Ground Combat UI improvements

[wcanyon]

.../assets/gui/GroundCombat/Hiddenmovement is the directory. I've always modified/deleted both hiddenmovement and hiddenmovementsmall. I greatly prefer it deleted (just dims the screen) to present.

Thanks Dranak. A bit concerned that the PSD file is in there... hiddenmovement.psd... do these guys know how to exclude files from a build o_O ?

[Dranak]

Thanks Dranak. A bit concerned that the PSD file is in there... hiddenmovement.psd... do these guys know how to exclude files from a build o_O ?

I'm assuming minor details like that will be taken care of in the final release.

[smoitessier]

Thanks Dranak. A bit concerned that the PSD file is in there... hiddenmovement.psd... do these guys know how to exclude files from a build o_O ?

I assume it was to help moders out.

[Aaron]

The PSD files are generally included for modders or translators to use where we have text baked into various graphics - not the best solution, but it's workable.

[Ol' Stinky]

A minimap. I miss a minimap a lot. Please, include one!

Yeah.

This is a minimap of a map of mine I'm testing. It's really handy to be able to get this in debug mode, it'd be even better to get it in the game proper. You can basically tell what's going on across the entire level from that one simple pic.

Edited July 2, 2013 by Ol' Stinky

[Solarius Scorch]

I wanted to make it into a separate thread, but since it's an aspect of ground combat UI, I'll just put it here for now:

Walking into fire. My people keep blindly going through fire, therefore losing HPs. This happens even when I'm careful, for various reasons - mostly because it's not always obvious where the fire is (fog of war, fire behind walls) and when moving the whole squad fast. This is exceptionally derpy.

Proposed solution: the movement paths should avoid fires. Walking into fire should only be possible when you click on the burning tile.

Hopefully it'll also prevent locals from committing suicide whenever fire breaks up.

[Xenomorph]

Yeah.

This is a minimap of a map of mine I'm testing. It's really handy to be able to get this in debug mode' date=' it'd be even better to get it in the game proper. You can basically tell what's going on across the entire level from that one simple pic.[/quote']

That does look like it's from the 70's, literally i'd add "Spectrum 16k" on top for realism

[Solarius Scorch]

That does look like it's from the 70's, literally i'd add "Spectrum 16k" on top for realism

When we start seeing 8-bit parodies of Xenonauts on YouTube, then we'll know the game is huge success.

[GizmoGomez]

I totally agree with the minimap design. It looks really old-school, which I like. Personally, I'd rather it be a black screen with green lines, not the other way around.

[Solarius Scorch]

I totally agree with the minimap design. It looks really old-school, which I like. Personally, I'd rather it be a black screen with green lines, not the other way around.

Hmm, black screen with green lines is already used in the air combat, so you could argue that it'd be good for style consistency. On the other hand, I'd reverse the colours like Stinky did to make the minimap compatible but different; after all, I think it's natural for empty space (air) to be marked black, while ground generally should be non-black.

[Ol' Stinky]

I didn't create a mockup. That minimap already exists in the game. I only found out about it when Gaud mentioned that quickbattles have a debug mode, and I was surprised that a minimap was kinda in the game already. It's not like the devs can just flick a switch and put it in since it ignores fog of war (among other problems), but I hope they take what they have and flesh it out.

[DNK]

When you take a shot at an alien, the cursor does not return to crosshair but to select. So, you have to move it away from the alien and back to it again, in order to shoot a second time. This is inconvenient. It would be nice if it returned to crosshair. I just shot at him, I know he is hostile.

A minimap. I miss a minimap a lot. Please, include one!

Yup yup.

Also, particles/collision detection for fired shots should come from the end of the barrel, not the middle of the tile. It seems it's that way now, and this causes friendlies to get shot in positions where the barrel is basically in line with their bodies. For example, you are shooting diagonally NW and another unit is 1 tile north of you, they get shot way more than they should.

Not perhaps a UI thing, though.

[ThunderGr]

V19 build 3: You cannot see the cursor for moving your soldier behind an obstacle...It is annoying.

[Aaron]

Sorry guys, but it's doubtful we are going to implement a mini-map now. The debug map may look like the basis of one at a glance, but it doesn't match up the game visuals at all, and would probably reveal some of the ugly tricks we use, particularly on UFOs, to make the tile system behave the way we want. You do already see much more of the battlefield than in the original game, and you have tools like the quick select bar, so cumulatively those mitigate the need for a mini-map.

