Pretti! Interface-graphics

[Nedrah]

I think either of those uis would do fine without having any negative impact on the game (as the original would have had!). Well, marsal's, android's and elhoim's, that is.
I wouldn't want to have to be the one to actually chose one. Oh well, guess we'll know more in a week.

 

[Elhoim]

Elhoim's is nicely drawn, and way better than the original, but it's too cluttered for my taste.

Consider it a reaction to the modern UIs...

As a side note, I will remain this style, as I think it fits the theme perfectly: Roman borders supported by wooded beams instead of the columns of yore, while the crafmanship of the wall begins to crumble, alongside with some statues. :D

I like android´s design very much also, but for some reason it reminds me of Greece, or the island of Crete, and Indiana Jones and the fate of the Atlantis. (Strange mind I have!)

 

[Durwyn]

In Infinity Engine, dialogs that were too long to fit in to dialog box, were divided in to parts. I like Android's infinity-like dialog screen. Somehow i don't like original VD's and Ehloims dialog screen. Small in-game box just don't fell good. I feel thrown out from game when i see it.

 

[Lumpy]

Elhoim's is nicely drawn, and way better than the original, but it's too cluttered for my taste.

Consider it a reaction to the modern UIs...

As a side note, I will remain this style, as I think it fits the theme perfectly: Roman borders supported by wooded beams instead of the columns of yore, while the crafmanship of the wall begins to crumble, alongside with some statues. :D

I like android´s design very much also, but for some reason it reminds me of Greece, or the island of Crete, and Indiana Jones and the fate of the Atlantis. (Strange mind I have!)

I agree that yours fits the theme best, and android's would be more fit for a Greece-based RPG.
However, being such a young brat, I prefer simple, modern designs. Yours look a bit like the ones in the old city building games by Impressions.

 

[Claw]

Added statue, reduced font and made a bigger text area:

Looks really good overall, but I really hate the wooden beams nailed to stone. Besides, what purpose would those beams serve? They don't look like support beams, failing to be under the stone they might be supporting, and having a flimsy - not to mention unconvincing - looking connection to the stone. That just looks terrible.
Someone suggested moving the beams to be behind the stone. What a brilliant idea, too.


Oh, and did you really follow the outline of the stones? On the left border of the NPC dialogue window, at the height of the last line and below, it looks like you just used an eraser tool to clear up space. Very odd looking.

 

[denizsi]

Now that we know the engine isn't capable of displaying outlined text with two colours (I got that right, right?), isn't it possible to display two text bodys, one on top of the other? Same text, one in black, other in white, for the outlined look ( though I know that there would have to be a new or an edited font for the "background text" to adjust the character spacing correctly ).

 

[Elhoim]

Elhoim's is nicely drawn, and way better than the original, but it's too cluttered for my taste.

Consider it a reaction to the modern UIs...

As a side note, I will remain this style, as I think it fits the theme perfectly: Roman borders supported by wooded beams instead of the columns of yore, while the crafmanship of the wall begins to crumble, alongside with some statues. :D

I like android´s design very much also, but for some reason it reminds me of Greece, or the island of Crete, and Indiana Jones and the fate of the Atlantis. (Strange mind I have!)

I agree that yours fits the theme best, and Elhoim's would be more fit for a Greece-based RPG.
However, being such a young brat, I prefer simple, modern designs. Yours look a bit like the ones in the old city building games by Impressions.

Old Skool Rulezzz!!!

PS: I guess you wanted to said Android´s.

 

[Elhoim]

Added statue, reduced font and made a bigger text area:

Looks really good overall, but I really hate the wooden beams nailed to stone. Besides, what purpose would those beams serve? They don't look like support beams, failing to be under the stone they might be supporting, and having a flimsy - not to mention unconvincing - looking connection to the stone. That just looks terrible.
Someone suggested moving the beams to be behind the stone. What a brilliant idea, too.


Oh, and did you really follow the outline of the stones? On the left border of the NPC dialogue window, at the height of the last line and below, it looks like you just used an eraser tool to clear up space. Very odd looking.

Okay, I´ve improved the "Stone-Wood" relationship.

 

[Vidder]

Added statue, reduced font and made a bigger text area:

This one is perfect oldschool goodness, i love it.

 

[Joff1981]

@Elhoim

Much nicer, now do the same/similar for the taskbar.

 

[Joff1981]

@VD
Is there any particular reason why the character screen cannot be accessed via an icon on the taskbar? There was a fair amount of discussion about removing the disk icon from the taskbar earlier in the thread, however it was argued that it should be left so that people can play with just a mouse. It seems to me that given the fact that skill points come to you fairly regularly (after the completion of a quest or two), an icon to get to the character screen would see more use than one to save/load/exit etc.
Some questions about the character system/screen

