I was bored [More UI lololz]

[Sensuki]

 

I was bored so I made this, had this mock up portrait bar sitting around for about two months but hadn't used it in anything yet. I was going to be more creative, but moral of the story - don't waste space on the user interface - thanks.

Yeah there's no room for animal companions or Monk/Chanter/Cipher resources, although maybe I'll redo the design to incorporate them into it, but yeah anyway - large portraits N stuff!

Edited November 3, 2014 by Sensuki

[Bester]

Might as well close those gaps and empty spaces by creating a background wooden texture with some intricate design. The interesting thing is that it's all doable modding-wise. I'm kinda anxious to look into all of this, but have to finish some freelance project first though.

 

Plus, without a background texture, remove one NPC and you'll have a gaping hole, which would look weird.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Bester

[prodigydancer]

Honestly, I don't like it. Why do we have to place everyone at the bottom? It made sense back in the 4:3 era but now it's 16:9 (actually I'm lucky to have a great 16:10 screen but many people aren't as lucky and I can feel their pain).

 

My suggestion: portraits on the side (left or right - doesn't matter), all these useless icons (inventory, log, etc.) somewhere on top and preferably hideable because nobody ever clicks on them anyway. And at the bottom? Only chat log and customizable action bar.

Edited November 3, 2014 by prodigydancer

[Labadal]

They are still working on a solid UI background, yes? I don't mind how it is now. Not because I think it's great, but after over 12 hours with the beta, I am used to it. What I would like to see changed is the inventory UI. Unfortunately, I admit that I have no constructive criticism on how it should look, but I don't like it the way it is now.

 

Maybe instead of having an inventory for all characters, use the stash as the inventory for everything.

[Karkarov]

Honestly, I don't like it. Why do we have to place everyone at the bottom? I made sense back in the 4:3 era but now it's 16:9 (actually I'm lucky to have a great 16:10 screen but many people aren't as lucky and I can feel their pain).

 

My suggestion: portraits on the side (left or right - doesn't matter), all these useless icons (inventory, log, etc.) somewhere on top and preferably hideable because nobody ever clicks on them anyway. And at the bottom? Only chat log and customizable action bar.

Do people not notice the main menu buttons are hideable in the UI already

 

Basically Sensuki what you are saying is you want your combat log on the left..... amiright?

[Sensuki]

This is just a muck around mockup. I think it would be better on the left because it would then be easier to read, as you read the text from the left to the right and then move your eyes back to the middle of the screen, which is only a short shift rather than from all the way from the bottom right back to the center. 

Combined with smaller combat log text, less superfluous lines and some editing of the formats it would actually make it readable on the fly. 

 

My stance on that will probably not change, as the right side of the screen is the worst position for it.

[Gairnulf]

I play on 1920x1080 on a 24" display, but actually the one thing I approve of the strongest in the current UI is that it's all in one area of the screen. BGII was wasting too much screen space with the vertical bars, in my opinion. I think the challenge, and it's achievable, is to fit everything only at the bottom.

 

In Sensuki's mockup none of the elements are hideable, which I'd say is a drawback. The combat log on the left and portraits on the right is a good thing to try out, it might be convenient, but I personally prefer the combat log to be in the bottom center, for a reason I have pointed out previously - it's easier to just look down while paused in a battle than to look down and right, or down and left.

 

Some more analysis - I think the main culprit for the uneconomical use of screen space is the pretty clock at the center. It certainly is beautiful, but to me it feels like the whole HUD was designed around it (including in the literal meaning, hehe). For example who needs a 'Cancel action' button, when you have the spacebar to pause and issue a different command?! Who needs a 'Select all' button, although that was present in BGII, when you have the equals key, and the mouse lasso, and the pause button? Answer - someone who needs to come up with 12 buttons, no more and no less, in order to fill the space around the clock with something :D

 

It can almost imagine how someone designed the clock and the team liked it, and then someone said, we'll have to find a way to fit the rest of the HUD around this, but we'll manage it, it's so pretty after all I'll repeat myself for what I said in another thread - I think the people who have put the current UI (hud, shops and all) together haven't played many or much RPGs, at least that's the impression I get from looking at their UIs. Hopefully they'll find where and how to improve things after they spend a week playing

 

BTW, Sensuki, I can send you my psd file, where I've broken up the HUD into layers, it will be easier for you to experiment with it, I guess.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Gairnulf

[prodigydancer]

Do people not notice the main menu buttons are hideable in the UI already

That's good.

 

Log/chat window on the left is also good.

[Sensuki]

In Sensuki's mockup none of the elements are hideable

 

They're not ? Why would they not be collapsible ?

 

It can almost imagine how someone designed the clock and the team liked it, and then someone said, we'll have to find a way to fit the rest of the HUD around this

That's pretty much what happened yep. The very first UI version had the menu in the middle, which is inconvenient. Unfortunately they kept it there. I just couldn't be bothered thinking of a symmetrical design that put the menu at the side.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Sensuki

[Gairnulf]

 

In Sensuki's mockup none of the elements are hideable

They're not ? Why would they not be collapsible ?

It can almost imagine how someone designed the clock and the team liked it, and then someone said, we'll have to find a way to fit the rest of the HUD around this

That's pretty much what happened yep. The very first UI version had the menu in the middle, which is inconvenient. Unfortunately they kept it there. I just couldn't be bothered thinking of a symmetrical design that put the menu at the side.

If they are collapsable, I didn't see anything to suggest so. In the current UI they have these handles, which you can click and drag, and in your mockup they don't.

 

I'm sure they'll realize their mistake about the HUD layout. And do you have any more info on how it came to be designed around the clock's picture?

