Skip to main content

Real-Time First Time User Experience (FTUE)

A new player is directed to play practice matches in a first time user experience (FTUE) before being allowed to explore other parts of the app. It is recommended to implement a Game Mechanics Tutorial and Practice Trainer matches for the FTUE. This will ensure the player has a grasp of the gameplay before they compete in a competitive match, or a match for a prize. In all instances where you use the Practice Trainer in the FTUE, the player should be alerted to the fact that he or she is playing against a Practice Trainer. Additionally, the player will not be allowed to compete for prizes during these practice matches.

Game Mechanics Tutorial​

A Game Mechanics Tutorial is a short explanation of the core mechanics of the game, which is implemented by the developer outside of the FTUE flow governed by the Skillz SDK. Many games like to add a short game tutorial before the Skillz SDK initializes. In this tutorial you can either lead players through a subset of the game or create a tutorial version of a full match -- it varies from game to game.

Implementing a Game Mechanics Tutorial​​

If you have not implemented a Game Mechanics Tutorial, see here for a best practices guide.

FTUE in Real-Time Games​

For a game which has only real-time (synchronous) play, a Practice Trainer is especially important so that the player doesn't have the potentially uncomfortable experience of going into a real-time game against another person without any guidance.

If a Practice Trainer is implemented in your game, then a player will go through two real-time tournaments using the trainer during the FTUE.

If a Practice Trainer is not implemented in your game, then a player will land on the play screen after creating their profile. Effectively, there is no FTUE in this case.

FTUE in Combined Real-Time and Play-and-Compare Games​

A Practice Trainer is still recommended for a game which has both real-time (synchronous) and play-and-compare (asynchronous) play. Games with both real-time and play-and-compare are often referred to as "hybrid" games. In this model, play-and-compare games may be intended as the soft introduction to the gameplay.

If a Practice Trainer is implemented in your game, then the FTUE will consist of a player going through one play-and-compare match and one real-time match.

If a Practice Trainer is not implemented in your game, then the FTUE will consist of a player going through two play-and-compare matches.

Implementing a Practice Trainer for FTUE​

Overview​

  • Indicate that a given build has support for a Practice Trainer match in the Skillz settings.
  • The Skillz SDK will be passing a Match object to the On Match Will Begin delegate containing special flags for the real-time FTUE match. The Match object has a Customer Server Connection Info with a new flag called IsBotMatch.
  • Your OnMatchWillBegin callback should watch for the IsBotMatch flag in order to trigger the Practice Trainer match, either into their own server for the Practice Trainer match, or to run the Practice Trainer match locally.

Skillz Settings​

You will need to indicate that a given build has support for a Practice Trainer match. If you do not, we will NOT send the player through the real-time FTUE.

A checkbox labeled Has Synchronous Bot can be found under Skillz Settings. Simply check this box, and the Unity Skillz Wrapper will handle exporting the flags properly for each platform. This box is unchecked by default.

API for Practice Trainer Matches​

public void OnMatchWillBegin(SkillzSDK.Match match)
{
    if ( match.CustomServerConnectionInfo.IsBotMatch )
    {
        // custom code to launch bot match
    }
}

The match object can also be retrieved from the SkillzCrossPlatform API:

if ( SkillzCrossPlatform.GetMatchInfo().CustomServerConnectionInfo.IsBotMatch )
{
            // custom code for bot match
}

Reporting Score for Practice Trainer Matches​

When your player has finished their FTUE real-time match, you will need to submit scores to return back to the Skillz SDK. We have added new methods to submit scores for Practice Trainer matches.

/// <summary>
    /// Call this method when a player's score is finalized to report their score to the Skillz server.
    /// This methods does not return control to the Skillz SDK.
    /// </summary>
    ///
    /// <param name="score">The player's score as an integer.</param>
    /// <param name="successCallback">A callback function that is invoked when the score submit completes successfully</param>
    /// <param name="failureCallback">A callback function that is invoked when the score submit fails. It is invoked with an error message parameter.</param>
    public static void SubmitScore(int score, Action successCallback, Action<string> failureCallback)

Creating a Practice Trainer Match​

This step will be unique to each game. The specific implementation will depend on the type of game and specific gameplay requirements. Generally, an opponent's actions will need to be simulated in some way and displayed to the user as if the opponent was a real player. These matches are tutorial in nature and do not involve entry fees or prizes.

FTUE Controls in Developer Console​

You can manage the FTUE for real-time games to change:

  1. Wait times before a player is matched with a Practice Trainer.
  2. Number of tournaments to complete the FTUE.
  3. Type of FTUE (Play-and-Compare, Real-Time, Hybrid).

Real-Time Tutorial Best Practices​

If a game features a real-time mode, the tutorial - regardless of the configuration - should include a section at the end explaining that it is possible to play a real-time match with a human opponent. This information should appear in both the play-and-compare tutorial and the real-time tutorial. In fact, unless there is an explicit need to call out real-time only functionality, we recommend only implementing the initial mechanics tutorial before the first match. If it is determined that the real-time mode absolutely must include different information than the play-and-compare mode, match info can be used to dynamically determine which tutorial to show.

Data shows that players that experience real-time play early on are much more likely to engage with pro tournaments. Any opportunity to remind players that real-time play is supported, and so positively impact the game’s metrics, should be strongly considered.

For real-time games using a FTUE flow, we also recommend notifying the player that they can play real-time games against a human opponent as soon as they complete their last match of the FTUE flows. Currently, the best time to relay this information is immediately upon completion of that second practice match and before the results screen (where the player presses Submit Score), as once the results screen appears, the player must be transitioned directly back to the SDK.