@ThunderGr: If it's a bug, which is what that sounds like, then it would be better off in the bug report forum with a more useful description (screenshot and/or saved game if at all possible).

[ThunderGr]

Sorry guys, but it's doubtful we are going to implement a mini-map now. The debug map may look like the basis of one at a glance, but it doesn't match up the game visuals at all, and would probably reveal some of the ugly tricks we use, particularly on UFOs, to make the tile system behave the way we want. You do already see much more of the battlefield than in the original game, and you have tools like the quick select bar, so cumulatively those mitigate the need for a mini-map.

This sounds...frustrating but, well, I can do without if I must...

@ThunderGr: If it's a bug, which is what that sounds like, then it would be better off in the bug report forum with a more useful description (screenshot and/or saved game if at all possible).

I did not think it as a bug, this is why I mentioned it here. Once the soldier is behind the obstacle, it becomes transparent, so you can see the squares immediately behind it, when you move the cursor, though, in order to set the path for the soldier to move, it does not become transparent, if the soldier is not already behind it. Looks like a combat UI miss to me, not a bug.

[GizmoGomez]

So, you are saying that the cursor does not make walls transparent?

That is somewhat annoying, yeah. Maybe the cursors should have a transparency aura around them too? Like, either the same as a soldier, that is, a 3x3 around it, or just the one tile it's on.

[thothkins]

I did use the mini map in EU1994. For larger missions, particularly for Base attacks and defences.

I do consider it to be a pretty cool feature.

But, I've yet to feel that I needed it in Xenonauts.

[Solarius Scorch]

I did use the mini map in EU1994. For larger missions, particularly for Base attacks and defences.

I do consider it to be a pretty cool feature.

But, I've yet to feel that I needed it in Xenonauts.

Map can be useful for tactical planning, but back in the OG I used it mostly to move around the battlefield quicker - scrolling took time and the map was a fast way to travel.

[StellarRat]

Can't just have an approx. map bearing in the mission orders?? Like, "The UFO is undamaged. Heavy resistance should be expected. The last known position was approximately 250 degrees magnetic from the LZ. Good luck and bring your soldiers home alive."

[Aaron]

Can't just have an approx. map bearing in the mission orders?? Like, "The UFO is undamaged. Heavy resistance should be expected. The last known position was approximately 250 degrees magnetic from the LZ. Good luck and bring your soldiers home alive."

What problem are you trying to solve here?

[Ol' Stinky]

I think UFO location's handled more elegantly by map shapes anyway. Square maps tend towards exploration, whereas rectangular maps tell the player they're going the wrong way by having the boundries pop up sooner.

Can we get a clearer indicator of when a shot's going through smoke? It's not vital, but it's good information to know, the same way that we can see the shot's interaction with props on the way.

Also, maybe change the yellow tile for when a shot goes through a prop, as it's the same indicator as the tile indicating a shot's out of range. Maybe make the shot-going-through-prop tile a green/yellow tile (depending on whether the shot's out of range) with a thick red border instead.

[StellarRat]

What problem are you trying to solve here?

Well, I think people want a mini-map so they can see where the UFO is and some also think you should know where the UFO is because you'd have a location from aerial photos, pilot reports and even civilians calling the police. This solves both problems without revealing the map. It just tells you head Northwest or whatever. Plus it requires very little code and no interface changes i.e. no mini-map has to be designed and implemented.

[thothkins]

back in the OG I used it mostly to move around the battlefield quicker - scrolling took time and the map was a fast way to travel.

Yup, me too on those large maps. An issue solved in xenonauts by clicking the handy soldier bar.

[Solarius Scorch]

Yup, me too on those large maps. An issue solved in xenonauts by clicking the handy soldier bar.

When I want to move to a soldier, yes; although I often click around the map for other reasons.

It's not a problem at all in Xenonauts, I'm just explaining my view.

[shabowie]

Make it possible once you target a grenade to shape the desired arc of the throw with your mouse, with a chance to be flatter or taller based on some stat like accuracy. That way you could try to throw grenades through windows with a medium height trajectory, or into buildings with a flat one or over tall cover with a high one.