UI
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Final Fantasy XI drops a new patch for the new year
Another year has come to Final Fantasy XI, and it brings with it a new year's version update with a host of new improvements. From a system standpoint, players can now equip two linkshells at the same time, complete with two separate chat modes. The game will also allow players to send tells and invite other players by clicking their names in the log window rather than relying purely upon text commands. In terms of content, new quests have been added to Adoulin regions, several Records of Eminence objectives have either been added or had their requirements lowered, and new Wanted objectives have been implemented. Puppetmaster players can also benefit from improved spell lists for their automaton and a new set of automaton improvements. Take a gander at the full list of changes, all of which should make the game less punishing and more engaging for veteran players.
RIFT plans improvements to dimensions and minions
Two of RIFT's more popular systems, dimensions and minions, will be getting some major dev love when Patch 3.1 arrives. In a new dev diary that went out yesterday, the team lays out a list of improvements for these systems. Dimensions will be getting a free-fly camera to allow for even more building precision, permissions options for visitors, ban lists, and -- prepare for this to blow your mind -- a bigger +1 button. As for minions, players will have even more options in how they deploy these hard-working followers. The team is adding minion stamina potions, the ability to shuffle adventures, and the option to link to minions in the chat window.
Vudu's digital movie library is rebuilt and easier to use on iOS
If you're unwrapping the inevitable flood of Blu-ray gifts (hopefully no DVDs), it may be worth giving that digital copy code a second look. The movie studios' Ultraviolet scheme has been unwieldy (at best) since launch, but several upgrades have made it easier to use, and the Vudu store specifically is getting better at bringing your movies to whatever device you own. Its latest upgrade is much-needed UI refresh, which launched on many set-top boxes (PlayStation, Roku, Blu-ray players etc.) last month, and has now arrived for the iPhone and iPad.
EVE Online solicits feedback for UI revamp
That there above is the new user interface for EVE Online, so what do you think? Well, you can tell us, but CCP really wants you to tell it, as the studio is asking for feedback on the upcoming UI overhaul. "For the look itself, we want EVE's UI to look and feel more like something fitting a science fiction universe, and a bit less like an operating system," CCP posted today. The team posted its goals for the overhaul, including making it feel more intuitive, allowing for semi-transparent windows, using colors "in a sensible way," and tweaking the icons to fit thematically within a group. Currently, the UI changes are on the test server for any and all to try out.
Ascent: The Space Game's Kickstarter will fund updated graphics
When we last checked in on Ascent: The Space Game, the indie sci-fi sandbox MMORPG was already eminently playable, having launched on Desura and angling for a Steam greenlight. Now Fluffy Kitten Studios has posted a Kickstarter intended to fund specific upgrades for the game -- specifically, improved graphics and UI. In fact, the complete budget breakdown is provided on the Kickstarter page. Backer rewards include premium access time, credits, Steam keys, and ships. You could even get a planet named after you. The Ascent sandbox emphasizes freedom, colonization, exploration, trade, combat, farming, mining, ship customization, starbases, and co-op play with fully consensual PvP. The Kickstarter boasts of the game's 270 billion star systems. Massively spoke to James Hicks, founder and CEO of Fluffy Kitten Studios, back in April, when he explained to us his business model, his target audience, and how he's come so far by himself. As he put it then, "Have a look at what we've done, with one developer, in one year, on a shoestring budget for art, music, and sound. Do you want to see what we can do in another year, with more?" The Kickstarter seeks $35,000 and is already at 51% of its goal with 25 days to go as of the time of this writing.
PlanetSide 2 patches in Directive improvements and space pumpkins
The latest PlanetSide 2 patch is a pretty big one even without the pumpkins. Yes, there are pumpkins. Space pumpkins. You will need to shoot them to get currency, which you can then cash in for Halloween-themed masks, maximizing your character's spookiness through the month. But the patch has a lot of other changes in it as well, starting with major improvements to Directive tracking and overall Directive progression, complete with a new Leadership tree. Experience awards are also adjusted slightly, changing certain bonuses and how they're distributed to make life a bit easier for players. Offline cert points have also been removed from non-Member accounts and added exclusively to Members, thus making your subscription seem just a bit more worthwhile. For a full rundown of these changes, other balance tweaks, and the like, check out the full patch notes. [Thanks to theKavorka for the tip!]
EVE Evolved: Has the industry revamp worked?
