with Race updates, might be worth looking at engaging people in Frenzy by doing the same? I’d suggest jury chats like Hysteria, or even eliminated player chats across games, just so folks can still do something. When I started, even when I was voted out early, I’d watch a game and see what happened and chat with others based on that. Another idea: I know not everyone has Discord, but more integrations with the channel there at least helps facilitate connections a bit easier. I still don’t feel super social, but I do think I know enough to know what’s going on around here. A part of that’s on me and life but I appreciate Kovaze as a hobby/escape. When I do, I enjoy the conversations I have, whether they be personal or gameplay related. But i find that most happen via Discord. Final thing: I think promoting the other things Kovaze offers but games early on would help them realize they can just come on to start a shop, or blog, or join a group and play ORGs that way. Maybe a “welcoke guide” or sorts or even an explainer. Personally, even to this day, I’d love a practice arena sort of thing with mini games in small groups just to practice. I played so many Frenzy’s that i didn’t even realize that there were mini games to master until I began to branch out. P.S. Adding this because I thought about it after the fact, but what about a mentor program? Something like the more seasoned players welcoming the newer ones just to help them get adjusted.
EDIT: “welcome*** guide”
hmm, is there a way for them to have their very own "tutorial" to the website? it would guide the user what page to visit next e.g the blogs page, explain what can be done here, then move to the games page and explain the games, filling games system etc, how to get designs for your avatar etc. i think it could also be interesting and not sure if possible? to have their own AI-BOT "practice game" - it could explain each game in a bit more detail with pop-up annotations on what to do next in the game. - this game doesn't need to count to their profile but they could get some starting koinz after completing. they'd even get the chance to practice competitions and the BOTS could have pre-set scores so that the new user has a chance of what to do when they win a HOH etc. (could even manipulate the game to force everyone to nominate the same two bots (and evict in case something would mess up the game if they got a certain bot out)? they wouldn't need to complete the full game as such, or could even just have 6 bots in the tutorial for quickness.
It wasn’t the easiest to get started but very slowly you catch on. I think the main issue isn’t the website navigation as a new person but the unwelcoming atmosphere from a lot of the long standing members who have so many pre existing relationships and aren’t as accepting of new people.
VenusVafa i remember I was SHOCKED that you weren't on tengaged because I liked you so much immediately!! Glad you stuck it out <3
If my wives cheated on me here, is that considered a difficult experience? And I'll be serious for a moment - there were some difficult tasks that I once failed to accomplish, and today I'm here and able to accomplish them.
casayo well no!
I played TG a little (more social side) and came to Kovaze with no friends and no idea what to expect. I quickly found I was drawn to social games and found Arena’s a little challenging and disheartening as I was losing a lot, but in saying that I enjoyed being forced into continuing to get better. Perhaps for new users upon signing up a practice of the mini games if they want to (just once - and maybe with a tip or two!) to get a feel of the mechanics. All in all I felt comfortable and curious to continue on to learn about the game and what it has to offer. Being in the Australian Timezone I find it challenging to find active games at night (which is when I’d prefer to play) but understand that the player base is growing and once it’s beefed up a little thisll be more likely. All in all, the balance was nice and challenging and left me wanting more.
One thing you've definitely improved on with the new competitions is explaining what to do before you begin the competition. I remember being new and not really knowing how to play some of the competitions at the time, until I'd already pressed the start button. If possible I feel like if we could implement some sort of message/screen like Water Tank, Balloons, Treasure Hunt have, it'd be one of the most helpful things to new users.
Miami THIS!! We need a board of like user tips and tricks for comps that can be +'d and -'d haha
As a returnee: I think that the natural "slow paced" nature of the website is really hard to keep new players engaged. Naturally, you only have access to certain things as you get familiar with the site, and games begin to unlock. I know that this site is still in its infancy, but the more there is to do the better. I personally think that things like the raffle, bingo, wheel spin, grabber are all really important. It's nice to have things to do while you wait for friends to come online, or to respond to a mail. I think personally something like a battle arena where 4 players join in, a random comp is assigned, and top 2 gain/bottom 2 lose would be a great addition to the site. More small little things to do around the site to keep attention spans. One huge benefit to Kovaze is the consistency. I know what i'm going to expect, and new changes are easily readable and highlighted. (Love the alerts ping in the top. Maybe the option to customize it for certain things in the future would be great!) All in all, people need more places to just do stuff. We both know rooms had that intent, but I think keep at it with what you've been doing. This is such a great site so far. Truly!
Tide Thank you!! I agree but I do worry about throwing new users into an Arena for example where they may be taken out immediately and that'll leave a bad impression for them.
Sin It would definitely be cool if Kovaze could maybe find a way to produce an anonymous type game then to combat that :O
Tide I think that would be cool instead of like my original arena idea then i takee it backkk
Sin what about a 1v1 elo game where you are queued into a random competition against someone close to you in elo, and the winner gains/loser drops. Like it could literally just be 1 comp for something to do when you’re bored. I think people would enjoy that and it would be fairly easy to implement?
I was in tengaged and its hard for me cause i cant play in some groups or people wont more people beeing friends, games are full of big alliances and usuallys works
BIGBRYY99 I moreso meant navigating the website and knowing how to join games etc, but I hear you! I'm always looking for creative solutions to make games less premadey (a larger playerbase will help with that as well, hence my focus on user friendliness)
Sin ahh okay! I think is easy learn and play games, comps are hard cause u cant practise and in arena you are not going to reach top9 usually