HUD Updates

cbk1994 · #1 06-20-2012, 12:34 AM

We've released a new version of the HUD (the info in the top-left corner) as part of our overall cleaning up of Era's interfaces. This is still just a prototype so we're open for suggestions ("undo it" is not a suggestion; let us know how we can improve it instead).

There are a couple kinks that will be ironed out in the next day or two; keep in mind that it is intentionally minimalist. You don't need to see your money in the middle of a fight, so it is shown in the inventory instead. Your loaded ammo will probably be added here soon as well.

Things like ammo and armor only show as necessary; try equipping and unequipping a gun to see what happens

.

Note that not all features will work on v5 clients; if you haven't already, we recommend upgrading to v6.

NicoX · #2 06-20-2012, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbk1994

We've released a new version of the HUD (the info in the top-left corner) as part of our overall cleaning up of Era's interfaces. This is still just a prototype so we're open for suggestions ("undo it" is not a suggestion; let us know how we can improve it instead).

There are a couple kinks that will be ironed out in the next day or two; keep in mind that it is intentionally minimalist. You don't need to see your money in the middle of a fight, so it is shown in the inventory instead. Your loaded ammo will probably be added here soon as well.

Things like ammo and armor only show as necessary; try equipping and unequipping a gun to see what happens

.

Note that not all features will work on v5 clients; if you haven't already, we recommend upgrading to v6.

Good Job Chris. Looks nice.

shrimps · #3 06-20-2012, 01:04 AM

You should make it so you're able to move or place it in other positions on your screen.

Andre2006 · #4 06-20-2012, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrimps

You should make it so you're able to move or place it in other positions on your screen.

This. I've noticed people complaining about how big the new HUD is, are they kidding? I can't even see the HUD on full resolution. I'd have to turn my head.

DustyPorViva · #5 06-20-2012, 01:32 AM

I find it a bit odd that ping is the largest portion of the HUD over all the other information. I know it comes down to character space and such but that's still a very odd thing since when it comes to HUDs that sort of visual information(size) is important.

BlueMelon · #6 06-20-2012, 02:54 AM

Looks modern and is a huge +1 for the server. Good job Chris.

DustyPorViva · #7 06-20-2012, 03:00 AM

Also the content of the stuff is 1 pixel off-centered vertically. Y needs to -1;

shrimps · #8 06-20-2012, 03:34 AM

Since you removed the money view, could you add a way to see your current cash to the ATM. It's just more convenient trying to deposit money.

BlueMelon · #9 06-20-2012, 01:42 PM

Money is still displayed in your inventory

Crow · #10 06-20-2012, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbk1994

("undo it" is not a suggestion; let us know how we can improve it instead)

Colors. At least for the symbols.

Edit: Also, you could stuff a rough ping visualization into the color of the options symbol.

Crono · #11 06-20-2012, 02:38 PM

Minimal, stylish, and functional (ammo bar pops down when you equip a weapon). I don't see ping and I'm glad I don't.

Normally I'd say its a bit big and wasting space, but considering I maximize my Graal window @ 1920x1080 (not full screen, but still filling up my entire screen) it looks great. Good job Era.

Crono · #12 06-20-2012, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crono

Minimal, stylish, and functional (ammo bar pops down when you equip a weapon). I don't see ping and I'm glad I don't.

Normally I'd say its a bit big and wasting space, but considering I maximize my Graal window @ 1920x1080 (not full screen, but still filling up my entire screen) it looks great. Good job Era.

You're posting a positive comment? Whaaaaaaaaaaat?

skillmaster19 · #13 06-20-2012, 06:18 PM

Looks really nice and modern, I would also like to have customization options like showing money and all that.

shrimps · #14 06-20-2012, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueMelon

Money is still displayed in your inventory

You can't see you inventory or money when using the ATM.

cbk1994 · #15 06-20-2012, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrimps

You can't see you inventory or money when using the ATM.

The deposit window now shows the money on your player.

shrimps · #16 06-20-2012, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbk1994

The deposit window now shows the money on your player.

Cool, thanks.

cbk1994 · #17 06-20-2012, 07:16 PM

You can now enable/disable showing money and latency in your HUD. Click the "gear" icon to open your options. Also, space/weight in your inventory should be more legible now.

Stephen · #18 06-20-2012, 07:26 PM

Looks great Chris - nice to see some forward thinking.

Supaman771 · #19 06-20-2012, 08:52 PM

Can it be made customizable so we can move rearrange the little bubbles like the lines on the old GUI? I personally dislike that the latency slides over every time I use a gun, its just a little annoying.

