NEXT ISLAND - Part 1 - The Newbie Experience

MindStar9 (finally) Explores Next Island​

(this is part 1 of a 4-part series)​

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When David Post and I connected last Summer to work on his exclusive interview for the launch issue of the EntropiaTimes magazine September 2010, which focused on Next Island, I got a first-hand glimpse into the mind of the creator. Work on the article took place over a three month period, and gave enough information and content to give the Entropian community a view into the tropical environment that Next Island had become.​

It was a delightful process, because when David shared his vision and talked about the beginning of his journey at the age of 11, I could sense the almost boyish tone in the telling of the story. His enthusiasm and excitement about developing Next Island from a dream in his youth was ever-present in our communications. His ideas were clear, and his inspiration pure, and thus began a path that ultimately led to a realization in December 2010.

The initial release of Next Island was not without its challenges, but suffice it to say that perseverance over time paid off with improvements eventually being made. David and his team will be the first to tell you that there is still a ways to go, but they are in it for the long-haul, and recently moved the development process in-house. They also hired Harold Sipe, their new Producer/Planet Manager who will now oversee the production phase of development, among other responsibilities, and you can read more in the exclusive interview with Harold that was published in our June issue of the EntropiaTimes.

While there are still development issues to address, recent changes, updates and conversations with Harold and Meg (Community Relations Manager) inspired yours truly to finally make the maiden voyage to Next Island. Meg was helpful in a Skype chat with info and tips to get me started, and especially about the Ancient Greece part of the adventure (Part 4 of this series), but nothing I'm sure that isn't already posted at her blog or other forum sites. In so many words, she said my first activity would be a date with Arthur, and thus, the adventure begins.

THE NEWBIE EXPERIENCE

I stepped into the teleporter at Celeste Harbour on Arkadia, which is now my home, and made the Next Island selection - yes, I'll pay the 40 PED to transport. The transition and rendering took a bit, but it gave me an opportunity to become aware of an actual elevated level of excitement that I was about to explore a new planet - well, new for me anyway.

Upon arrival, I found it rather interesting that I was immediately given a Settler Suit, which apparently is given to all new players. However, I found it rather cool that not being a real newbie, I was still given a newbie suit, so thank you for that. I guess I can consider it a souvenier of sorts, and while it might have been even cooler to get the whole newbie feel by putting it on, I didn't - in hindsight, I kinda wish I had.

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It was only recently that the newbie arrival area was added to the planet, so I'm glad that I had an opportunity to see just how it was designed, as well as what type of efficiency it might have. I personally think it's rather important for new players to have a starting point, because it gives a direction, as well as an opportunity to learn more about the planet and its environment.

First order of business for me of course was my date with Arthur. I was told that this was the starting point that would branch me off into other areas. I didn't have to look too far to find Arthur, and he and I began to have a chat.

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I FOUND THE FOLLOWING TO BE ESPECIALLY HELPFUL​

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I made every effort to look at this beginning portion of my adventure from a newbie's perspective and how it might help to move things along. I found that as I progressed through the newbie experience, it seemed rather seamless. I like that details and explanations were present, as well as a continued marking on my radar and map of where I needed to go next. While a specific route wasn't given, it didn't need to be, because it added to the exploration part of the adventure.

I found my way over to Fyodor, who really wasn't that far away, and got further instructions with what I was to do next. Seems that Fyodor and some others are robots with some specific duties that he took the time to share with me.

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I like that information is disseminated that gives history about Elysium and Next Island, because I think it adds to the feel of what the planet is all about, as well as what they're trying to accomplish (storyline-related). As I moved along my newbie path, I made sure to take in the environment, and found a treehouse that I just had to climb. I think it's obvious by now that I arrived during the night cycle.

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TREEHOUSE​

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VIEW FROM THE TREEHOUSE​

I found the tropical environment quite inviting, and as I continued on my path with the newbie quests, I saw more and more scenery that I could only imagine was a glimpse into what the rest of the planet must look like.

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I was ready to get on with it and found my way to poor Samuel. I say poor Samuel, because apparently, there was a glitch in the matrix and his circuits went all haywire. He was in much need of repair for sure, and a quest was given to go in search of the equipment needed to accomplish this task.