When I was first introduced to EVE Online back in 2004, a big part of the attraction for me was the promise of a huge player-run economy in which the only real laws were those of supply and demand. With only a handful of tech 1 ships and modules available to build and everything made out of the same basic minerals, science and industry were pretty easy for new players to figure out. Over the years, more complexity has slowly been added to industry via features like Starbases, Salvaging, Capital Ships, Tech 2 Invention, Planetary Interaction and Tech 3 Reverse Engineering. Today's industrialists have to contend with hundreds of different items that are often arranged in sprawling component manufacturing chains, which can make it hard to figure out exactly how to make a profit. The recent industry revamp attempted to solve this problem with a full user interface overhaul and a revamp of material costs and manufacturing prices. All of the relevant information for using a blueprint was packed into a slick new combined Industry UI, allowing new players to find the info they're looking for in-game rather than through websites or opening dozens of item info windows. It's now been almost two months since the industry revamp went live, and while the market for many items is still going to take several months to fully stabilise, the dust has finally begun to settle. So what's the verdict? Has the industry revamp worked? In this edition of EVE Evolved, I consider whether the industry revamp has been successful, how easy it is to make a profit in the new system, and whether it's worth setting up your own industrial starbase.
World of Warcraft cleans up UI for Warlords of Draenor
In a new dev diary, Blizzard vows to clean up the user interface in World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor. "We're making a number of changes to the WoW user interface -- changes that are designed to eliminate clutter, free up more of your inventory space, help you find your stuff more easily, and improve your quality of life in-game," say the devs. The changes begin with a new UI that combines the map and quest log and promises to be more responsive to mouse control. The expansion will also feature a "toy box" that will collect all of a player's fun items in one place and make them available across the entire account. Players will also be able to use the improved UI to summon a random mount, designate loot to certain bags, enjoy reagent storage space in the bank, and more.
Guild Wars 2's feature pack will improve dungeons and the crafting UI
September is just around the corner, which means that the next major update for Guild Wars 2 -- the September feature pack -- isn't far behind. The pack aims to improve several parts of the game, starting by demolishing the concept of dungeon owners. Currently, the first player to zone into a dungeon is counted as the "owner" of the dungeon, which can lead to problems if that player disconnects; by contrast, after September there will be no dungeon owner, avoiding issues with progression if that owner leaves or gets kicked. The game's crafting UI is also receiving an overhaul, making it faster and easier to access crafting sub-components without navigating away from the main item that you want to craft. The update will also bring a number of performance improvements to make the game run faster and better on various bits of hardware. Take a look at the full update for a few more details as the feature pack release approaches.
What if your Netflix queue was just a big, virtual room?
Sure, we know Oculus VR chief technology officer John Carmack's likes watching movies on the Rift headset from bed when he's sick, but what if you'd rather catch up on Orange is the New Black instead? A recent hackathon at Netflix produced something that could make that possible. The custom UI, dubbed "Oculix," shows off what it'd be like to navigate the interface in a virtual space replete with gesture control. It looks pretty neat if you ask us. What, with its floating tiles and text descriptions and all that. Sadly, unlike the home-brew Oculus apps we're used to, whether or not the greater community will get to give this a shot is up in the air. As is typical with Netflix's Hack Day projects, the outfit is making no promises of Oculix ever seeing the light of day.
Pebble nabs the former interface designers for webOS and First Else
Here's some rather unusual news from Pebble: Former webOS designers Itai Vonshak and Liron Damir have left LG to join the wearable startup, which is a pretty big deal given their unique spin on UI design -- you'll want to check out what they did to LG's smart TVs before they left. In fact, if you recall the ill-fated First Else phone from late 2009, its Splay interface -- now available as a standalone launcher (pictured above) on Google Play -- was also the work of the Israeli duo. Vonshak is now in charge of Pebble's Product and UX team, whereas Damir is joining as the Head of Design; and for those who are interested, they're hiring!
Camelot Unchained's UI powered by Chromium, community
Camelot Unchained's information dump continues with a brief blurb about the fantasy PvP sandbox's UI. City State says that UIs typically "consume a large amount of developer bandwidth on the design and engineering side," and as such the firm will not only be building CU's UI "out of the web" but it will also be open-sourcing the entire codebase. The UI is powered by Chromium, and City State has already made the code available on GitHub and is inviting the community to contribute to it (pending developer approval, of course).
City of Steam previews its 2.7 update
City of Steam has another update in the works, and it's going to make you look good. How, you ask? Well, partly by adding a new and expanded wardrobe system that will improve categories and free up storage space for your cosmetic outfits. The interface is still rough, but it's also a step toward giving players more options and power when it comes to character appearance. What else is coming? There's a new Lucky Wheel option in the works, allowing players a chance to spin and win all sorts of great prizes whether they're playing for free or not. The Mercenary system is also being revised, with appearances being improved, new mercenaries being added, and an improved interface for organizing and managing the soldiers of fortune. You can check out the full patch preview, which sadly for players does not yet include a targeted release date more specific than "soon."
