ANALYSIS — HUD from Guild Wars (PC)
ANALYSIS – HUD from Guild Wars (PC)
Positives:
+ Interface is completely adjustable, each element can be moved independently of the others with an easy “edit” mode.
+ Text boxes such as the quest log, the chat window, the party list, etc can be resized and use scroll bars.
+ Items can be turned on and off depending on whether you need them or not, and most have shortcut keyboard buttons for quick toggling.
+ Life, level, and mana readers are clear and easy to read.
+ Party members’ names are listed in the party formation inside a health bar, so you don’t need to see the player to know their health. Saves on space having the name inside the bar as well.
+ Quest Log is divided into areas of the map for easier finding of relevant quests, with +/- buttons to hide areas and make the list easier to navigate.
+ Chat window has tabs for local, guild, team, trade, alliance, and emotes chat, allowing you to toggle the different kinds of chat that appear in your text box, and also which group you wish to say things to.
+ Hero command flags located conveniently in the ring of the compass.
+ Compass is interactive and connected to other party members. You can ping it for location, or draw white lines on it with your mouse to give directions.
+ Arrow pointing the direction to the quest objective is clear and easy to follow.
+ Skill bar has easy to read icons and it’s easy to use both with the mouse and with keystrokes.
Negatives:
- When changing areas, the categories that you’ve hidden in the quest log tend to open up again, and your scroll bar resets to the top of the list.
- When fights get complicated, with many participants and many spells flying, the icons for what affects are on you, your party, and your enemies can get overwhelming and start covering the screen if not placed well enough.
- The sheer number of things you can show on your interface means that you HAVE to hide some things, so memorizing the keyboard toggles for those infrequently used (but still useful) ones is important.
- Mission Map occasionally needs resetting if you try to enlarge it then shrink it again.
- Allies showing up in your party formation can make that box a bit unmanageable.
- Notification of skills, enhancements, etc gained gets annoying when you have to wait for them to cycle through.
- NPC talk bubbles tend to get in the way no matter WHERE you put them, and they stay on the screen too long.
Thoughts:
~ Shifting things around on the fly only works with a few of the elements, why not all of them?
~ Some quests don’t give you the quest arrow, usually the ones that have a wide area completion or require more than one thing at once (can’t point in more than one direction). Would multiple arrows clutter the compass too much?
Would Like:
- Better quest log design, and it’s ability to remember its place (bookmarking?).
- An option to have allies appear in a separate box that disappears when you have no allies in the instance.
- Give an option to hit a key to cycle through the NPC monologue faster.
- Equipment bar for usable items.
Tags: analysis, Game Design, guild wars, HUD
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