Changes to Hex/Enchant icons - dumb?

Yamat

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Jun 2005

San Diego, USA

- Skill icons for Enchantment and Hex spells are now displayed with a small marker in their upper-right corner.

Is it me or is this dumbing things down just a little too much?

"ARGHH! I HAVE A HEX ON ME, GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF!"

I like the artwork of the skill icons, and these new markers are annoying... The color of the icon tells you whether you have a necro hex on you or a mes hex... why do we need these little markers?

Loviatar

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Feb 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by Yamat
- The color of the icon tells you whether you have a necro hex on you or a mes hex... why do we need these little markers?
it is tellimg you what the skill is not if anything is on you.

that is elsewhere since you havent noticed yet

EDIT

the different colors are hex or enchantment not mes/nec

knives

knives

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Jun 2005

USA

Grenths Rejects [GR]

Me/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Yamat
- Skill icons for Enchantment and Hex spells are now displayed with a small marker in their upper-right corner.

Is it me or is this dumbing things down just a little too much?

"ARGHH! I HAVE A HEX ON ME, GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF!"

I like the artwork of the skill icons, and these new markers are annoying... The color of the icon tells you whether you have a necro hex on you or a mes hex... why do we need these little markers?
Agreed, I mean, if I was new to the game I might think it would be helpful, but even after awhile, I will know most of the skills. I think there are two options to remedy this.

1. Take them out of the game completely, because they are pointless.

2. Make them toggleable so those who like them get to keep them if they want, and those who don't, don't have to see a little yellow/purple arrow on their skills.

Rahl

Rahl

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Apr 2005

Austin, Tx

Mmph Its [Good]

Mo/

I find it quite annoying, personally.

There's no reason for them to even be there, because its self apparent that you indeed, have a hex or enchantment on you!

Ray

Ray

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Aug 2005

Denmark

I like them.

Loviatar

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Feb 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rahl
I find it quite annoying, personally.

There's no reason for them to even be there, because its self apparent that you indeed, have a hex or enchantment on you!
those on the skill tell you what that skill is. (hex or enchamtment)

it freakin does not tell you if somthinng is on you.

try it in town no nothing on you but .there they are in living color.

again it is an additional bit of info about the skill NOT your condition.

Fyre Brand

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Sep 2005

Shadowlight Order [SoR]

I like the new indicators. They don't hurt anything anyways. They don't take up more space or add any extra clutter to the viewer window. This sounds like another one of those ever popular "Let's find something to complain about" threads no matter how small and insignificant it is.

Personally I think they added a couple bells and whistles like this just so people who don't play the game as much as they complain about the game will also have new content to explore.

Kate Bloodspirit

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Nov 2005

New York, NY

Idiot Savants [iQ]

For all of you experienced players it is easy to recognize the skills (all of them) and quickly tell what the spell is and does. However, and my thought is, this new Enchants/Hex indicators are meant for the newer and unexperienced players, to assimilate the skills more quickly and therefore, enter into higher levels of the game in less time.

Therefore, the indicators are a very nice implementation, not meant for everyone though.

LifeInfusion

LifeInfusion

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: May 2005

in the midline

E/Mo

Well, for casual (yet experienced) players like me it could help after not playing for a bit. I took a break form Guild Wars for a wgile because I have a lot of work to do. When I came back for factions preview last night (after arriving home at like 8 or 9PM) I was happy to see the trainign areas with the nearby, area of effect poles and condition "guides" that they implemented. It also helps to have the enchantment and hex arrows, so people will be more intelligent/aware that they should not HEX a hexbreaker-stanced person.

So, despite whatever other people tink, I think that the arrows help, because when you are dying, you don't care about what spell/skill you use as long as you "blast away" at the enemy. The feature also helps us create better teams, because the community as a whole is more experienced.

