jason paolasini - 1162915- chapter 8 a benjamin isherwood – 1051749 – chapter 8 b chapter 8 ui...

Jason Paolasini - 1162915- Chapter 8 ABenjamin Isherwood – 1051749 – Chapter 8 B

CHAPTER 8 UI DESIGN

USER INTERFACES• User Interface Design and the Processes

• Managing Complexity

• Interaction Models & Camera Models

• Functionality and input devices

• Game Customization

WHAT IS THE USER INTERFACE

What works is better than what looks good. The looks good can change, but what works works. – Ray Kaiser Eames

A LITTLE BIT OF TERMINOLOGY BEFORE WE START

Button !=Button

PLAYER CENTRIC DESIGNNot Just Any Old Interface

DESIGN RULE 1Do Not Innovate Unnecessarily in UI Design

THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES• Be Consistent

• Give good Feedback

• Remember the player is in control

• Limit the number of steps required

• Permit easy reversal of actions

• Minimize Physical Stress

• Don’t strain players short term memory

• Group related screen-based controls and feedback mechanisms

• Provide shortcuts for experienced players

WHAT THE PLAYER NEEDS TO KNOWThink of these as questions a player would ask…

WHAT THE PLAYER NEEDS TO KNOW• Where am I?

• What am I doing right now?

• What challenges am I facing?

• Did my action succeed or fail?

• Do I have what I need to play successfully?

• Am I in danger of loosing the game?

• Am I making progress?

• What should I do next?

• How did I do?

DESIGN RULE 2Do Not Taunt the Player

WHAT THE PLAYER NEEDS TO DO

WHAT THE PLAYER NEEDS TO DO• Move

• Look around

• Interact with NPC’s

• Move Portable objects

• Manipulate Fixed Objects

• Construct and Demolish Objects

• Negotiations and Financial transactions

• Conversations with NPC’s

• Customize Character

• Talk to friends in Multiplayer games

• Pause the Game

• Set Game Options

• Save the Game

• End the Game

BEFORE YOU DESIGN

DEFINE INTERACTIONSTYLE AND CAMERA STYLE

MANAGING COMPLEXITY

SIMPLIFY THE GAMEUsing Abstraction and Automation

ABSTRACTION & AUTOMATION

ABSTRACTION & AUTOMATION

DEPTH VS. BREADTH UI

CONTEXT SENSITIVE INTERFACES

AVOID OBSCURITYArtistic Overenthusiasm, Pressure to Reduce Screen Usage,

Developer Familiarity

INTERACTION MODELS

AVATAR BASED

MULTI-PRESENT

PARTY-BASED

CONTESTANT

CAMERA MODELS

FIRST PERSON

FIRST PERSON

Pros

• Avatar design is not required except cut scenes

• Camera AI is not required

• Body does not block view

• Most players find navigation easier

Cons

• No avatar customization

• Lack of avatar emotions

• First person perspective denies camera angles for dramatic effect

• Motion sickness in viewers

THIRD PERSON

TYPES OF THIRD PERSON

AERIAL PERSPECTIVES

TOP-DOWN PERSPECTIVE Grand Theft Auto 1

ISOMETRIC PERSPECTIVEWarcraft III

FREE-ROAMING CAMERAMaze ball

CONTEXT-SENSITIVE CAMERA MODELS ICO and the colossus collection

DESIGN RULE 3Limit Camera Movement During Frenetic Action

OTHER 2D STYLES• ■ Single-screen. The display shows the entire world on one screen, normally from a

top-down perspective with cheated objects. The camera never moves. Robotron: 2084 provides a classic example. (See the left side of Figure 13.1.)

• ■ Side-scrolling. The world of a side-scroller—familiar from an entire generation of games—consists of a long 2D strip in which the avatar moves forward and back- ward, with a limited ability to move up and down. The player sees the game world from the side as the camera tracks the avatar.

• ■ Top-scrolling. In this variant of the top-down perspective, the landscape scrolls beneath the avatar (often a flying vehicle), sometimes at a fixed rate that the player cannot change. This forces the player to continually face new challenges as they appear at the top of the screen.

• ■ Painted backgrounds. Many graphical adventure games display the game world in a series of 2D painted backgrounds rather like a stage set.

SINGLE SCREENRobotron 2084

SIDE SCROLLINGMario Bros. 3

TOP SCROLLINGAtari Space Invaders

PAINTED BACKGROUNDLeisure Suit Larry

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