User Interface ideas

[Ned Loe]

 

You misread us a little

 

We showed how we want open world to look (same 3d). Current direction is to have instanced battles (trying to get it to 50 ships). Alternative would be to have shards a-la DayZ (with 50 players in them) but in this case the feeling of vibrant active sea areas would be lost. 

 

 

Current thinking is to provide semi-accurate maps for players for the known areas, but uncharted waters will be more ... uncharted, providing the sense of unknown and the feeling of getting lost.

 

But it could be a fake feature - cos many players will explore and eventually all areas will become known, posted on youtube and forums, rendering it all meaningless. 

 

What do you guys think?

 

 

GTA5 type of map? Hidden world to explore with few starting locations that unlock as you do missions or exploration. Great Idea! You can also add NPCs who sell map pieces to unknown world wonders locations. Or NPCs can give player a location after mission is complete. Endless ideas with each feature you add.   

 

50 ships? damn.. will that take away any ship details/ocean details to get performance?

[BrutishVulgarian]

See, if we going to sail all the way to Dublin like that, we will need the ability to fiddle with our sail plan on the way, responding to changing wind conditions. For some gameplay to kill the time.

+ 1 million

[Killick]

Current thinking is to provide semi-accurate maps for players for the known areas, but uncharted waters will be more ... uncharted, providing the sense of unknown and the feeling of getting lost.

 

Do I understand correctly that the game will not in any way tell me where I am? So I have to completely figure it out based on visual sightings and dead reckoning: that is really great! Will the ships experience leeway? In that case you could end up quite off from your destination after crossing a large body of water.

 

I have to get used a bit to the fact that there will be instanced battles, but I suppose it has to be like that in this type of multiplayer game. Hopefully the battle map will be a good representation of the location on the real map (no random islands like in POTBS). The transition should be as smooth as possible. Also, the relative positioning of the ships at the beginning of a battle should be based on the real-map situation. 

[admin]

Do I understand correctly that the game will not in any way tell me where I am? So I have to completely figure it out based on visual sightings and dead reckoning: that is really great! Will the ships experience leeway? In that case you could end up quite off from your destination after crossing a large body of water.

 

I have to get used a bit to the fact that there will be instanced battles, but I suppose it has to be like that in this type of multiplayer game. Hopefully the battle map will be a good representation of the location on the real map (no random islands like in POTBS). The transition should be as smooth as possible. Also, the relative positioning of the ships at the beginning of a battle should be based on the real-map situation. 

 

On maps

We are very conflicted about this. It sounds awesome in theory. But we know people want to have fun - imagine getting lost without enough food and water for crew, with a cargo of spanish gold that you bought using your last savings. I envision a lot of angry item return bug reports. 

 

Maybe having hardcore server and casual server could be a solution.

[maturin]

On maps

We are very conflicted about this. It sounds awesome in theory. But we know people want to have fun - imagine getting lost without enough food and water for crew, with a cargo of spanish gold that you bought using your last savings. I envision a lot of angry item return bug reports. 

 

Maybe having hardcore server and casual server could be a solution.

Is that any worse than losing that same Spanish gold to gank in Potbs? And couldn't that fate just as easily be avoided by not sailing into the unknown?

 

I can't imagine that you guys would create a navigation system so hardcore that it would be possible to get hopelessly lost when traveling between two major ports. So just like Potbs red zones, I'd assume that getting lost would only be possible in certain uncharted areas. So that risk can be managed by sticking to familiar areas. There's nothing you can do to stop occasionally foolhardiness among players, but you can make certain dangers easy to avoid or prepare for.

 

Anyways, even assuming a seafaring simulator, it would be hard to get so lost that you run out of all stores. Ships should carry enough water to cross an ocean with time to spare, and there's always land in some direction. Problems arise when a storm holds drives you back for a week and disables your vessel, so you have to limp onto an unfamiliar shore under jury rig, only to run straight into Cape Cod and be driven onto the beach. Running aground was the single greatest cause of loss, followed by foundering in storms. Dying of thirst was only something that happened when the ship suffered some serious, serious damage of some sort.

