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Old 05-02-2013, 11:15 AM   #1
plamzi
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ForgottenMUD GUI

This deserves a separate thread.

I see a lot of progress here. Some feedback (in case you want any :

Regarding the new inventory elements:

* The first thing that strikes me is that the carried inventory is limited to 35 slots. Is that a game mechanic limit or a GUI display limit? Also, is there a benefit to not seeing potions as stacked together with a number in the corner? Is there an option to stack them? If so, it should probably be default.

* Assuming the items in the diamond-shaped block are worn, it would be nice to have a very faint silhouette of a person in the background to get the point across immediately.

* I think most people would want to have the inventory in its own panel. Consider adding it as a tab of the NPC/PC panel.

* It would be very neat if hovering on an item tells you some of its most important stats as well.

* It would also be neat if the inventory is coupled with a way to see your stats. That way people can try on different items and see how their character's stats change.

Some general suggestions:

* An option to turn off room descriptions that will turn them into tooltips when one hovers on the room pic.

* Less busy, fainter, higher-res background. Maybe something like .

* Thinner frames, some of them rounded, if possible.

* Better and smaller game logo.
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Old 05-02-2013, 12:42 PM   #2
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

I mostly second what Plamzi said. ;-)


Also, is there a thread on this site that showcases the custom UIs people have made for their MUDs? That might actually be good for inspiration in that regard. I'm not suggesting a thread to gather criticism -- but just a central location to showcase what's been accomplished outside of good-ol' "text only".
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Old 05-02-2013, 01:15 PM   #3
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

Would be nice to have a gallery thread. People usually post images in their own games' promo threads, they're scattered and quickly become hard to bump into.
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Old 05-02-2013, 07:38 PM   #4
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

Thanks for the thread.

Last edited by ForgottenMUD : 05-30-2016 at 04:02 PM.
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Old 05-03-2013, 06:00 AM   #5
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

I think this is a great idea (so just do it?), but I'm also curious as to whether you think the image I posted in that thread would qualify. It's still text, but certainly non-standard.
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Old 05-03-2013, 10:12 AM   #6
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

It's great that you feel this way! I know for myself that my first reaction to criticism is often grumpy-stompy

Well, I think that if the game allows someone to carry more than 35 items, then you have to figure out what happens when someone does. Because it most certainly will happen.

If you can't easily add tabs in the script you're using, one simpler approach is to add back and forward arrow buttons that will paginate the inventory and practically make it endless.

This is getting us into game design matters, but if many creatures don't drop any loot, is there enough reason to kill them? I would also look at how the first few levels play out in respect to loot. New players often come with the expectation that their character will improve via loot. It may be disconcerting to hear that they have to be level 30 before they can kill an NPC that will give them loot, etc. Unless they have other obvious means of progression.

Again a game design matter. Many ways to change the dynamic to make PvP less frustrating. In my game, we currently disallow quaffing during PvP to make it more skill-based. Or you can limit the number of potions that can be consumed (via cooldowns or just a hard limit). Or you can make potions in the game as a whole pretty rare so that anyone quaffing hard in a certain PvP fight is making themselves an easy target in the next bout.

In my opinion, sound is easy to add, but very very hard to deliver in a way that delights rather than annoys. My guess is at least 50% of folks will turn off sound right off the bat, and much of the rest will turn it off as soon as it gets repetitive. So, the only thing I know for sure about sound is, you must offer an easy way to turn it off

Oh and about the bard thing: are you sure you want to add such a feature? I mean, it sounds fun to develop, but it will impact who chooses the bard class, and it will also generate the expectation that every class unlocks a different special UI element. That's hard to deliver.

Last edited by plamzi : 05-03-2013 at 10:26 AM.
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Old 05-03-2013, 12:01 PM   #7
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

Kaz: I'm not seeing an image. Where did you post it? Are you referring to the ForgottonMUD post?
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Old 05-03-2013, 04:00 PM   #8
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

If you are looking for good game icons which are free, check out . I use some of them in one I'm working on. Free, SVG, black and white graphics.
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Old 05-03-2013, 10:25 PM   #9
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

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Old 05-05-2013, 09:58 AM   #10
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

Good stuff, keep it up!
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Old 05-06-2013, 12:53 AM   #11
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

Lookin' good so far!

I do have a question regarding design. I have found that having a minimap is a double-edged sword. While it shows where you're at in relation to other places, I notice a tendency to focus on the minimap as one moves around the world, thus causing players to miss important information that may be in the scrolling text area. So, placement of the minimap in relation to important text seems crucial, and I am not convinced I have yet discovered the best size/placement.

Have you found a way to solve that particular problem? Its all about where players are focusing their attention, and it seems like it can be on the minimap, or on the scrolling text, but not so much both.
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Old 05-06-2013, 02:03 AM   #12
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI

You need to accomodate all player types. Only explorers are going to care for little hints, but the rest won't, and they don't want to be forced to read when they don't want to. If someone is looking for hints, they will read the text regardless. Although once you've read it, you don't want to read it again and the mini-map is necessary.

I think that even without a mini-map, players are going to speed read for buzz words (directions) and ignore the rest of the text anyway.

If the map is too small, it's not very helpful and it's frustrating because you don't see where you are going and you are slowed down. I find that only showing 1 or 2 squares ahead is too little so I made mine 3.

In dungeons where reading for hints is important, I have a special room flag that blocks the mapper.
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Old 05-06-2013, 07:33 PM   #13
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI


Hmm, yes, right. I should have been more specific. I don't really mean hints. I mean straight up lists of transient objects. Is that what you've got on the right? A list of things in the current room that a player can interact with? I see NPC names there, but do things like items/loot also show up?
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Old 05-07-2013, 07:13 PM   #14
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Re: ForgottenMUD GUI


Last edited by ForgottenMUD : 05-10-2013 at 11:21 AM.
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