[Feedback] Comprehensive New Player Experience & Short Tutorial Improvements

1. The Good: A Strong Foundation

• Initial Sequence: The start itself is fantastic! Getting out, using the cutter to access the chest, finding the datapad, and repairing the ship all combine into a very solid, engaging way to begin the game.

2. Tutorial & Explanation Gaps (Where Text Hints Are Needed)

• Unexplained Jargon ("Grids"): The game relies heavily on the term "grid" (e.g., the Connector tooltip states it allows grids to lock together). A brand-new player has no idea what a "grid" actually is (A ship? A station? A rover?). The tutorial desperately needs to define this fundamental terminology.
• Datapads Feel Like Placeholders: The current datapads (like ENG-002) just list basic keybindings (WASD, Space, etc.). Disguising a simple controls menu as an "Engineering Manual" is a bit of a letdown. These should be utilized to provide actual gameplay hints, missing blueprints, or mechanical explanations.
• Deconstructing/Cutting: When cutting thrusters into parts, the game shows visual cues, but doesn't explicitly state in text that you are receiving the actual physical components back from those parts. It leaves a bit too much for a new player to guess.
• Connectors & Free Fuel: The starting station has a pad with a connector, which provides free fuel/power. The game needs a simple text hint to tell the player this! Currently, it doesn't explain what the connector is for or that this highly valuable free resource is sitting right there.
• Survival Kit: The game does not explain that you have a free survival kit available to use at the starting station.
• Mining: The tutorial needs to state that mining actual ore deposits is about 10x faster than mining regular non-deposit terrain. It seems logical to veterans, but new players won't instinctively know this.

3. Building Mechanics & Progression Issues

• Grid Alignment / Connector Forgiveness: If you try to connect two pre-built structures (like using connectors) and they aren't perfectly aligned, you are forced to scrap one down and rebuild it the correct way. The game needs to either be more forgiving with this alignment or explicitly warn players in advance so they don't waste time and resources.
• Area Welder / Platinum Soft-lock: The Area Welder requires a Platinum Electrode, but there is no platinum in the starting system. This forces players to use the default hand welder, which is incredibly tedious and makes it very hard to see the proper build order.
• Empty Blueprints: The blueprint menu is completely empty by default. Players shouldn't have to hunt on the Steam Workshop for basic starting blueprints, especially since the exact starting plane is very difficult to find there anyway.
• No Failsafe for Mistakes: If a player messes up building their first ship, they are completely stuck with no way forward.Failsafe Suggestion: Add an option to buy simple starter ships or rovers at the station. Alternatively, hide a backup vehicle somewhere in the world (like an old ship in a barn) so players have a "Plan B" just in case they ruin their first vehicle.

Final Note on Visibility, Survival Balance, and Player RetentionIf the game actually does have this information explained somewhere already, the fact that a new player can completely miss it is proof that it needs to be much more upfront. While I understand this is a Survival mode start and shouldn't hold the player's hand too much, having straightforward tips trigger during actual gameplay is necessary. You can always give players the option to toggle tutorial tips off in the settings once they learn the ropes.

The Reality Check: Space Engineers 2 is a fresh Alpha project. At this crucial stage, the development team must focus heavily on the New Player Experience and tutorialization, regardless of whether a feature is currently fully supported or not. The lack of these basic explanations and failsafes generates immense frustration and permanently drives away new players who would have otherwise stayed and supported the game. That is an undeniable fact of game development, and getting the onboarding right is just as important as the physics engine.