[admin]

Still wandering..

 

Getting really lost - and asking.. "Shit where am i?"  is it a good feeling? or bad?

 

 

ps you dont need to create a hardcore navigation system for that.

 

It can be achieved by

Not having a map at all. Or not showing your accurate position and/or bearing, will make fast accurate travel harder.

Not naming towns on the open map, that will make you go actually go into port and ask - what town is that in local - if you don't know that language you will hear gibberish. 

Directions would sound different also -

instead of go to Port of Spain on Trinidad from Gibraltar - will be go follow africa coast find Dakar first, then track west to cape verde - fill as much water and food as you can there and then follow the winds to the coast of brazil and then use the coast untill you see the big rock and then turn north. The second town on the coast should be port of spain.

 

Not sure how usefull it is though

[Mirones]

in sniper elite v2 you have very rough sketches as the map that you can use, and who says we are not using our scool atlas to plot a course 

like mhm if i want to get from gibraltar to Bermuda i should plot a course of mhm i just pull a number out of my head now: 285°

[maturin]

 

Or not showing your accurate position and/or bearing, will make fast accurate travel harder.

I think that's the way to go. Navigation error can be region-limited, affected by chronometer, map and officer quality, and above all weather. Storms and maneuvers make it difficult to keep track of your position. So if you just have a nice jaunt across the channel in a straight line, there's nothing to worry about. But when you are roving all over the North Atlantic in storms and chases, error increases.

Anything to add some actual gameplay and interest to map travel.

Player position error also mitigates the problem of having instantaneous communication between players in a situation where sending messages was impossible. Catch a player in the mid ocean and it will be hard for him to whisper his society mates to come gank you. People will have to rendezvous near major ports and land features, which will naturally sculpt the gameworld in terms of pvp and pve activity.

[Johny Reb]

 

Current thinking is to provide semi-accurate maps for players for the known areas, but uncharted waters will be more ... uncharted, providing the sense of unknown and the feeling of getting lost.

 

But it could be a fake feature - cos many players will explore and eventually all areas will become known, posted on youtube and forums, rendering it all meaningless. 

 

What do you guys think?

 

I think the best way to handle this is to have player derived maps that can be sold to other players. This provides a role of Explorer to players wishing to become mapmakers. These maps would be of various quality which would be dependent on how much time the player put into exploring the area. For a given grid, every island in visual range of the explorer would be mapped but would be very inaccurate. The most accurate maps would be created by actually sailing the outlines of the islands and landmasses.

 

Some areas that were historically known like the English Channel would never need to be mapped but more dangerous and lesser know coastlines where anything could happen would need to be.

[Ned Loe]

I think the best way to handle this is to have player derived maps that can be sold to other players. This provides a role of Explorer to players wishing to become mapmakers. These maps would be of various quality which would be dependent on how much time the player put into exploring the area. For a given grid, every island in visual range of the explorer would be mapped but would be very inaccurate. The most accurate maps would be created by actually sailing the outlines of the islands and landmasses.

 

Some areas that were historically known like the English Channel would never need to be mapped but more dangerous and lesser know coastlines where anything could happen would need to be.

Agree, there should be a place called  - Cartography Club. Player will need to do few missions in order to join the club. Once accepted, players can trade maps with other club members. This can promote world exploration.

[Mirones]

could be intresting with these tradable maps. but who says we are not checking our modern naviagtion stuff to find out where things are?

we are modelling our world after the original after all. so it will be only a short time where these maps would be usefull befor they get outdated by some forum guides and stuff

or lets players where you can watch the video and follow the course they used. but i'm for it actually i think i might be able to sail from europe to some random island just out of my memory. if it comes to geography i was unbeaten back then in scool. all i might need is an compas and thats it.

[maturin]

could be intresting with these tradable maps. but who says we are not checking our modern naviagtion stuff to find out where things are?

 

If we plopped you in the middle of New York harbor with an iPhone and Google Maps, how long would it take you to establish your position to within a quarter mile? Sure, you could do it, but the several minutes inbetween are still a form of gameplay.

