Friday Facts #246 - The GUI update (Part 3)

[Ojelle]

The UI looks really nice, it really gives factorio the uplift it needed. Altought even the current GUI is not bad its just a little buggy and stuff gets out of the screen. But for the most part its doing its job.

The one complaint however is the placement of the Play/Confirm/Green button. I think it should be in the middle of both other 2 buttons being cancel or back.
Why I have this complaint, I don't really know, I don't have a clear argument but from other designs the focus of something should be in the middle especially if its color coded.
If the buttons would not be color coded, then it would make sense to have the from right to left or left to right as you showed with the windows/linux GUI. but if you have 3 or more buttons and color coded its more sensible to put the most important button in the middle. (Like the play button on a radio/mp3 player/movie players etc.)
It just makes more sense from a estetic perspective.
I've made a example with the images you guys provided, and the button placement. its the border button arrows that need to be adjusted so that the "confirm" and the other to have the proper directional pattern.
Also the Load/Green/Play button that is half of the map in length does not look that good either. Make it smaller or put it into the left panel (Map generation preview).

Thanks for the Friday facts. Keep it up!

aaargh no it looks awfull that way ( =what went trough my mind when I saw the edit, sorry)

[chris13524]

I agree with @ledow, what does that red reloading button do? Also, next to the seed, there is a...shuffle button? I guess that's OK if you think about it enough, but perhaps the circular arrow would be better?

Also as @Bilka mentions, there is an inconsistency between editable fields. Some of them are set in like a text field would (map height, width, etc.). Yet others pop out like a button (price multiplier, seed, etc.). They should all be set in if they're editable, and if they aren't editable, without the button style altogether.

I disagree with @RocK3ru, I think the way you had the buttons ordered was great! So long as it's consistent. Though I do agree that the Play button is too long and may actually make it feel less in height, causing a little anxiety.

For the preview window, you should be able to zoom out and generate new map (async so it doesn't freeze while it generates, you should see tiles filling in as they generate...like Blender). The zoom level would be retained between rerolls and would default to the size of the starting area, as to not spoil anything, while still allowing zooming out. Also, the spawn point should be marked, or at least some indication of the starting area as finding the center of a large area on your screen can be difficult. Perhaps this maker only appears when zooming further out.

It would be useful if there was a dotted outline of the starting area when viewing the preview and knowing how far bitters might expand in the first hour would useful to know. It would help new players get an idea of how quickly they'd need to setup a base perimeter.

Yes, a dotted outline would be perfect, I think. Though the biter expansion is likely useless as new players wouldn't be aware/concerned of that anyways.

The button and checkbox for the preview updating should be scraped. Instead, there should be a de-bounce timer. When they make an adjustment, a small spinner animation should display in the lower left-hand corner of the preview, some time should pass, and then the map should re-generate. The delay should depend on the computer's performance. If the machine is fast enough to generate the area in <1s, then I don't think there should be any de-bouncing required. Flashing should be fine IMO. But if it takes any longer than a second, there should be a second or two de-bounce period.

Something that bugs me is those volume sliders. It looks to me that the handle is a pixel or two too high and feels out of place.

In a general sense, I was never really sure what "replay" was. Is it the ability to rewatch your game like a video? Or does it just allow you to go back and do it again? You should defiantly put a tooltip there.

Nothing slows down the early game more than having to hike between stone coal and iron. The distance to copper isn't really a concern. A short walk to water is bearable. Oil and uranium are a much later problem.

Agreed. Perhaps there could be some sort of generation assertion that those resources are close enough together for new players?

Cool stuff, I'm excited! You're going to release this summer...right?

[Albert]

I'm calling it now: With the new GUI tileset, nobody will know if a value can be changed because the button and editable field look exactly the same. Notice the seed field for example, it looks exactly the same as the other buttons, making me wonder if it's a button, or a text field.

Do not wonder. A button is outset with squared corners.
A textfield is inset with rounded corners.
An editable display is outset and with rounded corners. Rounded corners means editable.
Have in mind that this is stilll experimental.

[Bilka]

Do not wonder. A button is outset with squared corners.
A textfield is inset with rounded corners.
An editable display is outset and with rounded corners. Rounded corners means editable.
Have in mind that this is stilll experimental.

Nice that there is a difference, but I think you should make it a bit more obvious ;) Perhaps the round corner could be bigger, it's barely visible on the small field.

[Agomy]

Love the looks of the new UI

Hate the Crapple approach though.

[Nidan]

I keep wondering what the red button at the top of some of those windows does, and why it needs be red. Reload?

