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A2: CS - interface issues untouched?


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Just played around with the Avernum 2: CS demo (Windows version). Much to my dismay, the interface remains pretty much totally unchanged since Escape From the Pit.

 

These problems have been voiced multiple times on various forums, many times, over the period of many years:

- Mouse wheel does nothing, and the sliders have to be operated by fervently clicking on the tiny, tiny arrows.

- The inventory button only opens it, not closes it. Good grief, still?

- No way to highlight items on the ground. With so much miscellaneous set dressing lying around and the fairly murky and low-contrast graphics, pressing "g" or "i" (and then escape, due to the aforementioned issue) every few steps can't be avoided if you want to be thorough.

- The right mouse button does nothing. I know, I know, the Macs. It didn't stop it from being put to good use in Avernum 3.

- The "tactical" combat not being very tactical due to lack of feedback. What is the range of the spell/projectile weapon? Will I be able to move into attack position before losing all my AP? Do I have to manually count the squares every single time?

 

Please correct me if I'm wrong about any of these.

The first Avernum 2 is one of my favorite games, and I would've even have paid full price for a proper remake. However, paying a developer that simply refuses to fix the most basic problems feels like rewarding mediocrity and complacency.

(Not saying I'll pirate it, I'll probably wait for it to be included in a bundle or something.)

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The having to press "g" constantly thing is odd, but you get used to it. It was the single biggest interface issue for me the first Spiderweb game I played, as it just didn't make sense to me why objects like doors are clickable in the world, but not inventory items.

 

But many, many, games later, pressing "g" after every battle just becomes second nature, to the point that I no longer think about it.

 

I think the problem is that higher resolutions make the world so tiny that clickable items just wouldn't work with the engine, as sometimes it's hard to see stuff. So the "g" seems a necessary evil in the context of a 2D engine whose graphical assets are not easily scaleable to higher resolutions. Without "g," finding interactable items would be a tedious pixel hunt. So until Vogel decides he wants to completely rewrite the engine, it seems like it's here to stay.

 

It is slightly schizophrenic that some boxes and pots are clickable in the environment, though, but not items....so you have to be aware of two different levels where items are (i.e. on the ground, accessed via "g" and in receptacles, accessed via clicking) and use 2 different actions to get to them, which is kind of annoying. But Spiderweb reuses so many of its graphics, that you quickly learn which boxes, items, and bone piles are clickable, so it become second nature (plus, you can press "tab" to see all interactible objects on the screen like doors, people, and boxes).

 

The not being able to press "g" or "i" to close the inventory, though, is an annoyance that seems to me like it should be fairly easy to fix. So I agree with you there. Maybe it's another one of those "concessions made for IPAD users" things like no longer being able to close doors, I don't know.

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I think the problem is that higher resolutions make the world so tiny that clickable items just wouldn't work with the engine, as sometimes it's hard to see stuff. So the "g" seems a necessary evil in the context of a 2D engine whose graphical assets are not easily scaleable to higher resolutions. Without "g," finding interactable items would be a tedious pixel hunt (although you can also press "tab" to see all the interactable areas on the map as well). So until Vogel decides he wants to completely rewrite the engine, it seems like it's here to stay.

You misunderstand. I like "g", it's neat. Clicking on the tiny items to pick them up would be busywork. It's just that pickable items blend with the floors, and it's very hard to see what can be picked up and what can't. All I'm asking is a simple highlighting feature (like the "look" key in the old Avernums, or - let's say - Baldur's Gate). There is "tab" for highlighting characters, and "u" for containers and doors. Why not something for the items?

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You misunderstand. I like "g", it's neat. Clicking on the tiny items to pick them up would be busywork. It's just that pickable items blend with the floors, and it's very hard to see what can be picked up and what can't. All I'm asking is a simple highlighting feature (like the "look" key in the old Avernums, or - let's say - Baldur's Gate). There is "tab" for highlighting characters, and "u" for containers and doors. Why not something for the items?

 

OK, yeah.....I do think that is a good point.

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My personal workaround for the interface is to use one Mousebutton for the RETURN key, which does the same as the ESC Key in most cases.

So I use one mousebutton to open the inventory. And another one to close it again. Really not optimal, but at least for me it's working.

 

But I completely agree. Especially the "open and close Interface element with same button" and "mousewheel without use"-issues should have been fixed at this point.

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