RE: (GUI) Playfield aspect ratio

I think one major distinction to make is whether the game requires you to view the HUD elements, or interact with them using a mouse.  In an FPS, you only need to view your health, ammo count, current weapon, etc.  In an RTS, you need to click on the command icons, the build icons, the mini-map, etc.

I think the reason most RTS's clump all the HUD elements together is for speed and accessibility.  Mouse movements are minimized when the HUD elements are closer together, and it's arguably easier to locate the element you need when you have a contained area to search in.

Most RTS's will place non-interactive HUD elements in other locations on screen, such as the resource count / population count which are usually at the top of the screen.


edaly


-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Hook [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Sunday, April 06, 2003 7:23 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [GD-Design] (GUI) Playfield aspect ratio


Okay, this is one of the more esoteric observations I'll make, but I 
have to ask since it's been bugging me.

For games with HUD elements, the typical choice you see is to either 
place the elements along the bottom, or possibly along the bottom and 
one side.

To me, placing elements in an L or reverse L makes a lot more sense, 
since you get a playfield area that is much closer to square than a 
typical 4:3 or 16:9.  This is desirable because it gives you an equal 
amount of play room in both directions.

However I've noticed that some games, such as Warcraft 3, put all the 
GUI elements along the top and bottom, and this in turn actually 
accentuates the rectangularity of the playfield.  You get an extreme 
letterbox effect, which I would intuitively find undesirable.

The main reasons I can see for preferring this layout are:

1.  Text prefers to be wide, so for chat dialogs, etc. it's better to 
have it along the bottom.

2.  Letterbox is perceived as more "cinematic".

But I still don't think I like it.  Are there other obvious reasons 
I'm missing?

Brian




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