Looks like "Reset to preset defaults" to me and since it removes your changes, red seems appropriate. Ideally the button should be disabled while you are at the defaults.
In the same manner, the Reset button in the options should be red as well, maybe using the same icon.
*cue color blindness debate* Or am I jinxing it now?

Also, I agree the buttons shouldn't jump around depending on GUI state.

[maniak1349]

Do not wonder. A button is outset with squared corners.
A textfield is inset with rounded corners.
An editable display is outset and with rounded corners. Rounded corners means editable.
Have in mind that this is stilll experimental.

Nice that there is a difference, but I think you should make it a bit more obvious Perhaps the round corner could be bigger, it's barely visible on the small field.

I'd rather prefer no rounding at all with more pronounced inner shadow for textboxes instead. More Squareness for the God of Squareness!

[Mur]

I like the mockup. Just don't let the buttons be super crazy long...that looks awkward.

[voddan]

May I suggest that the map width and height fields display the infinity sign "∞" when empty. That would be the accurate and self-explaining representation of the defaults.

[nosports]

Why not place two PLAY-Buttons in the Map-generation ?

play with this map / play with rerolled settings

So someone can choose without an extra click.....

[XBBX]

hmm... work in progress i guess

[Avezo]

This map preview might be problematic on non-HD resolutions.

[ashkante]

Don't worry, the preview window won't spoil my exploration. I tend to forget what the map looked like about 0.2 sec after starting playing

The new GUI looks seriously awesome. Hats off to your UX guy (as well as to all other devs)!

[KatherineOfSky]

WOW! The new GUI looks AMAZING! I really like the style chosen, as well as the button flow -- it makes a lot more sense, and is very intuitive. (Someone mentioned they didn't like the long buttons, but I think they look fantastic!) The style/colors/texture really fits with the nature of the game. (And of course, who can object to the glorious power of orange! )

I have a request -- currently the Map Exchange string is copy-able to the clipboard. Could you make it so that we can save it to a preset of our own? (So that it appears in the drop down menu). With very few exceptions, I always generate maps with the exact same settings, and it would be soooooo handy not to have to click the sliders/drop downs every time, or find the Map Exchange String and manually paste it in.

It would be great to be able to give a custom name to this new preset, (and of course have an option for deleting them).

I have very much been looking forward to the UI re-design, and you never disappoint! <3

[MasterBuilder]

...An editable display is outset and with rounded corners. Rounded corners means editable...

Except the tab titles follow this same rule. "Resources", "Enemy", "Advanced", etc. All of these are 'outset and with rounded corners' indicating it should be editable according to your own rules.

Visually, the only difference between the editable seed, and any button next to it, is just round/square corners. That's not enough of a contrast to know it's editable.
I'd suggest giving editable fields a lighter background or something. Or maybe some sort of underline? I don't know what to do, all I know it it's not intuitive at present.

Take "Dissipation Rate" near the bottom. Given the sliders next to it, one would normally assume that the text boxes next to it are for display only and you must make changes via the sliders.
... but they are 'outset and with rounded corners' so does that mean the user can edit that directly? It's not obvious.

[Albert]

...An editable display is outset and with rounded corners. Rounded corners means editable...

Except the tab titles follow this same rule. "Resources", "Enemy", "Advanced", etc. All of these are 'outset and with rounded corners' indicating it should be editable according to your own rules.

You're right with this, I thought about it, and all I can say is when pressing the tab you have an entire universe of editable stuff.

[Twinsen]

I have a request -- currently the Map Exchange string is copy-able to the clipboard. Could you make it so that we can save it to a preset of our own? (So that it appears in the drop down menu). With very few exceptions, I always generate maps with the exact same settings, and it would be soooooo handy not to have to click the sliders/drop downs every time, or find the Map Exchange String and manually paste it in.

We were looking into it. Unfortunately the interface was getting pretty complicated with a lot of gotchas. So in the interest of time we decided to keep it simple and keep new features to a minimum.

[Piroko]

One thing I would like to see is a marker in the preview window where the actual spawn will be. It's surprisingly easy to lose track of when scrolling around..

[Dry Hairy Tree]

I barely understand what all the settings buttons actually do. Never been able to generate ore or water in amounts that seem to correspond with what the buttons say. Figured one setting must affect the next or some such magic. Ask for lots of iron and tiny uranium - get the opposite. Small oil patches, get huge ones... Worst part of the game. While I like the new look, it doesn't address the real issues players (or at least I) have at that point. The map preview helps, but a re-roll for a random start is entirely too random.

[voddan]

Please do not forget to add a separate tab for the starting zone settings since having a good starting zone is the primary reason to look at the map preview in my experience. If I am guarantied to have a good ore patches for my early game, I can play with any other settings and enjoy myself.