Level Up Your Tutorials: Treat Them Like Onboarding Flows

Let’s face it: most game tutorials are terrible.

They’re walls of text, or they throw everything at you at once. They forget that your game is supposed to be fun. The result? Players quit before they even understand your core mechanics.

What if we treated tutorials not as necessary evils, but as the most important part of your game? That’s where the concept of onboarding flows comes in.

Onboarding Flows: More Than Just a Tutorial

Think about successful apps or SaaS platforms. They don’t just tell you how to use their product. They guide you, step-by-step, showing you the value proposition along the way. This is user onboarding. Your game’s tutorial should do the same.

Instead of dumping all the controls and rules in the first five minutes, design a sequence of challenges. Each challenge introduces a single mechanic, building on the previous one. This is how you gradually reveal the depth of your game without overwhelming the player.

Planning Your Tutorial Flow: Start With the Goal

Before you write a single line of tutorial text, figure out what you want players to achieve by the end of it. What core skills do they need to enjoy the rest of the game? What’s the “hook” that will keep them playing?

For example, in a strategy game, maybe the goal is for the player to successfully build a small base and defend it from a minor attack. In a platformer, it might be mastering a specific jump combination to reach a hidden area.

List these goals. Then, break down each goal into smaller, achievable steps. This becomes the outline for your tutorial flow.

Dynamic and Contextual Help: Less is More

No one wants to read a novel disguised as a tutorial. Keep instructions brief and to the point. Better yet, make them contextual. Only show instructions when the player needs them, and ideally, where they need them.

Imagine a puzzle game where the player is stuck. Instead of a generic “check the hint system,” the game could subtly highlight the relevant object or area.

I worked on a small RPG where we used tooltips that appeared only when the player hovered over an interactable object. The tooltip explained the object’s function and the required resources. This avoided cluttering the screen with constant instructions.

Positive Reinforcement: Celebrate Success

Acknowledge the player’s progress. Provide positive feedback when they successfully complete a step. This could be as simple as a visual cue, a sound effect, or a brief congratulatory message.

Avoid being condescending. Phrases like “Good job!” or “You did it!” can feel patronizing. Instead, focus on the accomplishment itself. “You successfully built a wall!” or “You dodged the enemy attack!” are more effective.

In one game jam project, we added a small particle effect and a satisfying “chunk” sound whenever the player correctly placed a tile. It was a subtle addition, but it made a huge difference in how rewarding the tutorial felt.

Common Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)

• Information Overload: Don’t frontload everything. Introduce mechanics gradually.
• Lack of Context: Instructions should be relevant to the current situation.
• Ignoring Player Agency: Give players a chance to experiment and learn on their own.
• No Feedback: Players need to know if they’re doing things right (or wrong).
• Unskippable Tutorials: Respect the player’s time. Allow experienced players to skip the tutorial.

Iteration is Key: Listen to Your Players

Playtesting is crucial. Watch how players interact with your tutorial. Where do they get stuck? What confuses them? Where do they seem bored?

Don’t be afraid to revise your tutorial based on this feedback. It’s an iterative process. Even small changes can have a big impact on player engagement.

We released an early access version of our game with a clunky tutorial. Players complained that it was too long and boring. We shortened it, added more visual cues, and incorporated a small “challenge” at the end. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive.

Examples in Action

Consider how Portal teaches you its mechanics. It doesn’t give you a manual. It places you in carefully designed test chambers that force you to use the portal gun in increasingly complex ways. This is onboarding flow at its finest.

Similarly, Baba Is You cleverly introduces its rule-based system through a series of simple puzzles. The player gradually learns the language of the game by experimenting with different word combinations.

These games don’t just tell you how to play; they show you.

Retention and Engagement

A well-designed tutorial isn’t just about teaching players the rules. It’s about convincing them that your game is worth their time. It’s about creating a positive first impression and hooking them with your core gameplay loop.

By treating your tutorial as an onboarding flow, you can dramatically improve player retention and engagement. You’ll turn confused newcomers into enthusiastic fans. And that’s the ultimate goal.