1. Are primary statistics still permanent or can you change them (in a non-temporary fashion) later in the game? A carved in stone look would be good if they're truly permanent.
2. You mentioned that you do not "level up" in the traditional sense but do you still follow a similar experience curve? i.e. you gain skill points slower the further you progress. I ask this because of the lack of any indicator as to when you are going to get your next power increase e.g. current exp 100 next level 300. If power increases are fairly regular then this may not be an issue, but if they follow the traditional route of coming less often the further you progress this may be a desirable piece of info for the player.
3. Are there any derived stats that are not visible on the existing character screens? I'm thinking things like carry weight, combat sequence and heal rate (assuming you naturally heal over time).
4. Speaking of time am I right in thinking that there will be time sensitive quests? If so how are you conveying the current time/passage of time to the player? Are there enough of these quests to require an additional interface component e.g. a sundial, sand/water timer
5. What does DC stand for? I assume it's something to to with avoiding blows in combat but it would be nice to know for sure.
6. I think that one of the problems with the character screen at the moment is that you are assigning the same relevance to all information displayed on it. Most other sytems display primary stats more prominently and also have tabs for less important items. In your case I would suggest having the reputations and traits on a 3 tab system as these are more for flavour and less statistically relevant than your skills and primary/derived statistics.
7. Regarding reputations, it seems to me that numerical values don't serve too much purpose for the player and that a verbal description may be better. This would help to break up the vast mass of numbers present on the screen, which would prevent information overload for the player. Unless there a large number of differing reactions to the players reputation a display of Despised->Hated->Disliked->Neutral->Liked->Loved->Adored would be more palatable. This allows for three different degrees of response on each side of neutrality and still allows you to deal with numbers in the background but not display them to the player, since the system likely isn't precise enough to provide different results between -42 and -43. I'm sure you can come up with good verbal descriptors for the general reputations as well.

 

[Durwyn]

@VD
tations, it seems to me that numerical values don't serve too much purpose for the player and that a verbal description may be better. This would help to break up the vast mass of numbers present on the screen, which would prevent information overload for the player. Unless there a large number of differing reactions to the players reputation a display of Despised->Hated->Disliked->Neutral->Liked->Loved->Adored would be more palatable. This allows for three different degrees of response on each side of neutrality and still allows you to deal with numbers in the background but not display them to the player, since the system likely isn't precise enough to provide different results between -42 and -43. I'm sure you can come up with good verbal descriptors for the general reputations as well.

Yeah, i agree with joff. It's feels more natural without numbers. Word describtions of reputation is better imho. Typical player thinks "fuck i have -30 reputation with clan x - do they just dislike me, or hate me?

 

[suibhne]

Elhoim, that conversation interface separates the screen into 3 equal parts visually. Instead, it should be separated into only 2: the traditional interface at the bottom, and the conversation in the main screen (which has three subdivisions). The sign of a good interface is that you should be able to sit back in your chair, blur your vision, and still be able to tell where to start in reading or interacting with the game at any given point; in this case, there's no prayer.

I understanding you're using a hierarchy of wood vs. stone dividers, but that doesn't come across visually at all due to the non-aggressive colors (which are necessary imo). If any, the wood feels much bolder, so the division between the top conversation and the dialog options feels more important than the division between the main screen and the regular interface.

 

[Elhoim]

Elhoim, that conversation interface separates the screen into 3 equal parts visually. Instead, it should be separated into only 2: the traditional interface at the bottom, and the conversation in the main screen (which has three subdivisions). The sign of a good interface is that you should be able to sit back in your chair, blur your vision, and still be able to tell where to start in reading or interacting with the game at any given point; in this case, there's no prayer.

I understanding you're using a hierarchy of wood vs. stone dividers, but that doesn't come across visually at all due to the non-aggressive colors (which are necessary imo). If any, the wood feels much bolder, so the division between the top conversation and the dialog options feels more important than the division between the main screen and the regular interface.

Good point.

I´ll see what I can do. Any suggestions?

 

[Vault Dweller]

Is there any particular reason why the character screen cannot be accessed via an icon on the taskbar?

No. If someone's design will have this option, that would be fine with me.

1. Are primary statistics still permanent or can you change them (in a non-temporary fashion) later in the game? A carved in stone look would be good if they're truly permanent.

Permanent.

2. You mentioned that you do not "level up" in the traditional sense but do you still follow a similar experience curve? i.e. you gain skill points slower the further you progress.

No. See Prelude to Darkness or Bloodlines for details.

I ask this because of the lack of any indicator as to when you are going to get your next power increase e.g. current exp 100 next level 300.

Huh? Power increase? Here's how it works. Let's say your current sword skill is 72. You killed a weak enemy, got 1 xp, bumped up your skill to 73, solved a quest, got 5 xp, bumped up your skill to 78, etc. Because your skill is now over 75, your passive disarm weapons skill attached to the sword skill went up by 10 points.

3. Are there any derived stats that are not visible on the existing character screens? I'm thinking things like carry weight, combat sequence and heal rate (assuming you naturally heal over time).

Carry weight is the only one. Sequence depends on your Dex vs that of your opponents, so it can't realy be displayed on the chat sheet. You don't heal over time as that's an exploit.

4. Speaking of time am I right in thinking that there will be time sensitive quests? If so how are you conveying the current time/passage of time to the player? Are there enough of these quests to require an additional interface component e.g. a sundial, sand/water timer.

I didn't want to attach a timer to such quests, so we use different triggers to "measure" time. For example, if you have a time-sensitive quest in a certain town, if you leave the town, the quest automatically expires and a default outcome is chosen.