Also, the color scheme is hideous and doesn't match any of my hot-pink GUIs... or even my bullets; this saddens me. Can you make it so we can change the theme/transparency in some way? Even if it requires manual editing.

Also this isn't really a bug or a problem, since it's just with one thing, but the Osiris Minigun when fully loaded is 100 ammo, and the display limits it to saying '10'.

More nitpicking:
-Bleeding, isn't displayed in any way, obviously you can see if you're bleeding but it would be nice to incorporate. Maybe a change in the + sign to a bandaid or something.
-Stat bonuses, (ie. Java) the ugly orange bar is overlapped and kind of doesn't fit the new scheme.
-Durability, for melee weapons and shovels, should probably be a toggle-able option, but still incorporated. Maybe even add battery levels to this tab for drills/flashlights/etc.

:3

shrimps · #20 06-20-2012, 08:54 PM

I say add a hat drop down where all your hats go so you can easily access them with out 100 hats in your inventory.

Supaman771 · #21 06-20-2012, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrimps

I say add a hat drop down where all your hats go so you can easily access them with out 100 hats in your inventory.

Like the Follow-Me GUI.

Speaking of which, said Follow-Me button is gone since you changed the HUD... please re-add it somewhere? Thanks.

shrimps · #22 06-20-2012, 09:57 PM

Yeah, like the follow-me button.
I leave most of my hats at my house since it's a cluster....<-badwordlol in my inventory.

Good_Ol_Daze · #23 06-21-2012, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DustyPorViva

Also the content of the stuff is 1 pixel off-centered vertically. Y needs to -1;

The only asymmetry he could fix by just shifting would be to move the gear up one pixel from what I can see. The rest all look to be vertically asymmetric by different parity amounts of pixels, so a lot more work would have to be done to fix it, and I don't think anyone really cares.

bloodykiller · #24 06-22-2012, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DustyPorViva

I find it a bit odd that ping is the largest portion of the HUD over all the other information. I know it comes down to character space and such but that's still a very odd thing since when it comes to HUDs that sort of visual information(size) is important.

u obviously don't understand how important lag is on era (considering how poor graal's servers are): being able to see how high us ping is affects where you have to aim relatively to your target. this doesn't apply for most americans but it does for any skilled player living outside the us

also, it's nice to see that rogue has finally made a constructive comment

DustyPorViva · #25 06-22-2012, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bloodykiller

u obviously don't understand how important lag is on era (considering how poor graal's servers are): being able to see how high us ping is affects where you have to aim relatively to your target. this doesn't apply for most americans but it does for any skilled player living outside the us

also, it's nice to see that rogue has finally made a constructive comment

Ping is important in most online games, and in fact it's probably much more important in games like Call of Duty which are twitch shooters, and where a difference in 20ms determines who wins in a gunfight, yet you don't see your ping in their hud.

But I've already talked personally to Chris about this direction and already put in my two cents about it so no point in me taking up more thread space on the topic.

bloodykiller · #26 06-22-2012, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DustyPorViva

Ping is important in most online games, and in fact it's probably much more important in games like Call of Duty which are twitch shooters, and where a difference in 20ms determines who wins in a gunfight, yet you don't see your ping in their hud.

But I've already talked personally to Chris about this direction and already put in my two cents about it so no point in me taking up more thread space on the topic.

yeah talk to chris all u like but it won't be removed..and if it's removed it'll get added back since loads of people will complain since it's fundamental on era
on cod lag makes a big difference but it doesn't change your playstyle since you get hits by hitting enemy players according to what you see on ur screen, whilst on era hits count based on the opposing player's screen and not what you percieve on your own screen

DustyPorViva · #27 06-22-2012, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bloodykiller

yeah talk to chris all u like but it won't be removed..and if it's removed it'll get added back since loads of people will complain since it's fundamental on era

Do you think I have some ultimate plot to screw over Era's petty little things like this by undermining the players and trying to sway Chris' opinion? Get a grip.

My point is that important data like that can be conveyed in an accessible way while not making it a part of the gameplay HUD.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bloodykiller

on cod lag makes a big difference but it doesn't change your playstyle since you get hits by hitting enemy players according to what you see on ur screen, whilst on era hits count based on the opposing player's screen and not what you percieve on your own screen

Like I said, lag is important in EVERY online game, especially any competitive one. To act as though Era needs the information more than other online games is silly. You can't play the same with 4 bars as you would with 3 because you can't win a confrontation where you don't have the first chance(aka someone with 4 bars can run and gun, someone with 2-3 bars will need to flank and surprise).