Warlords of Draenor: New quest and map interface
The quest UI has received some tweaks and changes in Warlords of Draenor -- no longer simply a quest log, it has been renamed to the more appropriate Map & Quest Log instead. Hitting L for your quest log will now bring up a new pane which combines both map and quest log into one handy place. You can still hit M for a full sized map, but it almost isn't necessary with this new feature -- the drop down menus at the top of the pane will let you switch between continents, and then sub-zones within those continents. It honestly reminds me of the current Dungeon Journal UI, which lets you choose between expansions, dungeon or raid content, and then individual dungeons or raids for boss strategies and loot lists. And frankly, this is one of those quality of life changes I didn't really realize I needed until I saw it in action.
Experimental UI equips you with a virtual tape measure and other skeuomorphs
While companies like Apple are moving away wholesale from faux real-world objects, one designer wants to take the concept to its extreme. Chris Harrison from CMU's Future Interfaces Group thinks modern, "flat" software doesn't profit from our dexterity with real-world tools like cameras, markers or erasers. To prove it, he created TouchTools, which lets you manipulate tools on the screen just as you would in real life. By touching the display with a grabbing motion, for example, a realistic-looking tape measure appears, and if you grab the "tape," you can unsheathe it like the real McCoy. He claims that provides "fast and fluid mode switching" and doesn't force designers to shoehorn awkward toolbars. So far, it's only experimental, but the idea is to eventually make software more natural to use -- 2D interfaces be damned.
Leaks hint at a sleeker UI and a Google Now-like service on the LG G3
The latest rumors about LG's G3 handset have mentioned a Quad HD display, but now it's time to take a look at what you'll see on that screen. According to leaked screenshots acquired by Digital Trends, the upcoming smartphone will feature a completely new interface with a flat design and brighter icons, along with a revamped notification drawer with circular icons. The screens show a phone UI that's leaps and bounds sleeker than what you'll find on the G2, and it's a more than a tad reminiscent of Apple's aesthetics in iOS 7.
WildStar's new interface profiled in video
Friend of Massively Richie "Bogotter" Procopio is back with yet another WildStar video, this one focusing on the beta title's brand-new user interface 2.0, which flattens some of the UI elements that before floated a little bit too high into the field of play. Of course, as he notes, the UI is moddable and can be altered to taste by each player. Combat popups, inventory, and menu options have also been tweaked. If you missed it, Bogotter covered the new character creation options in yesterday's video. Enjoy his UI preview after the break!
Here are lots of helpful EVE UI tips
If you're confused by EVE Online's UI, CCP Karkur has made a new video that you'll want to watch. Actually, you'll want to watch it even if you aren't confused, because it's full of tips and tricks relating to searches, inventory, the market, fittings, fleet settings, and more. Click past the cut to have a look!
HackingUI presents some intriguing ideas to improve iOS notifications
Notifications in iOS have undeniably come a long ways from the days when they only took the form of intrusive blue modal alerts. Nonetheless, there's always room for improvement as highlighted in a great post from Hacking UI which provides a bevy of design alternatives to Apple's current implementation for iOS notifications. HackingUI draws attention to the fact that iOS notifications can sometimes appear at inopportune times, sometimes resulting in scenarios where one accidentally taps on a notification alert instead of an actionable item like Save. This can naturally lead to user frustration, so the website proceeds to detail a number of interesting improvements to iOS notifications, including positioning the notification banner slightly below the top bar as not to overlap with actionable items. But what I found to be the most intriguing idea was a tweak to Apple's tried and true notification alerts. The above implementation provides a convenient way for users to reply back to a text message, for example, without leaving their current app. Overall, the HackingUI post has a number of other notification suggestions that are well worth checking out. While not every idea may be completely practical, there are certainly some winners Apple would be well advised to take a look at. Meanwhile, Twitter user Alex Vanderzon put up another example of how iOS notifications might be implemented in a less obtrusive manner.
New Elder Scrolls Online API changes affect UI mods; devs post an AMA
Modding and The Elder Scrolls series have long been a match made in gamer heaven, but ZeniMax's latest API changes to The Elder Scrolls Online has the fantasy MMO's modding community up in arms. In a nutshell, the new version of the API removes the ability to track what others are doing to your avatar. You'll still see various effects, but you'll no longer see which spell was cast. The impetus behind the changes seems to be to level the playing field between those using the standard UI and those using add-ons like Foundry Tactical Combat. [Thanks Andre!] [Update: Tipster Vinicius let us know that the ESO team has also posted a fresh Ask Me Anything on Reddit. The devs discuss beta wipes, load capacity, bug fixes, and more.]
