Right now, the sad reality is that there is just no selling point whatsoever for new players to come in even if the tutorial and the overall experience would be fixed. The key issue that Splinterlands needs to solve is the sure card asset devaluation. Nobody is going to come in spending 5k+ just too see cents of rewards while they assets trend toward zero not even mentioning the massive required time investment.
Closing the Card-Price-Gap is the only real thing that matters
Right now we just continue to go in the circle of death
What Splinterlands needs most is a new game mode which makes older cards more useful and valuable again (Solution)
I agree with you that older cards need MORE gameplay utility, and should NOT be destined to be locked away on a plot of land. I also believe part of the problem is pricing these assets too high out of the shop. The market is telling us this is not what these assets are worth.
We do get stuck in a loop, where we need new players to make asset prices rise, but decreasing asset prices (because they are sold at too high a price point) keep new players away.
We have to discover our niche for pricing and marketing. We have not figured that part out yet, and it's a vital piece of the puzzle!