is there anything I need to know before starting game?
Hi there and welcome to the forum !
Could you elaborate a bit more on what you would like to know ? Like what race or ship class you would like to play ? 
Welcome.
General things that will make your life easier:
Damage resistance is better than sheer volume or regeneration (hull or shield).
Ship color and sticker customization is one-time use and must be bought again if you change.
Ships are only affected by the implants up to the specific rank of said ship.
Join a corporation before attempting Tier 3.
Expect to die in Open Space, unless you are in a T4 or 5 ship.
Save your GS until you really know what you want to spend it on.
Fed ships are speedy, Empire are heavily armored, and Jericho have tough shields.
Have fun.
I have been thinking about the best advice I could give you when you just started the game and I found this pretty usefull when I first started playing, having the full ship details is very important. You can enable full view here.
I made a tutorial video for new players a few months ago. It seems like it would answer a lot of your questions.
If you still have any questions after you watch it, feel free to ask anyone on the forum, all of the admins are extremely helpful, as is the community in general.
I found tier I to be reasonable, but now I got to tier II and I’m just getting slaughtered. I need to work on stuff and watch more tutorials, but the skill jump between tier I and II is huge.
I could regularly get at or near the top of the scoreboard in tier I but in tier II I’m mostly towards the bottom.
I found tier I to be reasonable, but now I got to tier II and I’m just getting slaughtered. I need to work on stuff and watch more tutorials, but the skill jump between tier I and II is huge.
I could regularly get at or near the top of the scoreboard in tier I but in tier II I’m mostly towards the bottom.
There’s a number of veterans who like to do T2 for fun. Pay attention to where your team is, to who consistently performs well in games. Then use a fighter with ion emitter and aim as best you can at them. Get your teammates to do the same.
Stick near cover, and use afterburners a lot to strafe faster in and out of it. Don’t panic, even if one of the veterans is diving on you. If you’re dead, you’re dead – just do as much damage as you can and respawn.
That’s the best advice I can give you.