HUD/Interface

[Inshane]

Ey boys,

I wanna add some suggestions and stuff to the interface, since i've got loads of experience in this bussiness and done some hud and interfaces myself.

Try to keep the style the same, the radar is way more fance than then outer border of your bullet indicator.

Also keep the colors consistant, the blue color of the CT's are different then the Blue color on the Armor indicator which is disturbing. Try to keep everything a 2/3 colors and the same style. This will make the player less aware of the interface, which you want, because the focus needs to be in the game not in your hud.

Nade indicator is kind of a bonus, but you usually remember this ingame and not sure if you'd want this.

The defusekit indicator is a bit too much, as in too big and in the middle of your screen try avoiding this. Try to place it somewhere in the bottom next to your armor or something.

I'm a big fan of pixel fonts but only if this is needed, small fonts 8pt. But in this type of interface try to avoid it and try some others well suited for the job.

Another even more harder issue i'd just notice, try to keep all the icons one style. (some are think, some are thin)
Example: The dollar sign is completely different then the clock. The clock is completely different then the armor one. The defuse indicator is different then the armor one.

If you look @ the old interface of 1.6 and Source they try to keep it consistant in the whole interface.

Hope this helps,
And if you need help just ask :)

Shane
2D/3D Artist

[haGisson]

[...]
Shane
2D/3D Artist

you're a 3d artist? they need someone like you, do you have a portfolio?

[Inshane]

Yes currently not updated,

www2.hku.nl/~wybren

Working @ Little Chicken Game company (www.littlechicken.nl (http://www.littlechicken.nl))
Photoshop experience around 9 years.

Currently working on the hud of a Wii golf game.
www.knutselwereld.nl (http://www.knutselwereld.nl) (just released with an fwa award)

[haGisson]

oh, nice :D

but (if you want to help the csp-team) will you work for free?

[Inshane]

Hud = easy to do within 1/2 days

3D will cost weeks etc

Currently already working on:
- Wii game (work)
- Xbox live game (school project)

So yes i can work for free, but not at the moment. Maybe in the future near januari. Just simply don't have the time now.
But i'm sure willing to help make a great mod, and give out some advices where it's needed.

[sevoii]

Just lol.

[jediscience]

Just lol.

????

[haGisson]

Just lol.

????

he trolls in every thread

ignore such posts pls.
you're life will be easier in this froum!

[alba]

Hey man, so here goes...


Try to keep the style the same, the radar is way more fance than then outer border of your bullet indicator.
It is the same style, as I've said a few times this is supposed to be the spiritual sucessor to the 1.6 HUD except with some improvements and changes but the guidelines is to keep the exact same structure. Radar is an hybrid between the 1.6 one and the CSS one (for the border which I'm thinking of making lighter mind you but it'll stay this way because the radar is green in 1.6 and the hud is orange so you could say the same that it's not the same style but it's the style they created and which became a classic.


Also keep the colors consistant, the blue color of the CT's are different then the Blue color on the Armor indicator which is disturbing. Try to keep everything a 2/3 colors and the same style. This will make the player less aware of the interface, which you want, because the focus needs to be in the game not in your hud.
The thing is, the blue color of the armor has nothing to do with the ct color at all, it's just the armor color. I'm applying what I call a color code for the HUD. The health bar is a gradient GREEN (100%) <-> RED (0%), the armor bar is BLUE (100%) <-> GRAY (0%) and the ammos are YELLOW so you can have a quick glance at what is what without actually looking at the HUD "blue means I got armor" "if i see green that means I'm at full health" and "if the yellow is less wide than it was that means my primary clip is half full". That's basically the idea to associate colors with each module. Yeah it might seem a little crazy at first but I truly believe people will get used to it and get something out of it. It just takes time.


Nade indicator is kind of a bonus, but you usually remember this ingame and not sure if you'd want this.
The grenadebar is totally optional and you can either show it or hide it, so it does nothing to the end user since it's up to him to decide which one to use.


The defusekit indicator is a bit too much, as in too big and in the middle of your screen try avoiding this. Try to place it somewhere in the bottom next to your armor or something.
See my first answer, CS has a structure which worked for years and years and changing it for no reason than "try to avoid the middle of the screen" isn't the right one. It's always been in the middle on the left and I intend it to stay that way since I'm staying true to the original structure as much as I possibly can.


I'm a big fan of pixel fonts but only if this is needed, small fonts 8pt. But in this type of interface try to avoid it and try some others well suited for the job.
I think Tahoma has become overtime the best font to use since everyone is used to that kinda pixel-ish feel it has, I'm still working on improving the own csp font I did and add another one to it for regular text but for now that is not a priority.


Another even more harder issue i'd just notice, try to keep all the icons one style. (some are think, some are thin)
Example: The dollar sign is completely different then the clock. The clock is completely different then the armor one. The defuse indicator is different then the armor one.
They are the same style, just not the same icon. They're both white and both use the same style except the clock icon has a rounded border simply because the timer needs it, having the little \- bars without any would look silly so that's kind of a subjective way to say they're not the same but to me they are so, not much I can do about that I guess.


