Menu/gui Purchase Screen

[Springheel]

Ok, here's my idea for a purchase screen. I've kept pretty close to the style of the main menu screens, but with more of a book motif. The fonts and graphics are pretty rough but you get the idea.

 

It's a bit of a minimalist design. Instead of all the graphic icons for each item, when your cursor is over any of the items, a picture and description comes up in the bottom corner.

 

Purchase Screen

 

Here's the T2 screen for reference:

 

T2 Screen

[Macsen]

I really like that, Spring. Very classy.

 

Everything regarding the menu I've seen from you guys so far has been superb. I don't recall a game or DVD that had such great looking, atmospheric and clever menus.

[New Horizon]

Class all the way, as always. Great job Spring!

[Napalm]

very nice, although the .guis will require the implementation of a monetary system before I can actually make anything

[god_is_my_goldfish]

I like it, it's much better and more fitting than the mockup I made before.

 

When you go to make this, let me know and I should be able to provide sketches of each item for the lower corner.

[sparhawk]

very nice, although the .guis will require the implementation of a monetary system before I can actually make anything

 

You can put in some hardcoded value. What's the problem?

[oDDity]

I love the idea of being able to drop all my starting gear and perform the misison empty handed.

[Domarius]

Hehe, this concept is more "Thief 2" than Thief 2 itself, if you ask me

[New Horizon]

Hehe, this concept is more "Thief 2" than Thief 2 itself, if you ask me

 

Agreed.

[pakmannen]

Yeah, that's a nice start, and proves that it can be done A few technical questions come to mind:

 

1. What will happen if there are too many items in the starting/purchased/forsale lists? A scrollbar? That would look a bit out of place, but I'm not sure how else to do it.

 

2. The objectimage, are we gonna add the actual 3D-model here? It would be unwise to create separate images, since new objects (made by us, or by a FM author) would need a new image created. Maybe it's possible to add a sepia-filter on the models texture somehow.

[sparhawk]

I don't know if we can implement scrollbars with the D3 interface. It might be possible, but we would likely have to create it on our own. Buttons to get one page back/forward is easier to code and most of the time they wont be used.

 

We can also wait and see if there is actual demand for this and it when the time comes, instead of worrying about it now.

[pakmannen]

I'm not sure how to make pageflips with that layout.. Tricky. Unless you have two books, one for purchasable items and a combined one for starting gear + purchased items. Both shown at the same time. It could easily become cluttered, and I'm not sure how good it would look.

 

But it will be nessacary unless we scale down the text when more items get listed. Actually I think Thief did that for objectives, and it might just work. Not sure if that is possible to do.

[pakmannen]

Here's a quick and rather horrible mockup of how that would look: Two books

As I feared it doesn't look very nice with two books like that, but you can see how it would work. You flip the page to see more items you either currently have or wants to purchase.

 

Not sure how that can be done with a single book..

[New Horizon]

It actually doesn't look that bad pak.

[Springheel]

Well, we could certainly scale the font smaller. I'd planned to do that regardless. I think if there are more purchasable items than can fit on the page, we could just add two small arrows that move the list up and down. Like a scroll-bar, basically, but it wouldn't look like one.

 

If it's possible to flip a page then we could do that, but just leave the left side the same.

 

Either way I don't think it's a big problem.

 

The objectimage, are we gonna add the actual 3D-model here?

 

I think the 3d model would be best, to show players exactly what it would look like in game. Although it might look good if there was a model AND a charcoal-illustration, sort of like this:

 

[pakmannen]

The actual book part doesn't suck, but the concept of two books is.. I dunno, it feels cluttered. Or repetitive. Or something.

[Springheel]

Here's an idea of what I meant. The arrows aren't the best, but you get the idea. Clicking each arrow would move the list one selection up or down. I'm postive that can be done fairly easily, as D3 did the same with some of its guis.

 

[pakmannen]

Well, we could certainly scale the font smaller. I'd planned to do that regardless. I think if there are more purchasable items than can fit on the page, we could just add two small arrows that move the list up and down. Like a scroll-bar, basically, but it wouldn't look like one.

Oh, if we can do that I suppose it's no big problem. Scaling the text would be preferable, since a "scroll-bar" would be, as I think I said before, a little out of place. (But I have no problem doing them if the scaling turns out to either not work, or looks like crap)

 

If it's possible to flip a page then we could do that, but just leave the left side the same.

And what if you purchase all the items? Then the list on the left page would be too large. Plus leaving one page the same when you flip is.. wrong.. But, if we can do the scaling/scrollbar thing, this is unimportant.

 

About the 3D-model, again it would be unwise to include painted pictures (even if it would look better) since FM authors would have to create pictures in the same style if they add their own objects. But if this was (is?) not an issue, I'd personally go with only painted pictures.

[New Horizon]

I like what you did there Spring, it looks cool with the arrows. I tried a minor modification of it...just for a slightly altered take on the arrows.

 

[Springheel]

Yeah, like I said, the graphics were just there to get the idea across. I'd want to give more thought to the position/design.

 

 

But I think scaling the font is probably the easiest option...we could easily fit 20 items, which is far more than is ever likely to be used.

 

 

About the 3D-model, again it would be unwise to include painted pictures (even if it would look better) since FM authors would have to create pictures in the same style if they add their own objects.

 

I don't know if that's a big deal if FM objects don't look exactly the same as ours.

[New Horizon]

I don't know if that's a big deal if FM objects don't look exactly the same as ours.

 

Shouldn't matter too much but depending on how we do it, we can give a brief tutorial on how to pull off a similar effect.

[pakmannen]

Yeah I suppose. Then we'll need a list of all the items in the game I guess. (I realise some aren't even designed yet, like the arrows)

 

Napalm, where are you hiding? Can you confirm that all the ideas we're having here can be done? (Scaling text, scroll arrows etc)

[sparhawk]

Scroll arrows can be done for sure. I wouldn't recommend scaling to avoid scrolling, because this will not work if the list gets bigger.

[Napalm]

Actually We can implement Scrollbars in D3, just cause I don't know how doens tmean its not possible Ive been really busy with rl and havnt had time to find it in the code but I know some specific areas (multiplayer load menu ingametext) where scrollbars are used. Its fine both ways though so if scrolllist is easier (not sure it will be) that works too.

 

Sorry pak as ive said ive been busy in RL. As for scaling fonts that are nonimages have 3 different sizes that are possible to get work (more shouldbe possible but thats the default ingame and thats all ive tried) but really scroll bars are a much better option

[sparhawk]

Scrollbuttons are pretty easy and straightforward to implement. A scrollbar is much harder to do and requires a lot of coding to make it work properly.