Well I think this mod could use a graphical UI overhaul. So this is just a concept of what I would like the Vehicle Menu to look like to cut down on confusion and make it easier to use. Linky cuz pic is forum breaking 2000 pixels wide Please leave any comments, criticisms and notes in this forum. Also please note that this was drawn up at 3-4AM so there may be stuff I forgot.
Bad usage of space. It needs to fit a standard 4 aspect ratio. It's way too high compared to it's width. This will result in it being shrunk and cramped in the middle of the screen with wasted space at the sides. But the concept itself is good. Edit: Try to fill outwards to the sides, and shrink the height. The minimum recommended resolution for empires is 1024x786, so that is where you should start. If you use a higher resolution, you could have readability issues later when you resize it. Build it for that resolution and you should have a more usable interface from a dev standpoint.
I honestly dont think this would be an improvment, an already complicated menu is just stuffed into one page. I don't believe that this is easier for a new player
well heres the thing (based off of when i first started playing) alot of the times it looked like i had selected a different armor that standard but it was still standard. At least this way it clearly defines what armor / engine you have and it would list why you might be unable to build a vehicle (insufficient funds, overweight limit, etc) as for aspect ratio, yeah i kinda thought I'd made it too high. But i didnt really realise until after I'd made it. (At that point I was like f*** it Ill fix it in version 2) anyway Brutos Maybe you could elaborate on a way to make it easier for nubs to understand. pretty plz w/ a raspberry on top... or 5... or none if u don't like raspberries Either way this was never intended to be anywhere on the same world as the final version. This was at best a random idea I had at 3-4 AM (when my brain seems to be most active) Edit: Also what font does Empires use?
Armor and Engine Screen for V2 Okay so I decided to split it into 2 screens (though I think 1 screen is better) just as a test to see which would look better. Heres the Armor and Engine Screen for now. Linky cuz 1024 pixels wide is sill pretty damn big Weapons Screen to come. As always criticism and comments are welcome. Also please tell me if 1 screen or 2 is more preferred. Also just as A side note, the Build step would be a button for quick and dirty armor changes w/out affecting weapons
It wasn't loading. Now it does though. I think it would be better if you rotated the vehicle display 90 degrees so it would take up less horizontal space. Then you could put full listings of armour and engine side by side.
I like the idea of everything being on one page. While it is a lot to look at, it takes less effort to find something. A few things can use some work: -Turn the original idea on its side -For the weapons placement, do you really need the picture? It may work for the current system, but this idea is a lot larger and screen space is at a premium. Suggestion: make a list of the weapon slots. Alternitivley, have the weapons available where it is, the weapons slots in a collam next to that and the weapon binds in a third collem -If there is room make the engine and armor selection hold 3, as there are few times that more than 2 are researched. Not sure if you are planing on drop down menus, but less clicking is always a good thing. -Not sure if you can do this in the interface, but havening the latest armor/engine be in the selection box should help people not get paper when comp gets researched.
This thread spawned an idea into me, now your concept doesn't really condense anything, its reorders just some stuff. The best way for this to be condensed would be to actually hide any selection as long it isnt important, I made a quick mockup on how the stuff could really be condensed: (Everything shinny and colorful can be clicked) http://brutos.org/download/empires/gui/vehiclecreation/index.html
I think this problem can be dichotomized further into functionality for 2 user groups; idio... new players and experienced players. A single screen like the OP suggested would do nicely for experienced players, who know everything, and already have every loadout they'll ever use anyways. For the new player, throw a simplistic gui with big buttons and some good eye candy and they'll be all set.
Oooooooooooooh! I like this idea Though, I think it would be best if coupled with Aeonoth's original idea. Make it so Brutos's pic goes in the bottom position (overhead picture) and the armor, weapon, engine loadout appears in the top position when clicked.
I'm still improving my concept: http://brutos.org/download/empires/gui/vehiclecreation/index2.html# Will keep working on it when I have some more time. I got some ideas for it (like the way plates are added is totally retarded in my concept).
Ok Version 3 is concepted. As always please comment and criticize Here ya go Notes: The left box is for armor plates. Rather than hit ++++ to get 4 armor plates you just click the drop down and then select the number of plates you want. The default Vehicle type would still be jeep, Both Vehicle pics would switch depending on what you selected. Brutos I'm not sure which box selects what so Im going to presume that the orange box is the engine and the grey box is the armor. Also I'm using your first model
Dropdown is fail, it makes it MORE time consuming if you're trying to get the most armour you can with your weapons load.