 

If you are straining to identify the subtle landforms of the horizon while mentally estimating the ever-changing angles between a lighthouse and a prominent tree, it doesn't matter if you have perfectly accurate satellite maps sitting at your elbow. You are already performing the most meaningful (for our purposes) form of navigation.

 

Lack of "You Are Here" markers on a minimap is an extremely powerful feature. The ingame chart (or lack thereof) is a character-skill feature. But that still leaves the player-skill of putting that knowledge to use.

[hole in the ground]

As for other UI ideas, how about something akin to startrek bridge commander?  They have a system where you have your senior officers around you and you command them to carry out whatever task.  In this instance they would be sail trim, helm direction, gunnery orders, boats/borders away etc.

 

You are the captain on the quarter deck. Yes you may occasionally take the helm and possibly fire a single aimed shot but generally you are not the one helming nor aiming or firing cannons. In the middle of a battle a captain would be wasted if they were on the helm or behind a cannon.

 

Have I explained it sufficiently? Anyone agree that this could be a good system? 

[Mirones]

we will see could be intressting but maybe later player avatar is on the list after other things are polished out

[hole in the ground]

I didnt necessarily mean that there was an avatar. I am suggesting that the player wouldnt have direct control over the ship or the guns. Instead they direct its actions through the ships officers and crew...

[Mirones]

Silent Hunter?

[Lemonater47]

I didnt necessarily mean that there was an avatar. I am suggesting that the player wouldnt have direct control over the ship or the guns. Instead they direct its actions through the ships officers and crew...

That's silent hunter style lol.

The problem with silent hunter was if you didn't play it for a while you forgot everything. You forgot who did what and you were widely mashing buttons doing a whole bunch of things except the thing you wanted the submarine to do. By that time half your crew was dead or wounded including half the officers, you were taking on water and Half the submarine components were damaged.

Naval action looks a tad more complicated than silent hunter if they implemented that system of doing things. While cool gameplay wise it could have some ease of use issues.

What I do like is the crew system from silent hunter 3. Where you assign crew members and officers to stations. It was drag and drop which was slightly annoying but they can improve ok that system. Like with a slider or something and maybe even presets. But each crew member had a name, his morale, his experience, his rank, his stamina and specialties. You could even give them medals, promote them or train them to specialise in something.

[theSpatchula]

Hi all, Know this is an old topic and im sure it lives else where on the site, but was messing around with some very preliminary UI ideas.

 

Obviously, this is all just ideas based off their current build but Id like to see a simplistic but informative layout like they have now but having the bulk of my ships information concentrated to one area like I have it at the bottom of the screen. Also, would avoid any clutter at top of the screen with a central focus on the targeted ships information. 

 

I was curious if some fort of notifications bar that popups a events that are happening on your ship, would be helpful. Letting you know number of leaks, if there are any fires and so on. 

Anyway just some barebones ideas, and figured I would share.

 

 

 

[Crankey]

Make them float. !

(Then players may move them around the screen to their personal preference (With a lock in place function) Perhaps with the option to drag them to larger or smaller sizes again to player choice.  Takes the decisions away from the Devs where best to place anything, although a standard UI setup would be in place initially)

 

Colour of text/detail, background and transparency options

 

Allow chat logs to be refreshed or scrolled back to, to view older messages

 

If it feels/looks right for the period I will be a happy bunny

[theSpatchula]

Agree with making them float. Customization is huge when it comes to a users HUD. 

Im curious though would you guys rather see a super simple hud with appropriate information and little design or would you like to see a hud with more texture and design, something more like youd see in diablo 3.

 

 

 

or more simple like this hud ( its ugly I know but simple, not much depth )

 

 

 

 

[uldo]

Remove the enemy damage/health/gun UI element. In my opinion, it spoils gameplay, you can look at how damaged someone is without paying any attention. You should assume how damaged your enemy is by yourself. Same applies to guns - did he just fire or guns are ready and how many. At the moment you can tell that by just looking at that top right bar.

Edited February 18, 2015 by uldo