To act as though Era is the only game online where ping is so important it needs to be larger than your actual health in your hud is silly.

Tim_Rocks · #28 06-22-2012, 10:54 PM

You guys do realize there's an option in the "cog" of the HUD that allows you to hide or show money or ping..?

DustyPorViva · #29 06-22-2012, 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tim_Rocks

You guys do realize there's an option in the "cog" of the HUD that allows you to hide or show money or ping..?

That's why I said I talked to Chris about it already and didn't see reason to explore the topic any further but he didn't care to drop it *shrug*

That is a solution, but while I DO fancy things like seeing my framerate/ping in games, I don't like them to be part of my game hud. I'd rather them be much more unobtrusive/secluded and quickly toggled and the solution doesn't really address that.

But if that's what players want, give them what they want I suppose. I just didn't think it was a good aesthetic/design choice and critiqued it like I would any piece of art/level/script.

salesman · #30 06-23-2012, 01:46 AM

The other day I walked into a building and didn't know if it was a pk zone or not...I was so scared.

Also, I would honestly prefer it to be about half of it's current size. I know most people are fine with it the way it is, but is there any way you could add sizing options? The information on the old HUD was much smaller.

cbk1994 · #31 06-23-2012, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by salesman

The other day I walked into a building and didn't know if it was a pk zone or not...I was so scared.

Also, I would honestly prefer it to be about half of it's current size. I know most people are fine with it the way it is, but is there any way you could add sizing options? The information on the old HUD was much smaller.

I guess I don't understand the issue; it's ~40 pixels tall and no more than a few hundred pixels wide, depending on the situation. How small is your screen?

salesman · #32 06-23-2012, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbk1994

I guess I don't understand the issue; it's ~40 pixels tall and no more than a few hundred pixels wide, depending on the situation. How small is your screen?

It's not really an issue, I just think it would look better (to me) if it were smaller. I like to make all text/ui components as small as possible (my font is Arial 10 or 11).

With the old HUD, I hid everything except for the HP and ammo so it was only about 100x30 pixels.

Andre2006 · #33 06-23-2012, 03:13 AM

Anybody want to share a picture of their screen? I want to see what the HUD looks like!

BlueMelon · #34 06-23-2012, 03:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andre2006

Anybody want to share a picture of their screen? I want to see what the HUD looks like!

Look at the first post in the thread

Dragon551 · #35 06-23-2012, 09:23 AM

Putting more work in, good job, Chris.

bloodykiller · #36 06-26-2012, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DustyPorViva

Do you think I have some ultimate plot to screw over Era's petty little things like this by undermining the players and trying to sway Chris' opinion? Get a grip.

My point is that important data like that can be conveyed in an accessible way while not making it a part of the gameplay HUD.

Like I said, lag is important in EVERY online game, especially any competitive one. To act as though Era needs the information more than other online games is silly. You can't play the same with 4 bars as you would with 3 because you can't win a confrontation where you don't have the first chance(aka someone with 4 bars can run and gun, someone with 2-3 bars will need to flank and surprise).

To act as though Era is the only game online where ping is so important it needs to be larger than your actual health in your hud is silly.

it's too bad era's connection isn't even close to being as good as cod (i realise the host system is different, but the connection is still better). on cod u can easily find matched under 50ping for any gametype and at any time of the day, on era a large part of ther playerbase can't go under 150ms even if they buy the best internet on the market

Fulg0reSama · #37 06-27-2012, 03:25 AM

Doesn't look half bad, Chris.

Fiberwyre_P2P · #38 06-27-2012, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by salesman

It's not really an issue, I just think it would look better (to me) if it were smaller. I like to make all text/ui components as small as possible (my font is Arial 10 or 11).

With the old HUD, I hid everything except for the HP and ammo so it was only about 100x30 pixels.

I'm with Sales. It's big and clunky looking, regardless of how high your resolution is.

shrimps · #39 06-27-2012, 10:24 PM

It's not that bad, I don't know what you guys are talking about, if anything it needs to be larger.

Elk · #40 06-27-2012, 10:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrimps

It's not that bad, I don't know what you guys are talking about, if anything it needs to be larger.

youre kidding

Quote:

Originally Posted by DustyPorViva

I find it a bit odd that ping is the largest portion of the HUD over all the other information. I know it comes down to character space and such but that's still a very odd thing since when it comes to HUDs that sort of visual information(size) is important.

maybe more suggestive when using colors (green = below 100, yellow = below 100-500, red > 500