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Once again, the way points were made available on my radar and map so that I was able to determine in which direction I needed to go in order to find the locations to search for the equipment needed to repair Samuel. This took some time because there was a 60 second wait in between searching on boxes located in an open tent area, but ... what I didn't plan on encountering was something trying to scare me.

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That little booger startled the bejeezus out of me. It was dark and while I was running I couldn't see anything, except for red dots on radar of course, but it appeared that nothing was aggro'ing so I kept on heading toward my destination. However, he wasn't satisfied with the scare attempt, because he then decided to run circles around me while also jumping in my face in a full attack.

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Needless to say, I had to take his ass out - and that was my first introduction to the friendly Papoo who do everything possible to welcome you. However, it seems that there was one little guy who was actually frightened by me - at least that's what I initially thought.

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Little bugger collected all of his pals and decided to have a party - well, it wasn't actually called a party, but rather 5 waves of Papoo during a quest to activate 4 sensors at various locations, and with each wave there were more mobs. This guy must have put the word out that I was in the newbie zone because each sensor location they were ready for me - even the King came out to pay his respects - well, maybe not respects, especially since I ended up taking his ass out along with the others, so I'm sure I'm on a list somewhere.

During the course of my wave adventures, I ran into an old friend that I hadn't seen since my Corinth Beach MSR radio shows - Billy Blu Horse - who used to be with the NBK at that time, but now has his own society. I learned that during the waves of Papoo, anyone shooting them gets credit, as he chimed in and smacked a few around himself.

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I ran into a few other friends along my travels as well, which made the experience even more pleasant. Kira-Red from Shaolin, a long-time friend, and someone I did a Who's Who profile on, helped me with getting the time travel crystals. I was kind of at a standstill for a minute when I met up with her and not sure how to talk Mary out of giving me the crystals - and I think this was the first point at which I think I got a bit lost in the quest system and what to do next. Not sure it's the fault of the quest line in particular, because it could have been a misread in what I was to do next, or clicking on the wrong thing, because things were going quite smoothly.

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Seems I had to go back to Arthur to have more of a chat, and maybe I should blame him for not being such a thorough date, eh? At any rate, I was able to get what I needed from Arthur in order to go back to Mary and talk her into giving me the 3 crystals I needed for the time travel to Ancient Greece. They are sitting in my inventory and will be used when I get to Part 4 of this series.

While heading back to have a chat with Mary, I ran into a couple of other long-time friends from Skillin' Villains - Cherries Jubilee and Archman - who shared that they were really enjoying themselves on Next Island.

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It was almost like old home week meeting up with a few friends I hadn't seen in a while. However, it was getting late for me, and I was just about finished with what I needed to accomplish for the evening. I really enjoyed myself, and I'm looking forward to exploring the main part of Next Island in Part 2 of this series. The only thing I need to watch out for (I'm sure), is running into Softy from Skillin' Villains, because she has the tendency to collect pets no matter what planet she's on, and she likes to show them to you.

It was now time for me to conclude my newbie experience, and prepare for the next leg of my adventure, but I didn't log off without a gift - perhaps in honor of my maiden trip to Next Island.

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PARTS 2 AND 3 WILL BE POSTED OVER THE WEEKEND​

AND PART 4 (ANCIENT GREECE) ON MONDAY​

 

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Hey 'gurl'friend ... I'll post a notice, but won't post the whole article. :)

And sure, notifying you absolutely would have changed the course of things! :p

I have no doubt I'll eventually run into you though, so that in itself will most likely be a separate adventure - but we've had some interesting times in the past, so I'm sure it's all good - right? :D

*damn, the front page is screwy*

 

Glad everyone enjoyed the Newbie Experience - I actually had fun learning about the various parts of the new player area, and I like the design of it. I have to say though, that my most fun experience was encountering those Papoo along the way just about at every turn. They crack me up! The animation is great, and the expressions on their faces are priceless at times. You'll see what I mean in Part 2 - The Mainland Experience.

I am off to write up Part 3 now, and it should be posted on the front page in a little while. :)