tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3249541406364691686.post7683036462789761316..comments2023-09-15T05:54:48.691-07:00Comments on SERIAL GANKER: Evolving User Interfacessid67http://www.blogger.com/profile/16656756657483499337noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3249541406364691686.post-38000344682471234622010-02-26T20:26:54.146-08:002010-02-26T20:26:54.146-08:00My core group of friends has played WoW on and off...My core group of friends has played WoW on and off since launch. Now they all say that they want something, but every time I introduce them to a new game, I hear the same thing:<br /><br />Where are the heroic dungeons?<br />Where are the battlegrounds?<br />Where is the gear viewer (whatever they call CTRL-clicking an item)?<br />Where's my auto-attack?<br /><br />And the deduce that every new game is "a primitive WoW". As the guy in the group that's always looking for something new, it's pretty infuriating, but it's also hard to argue. I love WoW's polished to a shine interface, and I love that whatever I don't like, I can change with an addon.<br /><br />Still, I'll take fresh content over that crap any day.DOUBLE9Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11523461092585751145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3249541406364691686.post-34953416693562966672010-02-25T16:34:43.070-08:002010-02-25T16:34:43.070-08:00From a usability standpoint, things that are on th...From a usability standpoint, things that are on the outside edges are harder to see. We move the most important frames where they are more visible. I think devs shy away from that by default because it detracts from the graphics. Do you want to look at a target frame or the beastie itself?<br /><br />Of course, as players, we often learn that the beastie doesn't need to be looked at as much as the 'stuff' the UI tells us.<br /><br />Perhaps that's bad game design?sid67https://www.blogger.com/profile/16656756657483499337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3249541406364691686.post-21069529940857142552010-02-25T15:57:33.108-08:002010-02-25T15:57:33.108-08:00When looking at many MMORPGs and their similar UI ...When looking at many MMORPGs and their similar UI elements, one thing has always me as interesting.<br /><br />The "player frame top left, target frame top middle, minimap top right" layout is incredibly prevalent. WoW, WAR, EQ2, AoC, Vanguard, Alganon (lol), Runes of Magic, Allods.. we see a very similar layout again and again.<br /><br />Yet every custom UI I ever see for WoW moves <i>away</i> from that model, because it's simply not that great an arrangement - it forces far too much eye movement around the screen in critical situations.<br /><br />When are we going to see an MMO that launches with the popular layout of player and target frames close together, at the bottom of the screen, directly above a button bar?<br /><br />(of course there probably is one, and I've missed it)Carson 63000https://www.blogger.com/profile/10900682924502279486noreply@blogger.com