Join the RoClicks Discord
RoClicks

The kid's first-10-minutes audit

A repeatable way to see the game the way a new 8-to-12-year-old sees it. You can do it by playing a fresh save or by reading the code path (an AI agent can do the code version without a playtest).

4 min read

A repeatable way to see the game the way a new 8-to-12-year-old sees it. You can do it by playing a fresh save or by reading the code path (an AI agent can do the code version without a playtest).

Contents

Method

  1. Start from a brand-new save. In Studio, make sure saves go to memory, not the live DataStore.
  2. Walk the path from "Join" to minute 10, one row per moment: loading, intro, each tutorial step, the celebration, the first free-play decision, the first loss.
  3. For each row write down the code location, the wait, the clicks and decisions, and every number and menu on screen.
  4. Screenshot the first frame of the HUD and count its elements.
  5. List every Robux surface the player can see or hit.
  6. Total it up and rank the friction.
  7. Then look one step past the tutorial: what is the first decision the player makes alone, and does it lead to a likely loss?

The table

# Moment Code Wait Clicks / decisions Numbers & menus on screen Robux surfaces
1 Join, before any UI
2 Intro
3 Tutorial step 1
…
n First free-play choice
n+1 First loss

Totals:

  • seconds of forced waiting (loading, intro, timers, battles, banners);
  • clicks to the first win;
  • full menus opened before minute 4;
  • numbers on the first HUD frame;
  • Robux surfaces visible before minute 10.

What to count

Count Healthy target Why
Decisions 1 per step Each extra choice is a place to stall.
Numbers on screen Under ~5 on the first HUD One game showed ~20 numbers and 26+ HUD elements on frame one.
Full menus before minute 4 1 or 2 Sell, Army, War and a building panel in 4 minutes was too many.
Forced waits Under ~15 s before the first action 60 s of intro on top of 40 s of blank loading lost players.
Robux prompts 0 that open by themselves See monetization.
Robux buttons 0 during the tutorial One tutorial had 3 paid buttons inside it.
Modal time after a win Under ~5 s, tap to dismiss VICTORY + conquest popup + stamp was ~11 s.

Red flags

  • Blank or default screen before your UI appears.
  • An intro that can't be skipped with one tap.
  • The whole HUD appears at once. Reveal elements as they become useful: progress counter at the first conquest, research at its tip, event timer with the first event, social rewards after 15 minutes.
  • A dense screen in the tutorial (a sell screen with ~25 numbers: drifting prices, trend arrows, x10%/xAll, sliders).
  • A "verdict" screen shown as a spreadsheet (power 64 vs 26, walls 36 sections, towers 2, win chance, a legend). A kid needs "Will I win? Go."
  • Manual chores forever (walk to every building, open Sell, press Sell All) unless they pay.
  • The first free-play target is much stronger than the tutorial target and nothing says so.
  • The first loss opens a purchase dialog.
  • A tutorial lock (retreat, auto-target) still active after the tutorial's own fight.
  • Random events or attacks firing during the tutorial.

Worked example

From a strategy tycoon's audit (before fixes):

  • Up to 40 s of blank loading, then a 61.5 s intro with hold-to-skip.
  • 6 tutorial steps, ~14 clicks, ~55 s of forced waiting.
  • 4 full menus before minute 4; 26+ HUD elements and ~20 numbers on frame one.
  • 7 Robux surfaces in the first 10 minutes, including automatic purchase prompts on any failed spend and a "New Campaign?"-titled dialog after the first loss that hid its Robux price.
  • The tutorial's Retreat lock outlived the tutorial, so the first free-play war (a neighbour 1.5 to 5× stronger) ended in a wipeout, then the purchase dialog.

The cheapest high-impact fixes were: gate all monetization until ~10 minutes after the tutorial, scope tutorial locks to the tutorial's own fight, turn the first loss into a "Train N more" button, and keep the arrow on a beatable target.