If you look @ the old interface of 1.6 and Source they try to keep it consistant in the whole interface.
Perhaps you should have another look and compare the 1.6 interface with the CSP one and you'd understand some of the design decisions I've made and what I've decided would make it a little better.


Hope this helps, And if you need help just ask :)
Feedback is always appreciated, even if there is bound to be people who won't like some of the stuff we do, I'll try my hardest to take all the good one and try to put it into the mod and as always, my philosophy down the line is to give the player as much options possible to make sure he can play the game the way he wants to. I guess that's about it.

Sorry for the long wall of text but I just wanted to clear some things out. Cheers.

[sevoii]

Apparently I troll... in every forum....

n69ky really has it in for me for some reason. Every post I make, he has some stupid negative remark.

[Lordearon]

thumbs up alba, great reply. I like your portofolio jediscience - do you have any experience with high poly models such as the source player/weapon models?

[jediscience]

Apparently I troll... in every forum....

n69ky really has it in for me for some reason. Every post I make, he has some stupid negative remark.

http://pics.bikerag.com/Uploads/data/500/258Troll_spray.jpg

[haGisson]

thumbs up alba, great reply. I like your portofolio jediscience - do you have any experience with high poly models such as the source player/weapon models?

his name is inshane ;)

and alba... good reply
i really think inshane would fit in your team

[Inshane]

With the icons i mean, the fadness of the Clock in comparison to the armor. And all the others icons.

http://holodeckrose.hku.nl/wybren/example.png

Forgot to add the CT / T icons, that too :)
Hope it helps.

It will always be an opinion.

Kind regards,

Wybren

[madmax]

he got a point but it still looks nice alba but utill i get to play the game i dont know :D

[alba]

With the icons i mean, the fadness of the Clock in comparison to the armor. And all the others icons.

You could say the same about css, the defuse icon isn't the same as the base line of hud elements. The point is the icons within the same function are the same style:
[health/armor/ammos] -> white border/gray inline
[grenades/money] -> flat color with drop shadow
[buyzone/bomb/defusekit] -> flat color with transparency

the thing is, we're consistent in the way we're talking the hud, this is not supposed to be css style with just different icons and 1.6 with the same shit. This is our own twist on the current structure of both games. I think you're trying to link the two where it shouldn't be. I still think this is the correct way to do it (even if it's still a work in progress and I still have plenty of things I want to add or refine to it).

[Lordearon]

great post inshane
I like the hud as it is + I really want to see this baby in action, i know alba has put blood, sweat and tears into this one <3

EDIT, what I meant is s...perhud but I'm tired of always mentioning it

[alba]

The thing is we can nitpick all we want, what matters in the end is what I call "the test of time" and see how much changes we'll bring to the HUD down the line in weeks, months, years.

So far the priority is to finish up all the content and polish it until I'm happy with it (I'm never happy with anything I hear) and then go from there :)

And also had my "classic" version to the hud in the backend but I have to wait for mizzack to clear things out on that one before I start anything.

[haGisson]

alba won't stop until it's perfect

[alba]

As pointless and silly as that sounds, pretty much yeah.

[Inshane]

Ya i know the feeling.

Aldo you mix the blending options and style.
Im talking about the style, not the blending options in photoshop.

Same thickness, same roundings etc
And im sure you'll do your best to get the right :)

Hope i've helped :P

Shane

alba will make an 4D HUD

[TUROcKdev]

xD yes a 4D HUD q=D

[MaveN]

alba will make an 4D HUD
hmm i think a portal gun in CSP would be nice! the tactical aspect would extend it further.

[madmax]

csp + portal + madmax = eipc :D

[jediscience]

alba will make an 4D HUD
hmm i think a portal gun in CSP would be nice! the tactical aspect would extend it further.

are you trolling ?


csp + portal + madmax = epic :D

there i fixed it for you :D

[MaveN]

csp + portal + madmax = eipc :D
eipc? let me correct your spelling mistake:

csp + portal + madmax = FAIL

[oOl3g]

Hello guys
This HUD interface is not pleasant. What for these strips and squares are necessary, what do they give?
Many people play 10 years in this game, they know old interface. Why change it?
It's serious project, project needs serious HUD interface.
Give us back the old interface or make the setting of choice old/new.

[j0lt]

Hello guys
This HUD interface is not pleasant. What for these strips and squares are necessary, what do they give?
Many people play 10 years in this game, they know old interface. Why change it?
It's serious project, project needs serious HUD interface.
Give us back the old interface or make the setting of choice old/new.

That is why the CSP team and alba have gone to such lengths to make sure every element of the HUD is in the same place as in 1.6, easily readable, and only different in style to improve the look, and in some cases the functionality (such as the colour coded health bar).

[mang]

Not to mention there has been talk of a classic HUD for a while now, including in this thread, so I'm sure we'll see one eventually, if that's what floats your boat.