Edited November 3, 2014 by Gairnulf

[Sensuki]

In the IE games it's hotkeyed. It was a quick cut and paste. It's also missing space for Ranger Animal Companions and Chanter/Cipher/Monk resources. Don't put too much stock on the missing stuff.

 

The point was more to demonstrate that there's a crap load of wasted space in the current Main HUD.

[Gairnulf]

In the IE games it's hotkeyed. It was a quick cut and paste. It's also missing space for Ranger Animal Companions and Chanter/Cipher/Monk resources. Don't put too much stock on the missing stuff.The point was more to demonstrate that there's a crap load of wasted space in the current Main HUD.

I agree, and I try to demonstrate the same. If you would want my psd, I can send it over to you, or through dropbox.

 

Actually in the IE games in addition to hiding being hotkeyed, you could click the colored gems to hide the side pbars (I think).

Edited November 3, 2014 by Gairnulf

[Sensuki]

No reason why there couldn't be something like that. The current tabs they have are actually ... a waste of space

[Guest 4ward]

Might as well close those gaps and empty spaces by creating a background wooden texture with some intricate design. The interesting thing is that it's all doable modding-wise. I'm kinda anxious to look into all of this, but have to finish some freelance project first though.

 

Plus, without a background texture, remove one NPC and you'll have a gaping hole, which would look weird.

that's a good point i think, but if the portrait to the most left would be the one of the first party member and new portraits be added subsequently towards the right edge of the screen then imo it wouldn't look weird. I definately like the bigger portraits, especially if they choose to add icons on the portrait images (here's to hoping).

So i do like your suggestion Sensuki. If i may add a suggestion, in case you need to make room in the middle, i would take the big clock icon and place it in one of the top edges of the screen. I then would take the other 12 icons and align them in one horizontal line and attach them to the top edge of your combat log window. In case the combat log window would be to be vertically expanded the icons would simply travel up/down with the top edge of the window.

[Sensuki]

Well the middle UI section probably needs to be totally redone, because most of those buttons you'll almost never use and they just take up too much space to warrant them being there.

 

Most people press the space bar or slow hotkey to pause. Some might press the clock, but it certainly doesn't need to be that big.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Sensuki

[Guest 4ward]

They are still working on a solid UI background, yes? I don't mind how it is now. Not because I think it's great, but after over 12 hours with the beta, I am used to it. What I would like to see changed is the inventory UI. Unfortunately, I admit that I have no constructive criticism on how it should look, but I don't like it the way it is now.

 

Maybe instead of having an inventory for all characters, use the stash as the inventory for everything.

Hormalakh's UI for inventory suggestion is the best i've seen for PoE. Obsidian has unfortunately not considered it yet.

http://hormalakh.blogspot.de/2014/09/looking-at-inventory-ui-bb301.html

[Labadal]

 

They are still working on a solid UI background, yes? I don't mind how it is now. Not because I think it's great, but after over 12 hours with the beta, I am used to it. What I would like to see changed is the inventory UI. Unfortunately, I admit that I have no constructive criticism on how it should look, but I don't like it the way it is now.

 

Maybe instead of having an inventory for all characters, use the stash as the inventory for everything.

Hormalakh's UI for inventory suggestion is the best i've seen for PoE. Obsidian has unfortunately not considered it yet.

http://hormalakh.blogspot.de/2014/09/looking-at-inventory-ui-bb301.html

 

It's a step in the right direction.

[Gairnulf]

 

 

They are still working on a solid UI background, yes? I don't mind how it is now. Not because I think it's great, but after over 12 hours with the beta, I am used to it. What I would like to see changed is the inventory UI. Unfortunately, I admit that I have no constructive criticism on how it should look, but I don't like it the way it is now.

 

Maybe instead of having an inventory for all characters, use the stash as the inventory for everything.

Hormalakh's UI for inventory suggestion is the best i've seen for PoE. Obsidian has unfortunately not considered it yet.

http://hormalakh.blogspot.de/2014/09/looking-at-inventory-ui-bb301.html

 

It's a step in the right direction.

 

That's pretty good. I was thinking to move to the inventory UI after I'm done with all the variants I've considered for the HUD.

[Quantics]

I also would like to see the portraits on the right side and the log on the left. 

 

It makes more sense to me as we are used to reading from left to right.

[Gairnulf]

I also would like to see the portraits on the right side and the log on the left. 

 

It makes more sense to me as we are used to reading from left to right.

That's true, but there's a flip side to this argument - during battle the most important info you'd want to follow is what's going on on the screen (that's in the center of the screen), then how is your party's endurance changing (which makes sense being on the left, exactly because it's a higher priority area), and possibly the combat log (that's why I'd put it in the center). So with this in mind, it could be argued that the portraits are ok on the left. Anyway I think wherever they are, with enough time the player would get used to any configuration.

[Sensuki]

The log is good on the left or in the middle. It's bad on the right.

[Gairnulf]

The log is good on the left or in the middle. It's bad on the right.

On the right seems like the worst option because the three important zones are split the farthest from each other (center of the screen, bottom left, and bottom right).

[Starwars]

I think I'd prefer the log to be on the left but all in all I'm very pleased with how the UI looks currently actually, I don't have any problems with it at all. At least not the "playarea". I think it looks quite good overall and I have no problems at all using it.

 

Personally, I hope most of the remaining time spent on UI stuff is within certain UI elements like spell selection, maybe the inventory and stuff like that.

 

Just throwing my cents in the mix.

[Gairnulf]

Once I'm done with the other two versions I'm thinking of, I think I'll start a poll thread and offer my 4 versions, Sensuki's version (I'll export another jpg where the combat log is on the left and provide a link to his thread), and the current interface. Interesting what will the majority say.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Gairnulf

[Lychnidos]

It wouldn't be too difficult to make it possible to choose which element we want in which position.