I'm not sure that time-sensitive is the right way to describe these quests. Think of them as urgent quests instead. Some quests could be solved in a few months (i.e. find out what faction A is doing at location X), some quests must be solved fairly quickly (i.e. we have a hostage situation). Hope the explanation helps.

5. What does DC stand for? I assume it's something to to with avoiding blows in combat but it would be nice to know for sure.

Dodge Class.

6. I think that one of the problems with the character screen at the moment is that you are assigning the same relevance to all information displayed on it. Most other sytems display primary stats more prominently and also have tabs for less important items. In your case I would suggest having the reputations and traits on a 3 tab system as these are more for flavour and less statistically relevant than your skills and primary/derived statistics.

I's rather see everything on one screen. It's a personal preference.

7. Regarding reputations, it seems to me that numerical values don't serve too much purpose for the player and that a verbal description may be better. This would help to break up the vast mass of numbers present on the screen, which would prevent information overload for the player. Unless there a large number of differing reactions to the players reputation a display of Despised->Hated->Disliked->Neutral->Liked->Loved->Adored would be more palatable. This allows for three different degrees of response on each side of neutrality and still allows you to deal with numbers in the background but not display them to the player, since the system likely isn't precise enough to provide different results between -42 and -43. I'm sure you can come up with good verbal descriptors for the general reputations as well.

Hmm... I like your idea a lot. The only problem, it's hard to say when Disliked would change to Hated. With numbers you know that when your rep is -49 you are about to reach a new low lol, so you may think twice about being naughty again. Perhaps, we should have both.

 

[vazquez595654]

Elhoim, that conversation interface separates the screen into 3 equal parts visually. Instead, it should be separated into only 2: the traditional interface at the bottom, and the conversation in the main screen (which has three subdivisions). The sign of a good interface is that you should be able to sit back in your chair, blur your vision, and still be able to tell where to start in reading or interacting with the game at any given point; in this case, there's no prayer.

I don't know about you, but I usually start reading at the top-left of the screen. I don't have any issues with that interface. It's not too different from Space Rangers 2.

 

[Longshanks]

Looking good Elhoim.

Agree with suibhne though about the 3 divisions.
Maybe something like this would work better:

 

[Elhoim]

I think the problem was with the division between the lower GUI and the dialogue screen. But that looks nice too.

Here is a quick WIP before I go:



Anyway, I´m going out for a couple of hours. See ya!

 

[Jasede]

Meh, no. Elohim, don't. The dialogue screen is good as it is. It reminds me of times long past.

 

[denizsi]

By the way, who plans to play the game fullscreen? Does anyone looks at the screens here magnifying them to full screen? Elhoim's dialogue screen looks great in my opinion, but when I look at it in fullscreen, all those bricks, woodwork etc. there is just too much stuff going on in the interface artwork, diverting attention from the text. Likewise, looking at Marsal's interface in full screen, the blue hue is forcing the eye downwards to the interface. It was easier on eyes with the yellow-gray colour range.

If you are planning to play fullscreen, you ought to look at each interface at full screen. Hell of a difference.

edit: I'd also like to point a general complaint about interfaces. You can see eight lines of text in the text box of the default interface. Despite all the great work done by people, I think fewer lines are kind ofa step down from something good ( Elhoim's work is the better one in this aspect ).

 

[denizsi]

Modifications on Android's interface again.

(http://www.geocities.com/denizsi/aod_android_m04.jpg)

I wonder what Android will do with the icons, because it greatly affects the overall look. Example:

(http://www.geocities.com/denizsi/aod_android_m04.jpg)

Now I can start raping both of your dialogue and craft interfaces as well.

 

[Vault Dweller]

I like Elhoim's dialogue screen design overall, but I think it could be a bit distracting, especially considering the volume of text in the game.

@ denizsi: Good point about the icons. The interface looks great without them, but doesn't really work with them "as is". Maybe android can follow Mantra's idea and change the icons into traced lines or 3D shapes or carve them somehow into the blocks.

 

[Durwyn]

Hey VD. Okay this GUI contest is fun but.. will it ever end? Artists (gods bless them) are making approx. 6 maybe 5 versions of it everyday. When will you decide for one? Becouse all we know that decision is up to you. Codexers are just like Roman Empire senate. We can give advices. meh's and goodjobs. But when will you finaly choose one of those guis? Remember, better is enemy of good.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Artists (gods bless them) are making approx. 6 maybe 5 versions of it everyday. When will you decide for one?

When the Codex overall is happy with the designs. Elhoim's work has greatly improved and went from "honorable mention" to "really hard to say no to" stuff. Android is still tweaking his designs. Because the interface screens are so different, we need to see different designs to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each overall design. If it takes a month to come up with these designs, so be it. I have time. As long as the designs are evolving and improving, the time isn't wasted.

 

[Dementia Praecox]

Artists (gods bless them) are making approx. 6 maybe 5 versions of it everyday. When will you decide for one?

When the Codex overall is happy with the designs.

VD just want his back covered when he slap the "Codex Approved"-stickers to the retail versions.