-"Life"

Ensign

Ensign

Just Plain Fluffy

Join Date: Dec 2004

Berkeley, CA

Idiot Savants

I think the hexes and enchantments need even more indicators. I mean reading the descriptions of the skills on your bar is obviously out, and the big green or purple border around the enchantments and hexes on you clearly wasn't cutting it. I don't think these arrows will get the point across either. I think they need to flash big red "HEX" and "ENCHANTMENT" text on top of all of these icons, as well as on conditions, to hammer home the fact that even if you missed every visual cue given so far, those effects really are enchantments, hexes, and conditions.

Peace,
-CxE

snikerz

snikerz

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Dec 2005

Rt/A

i personally think the markers on skills are too overcluttered, i like the way things where, mabye anet can do something alternative.

Yamat

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Jun 2005

San Diego, USA

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rahl
I find it quite annoying, personally.

There's no reason for them to even be there, because its self apparent that you indeed, have a hex or enchantment on you!
Exactly!

Loviatar, I think you are missing the point. You already know you have something on you... its in your conditions area of your UI. You also already know if it is good or bad, since usually green and pink skills cast on you are bad!

As for skills in your skillbar, if you forget which are which... well... go back to pre-searing.

Ensign, I hope that was sarcasm.

Myodato

Myodato

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: May 2005

WOR

Mo/

Personally, I think they've taken the first step in making a very beautiful game damn ugly. Why take the lovely artwork created for our beloved skill icons and ruin them with multi-coloured splodges ?

And, from a decidedly less important gameplay point of view for a moment, if you've too little knowledge of the game to know whether the skill you're using is a hex/enchantment or whatever, are you likely to understand the delicate intricacies of Hex-breaker etc. ? It's not like it doesn't tell you what it is when you're picking the skill or anything, or are we going to tailor the game entirely to pre-made using 1 day newbies ?

Give me back my pretty icons.

Loviatar

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Feb 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by Yamat

As for skills in your skillbar, if you forget which are which... well... go back to pre-searing.

Ensign, I hope that was sarcasm.
picture someone starting 3 chapters from now.

12 professions

they added 25 skills to the core professions and will probably cascade them down the line to add interest to previous chapters in the future releases

you will be helped very much as you go through all sorts of different skill sets.

when choosing a skill to try from a list of hundreds and you want an enchahtment or a hex this will help you sort them fast stopping only at the ones that are what you may be looking for instead of having to look at the text description for a moment before the next try.

Manic Smile

Manic Smile

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Dec 2005

Hawaii

----- 15^50[Rare] ---- Alliance: ----- [SMS] -----

well lets start a patetion to at least make them toggle-able.

Mysterial

Mysterial

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Aug 2005

Servants of Fortuna

E/Me

Since newbie players are even more unlikely to understand icons than they are to understand text, I don't understand what the point is.

Goonter

Goonter

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Apr 2005

Does the new black borders help the process of information for the player?
Not really, and I feel the same way about the hex and enchantment arrows.

Its neat, dont get me wrong, but it doesnt improve anything that I know of yet.

Things like energy bars for the group to see seems like it would help tons as it would improve the groups momentum without cluttering voice or text chat.
I see nothing but benifits for something like this but it hasnt happen yet with the new interface.

generik

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jun 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ensign
I think the hexes and enchantments need even more indicators. I mean reading the descriptions of the skills on your bar is obviously out, and the big green or purple border around the enchantments and hexes on you clearly wasn't cutting it. I don't think these arrows will get the point across either. I think they need to flash big red "HEX" and "ENCHANTMENT" text on top of all of these icons, as well as on conditions, to hammer home the fact that even if you missed every visual cue given so far, those effects really are enchantments, hexes, and conditions.

Peace,
-CxE
To further build on your suggestion I have an even more brilliant suggestion, right now you see the status icons sort of have a "zoom in" effect as they appear. Why not make the status icon SO BIG the moment it is first cast, completely blocking out the screen, make it wobble a bit, and then zoom out to its usual position in the corner?

And of course in UT2004 fashion have a voice over announce "Enchantment!", "Hex!"

That way nobody will be able to miss it.

Kthx

Tortoise

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Dec 2005

Daunting Tempest

Mo/

Wow guys, relax. All they did was add a two little traingles. Surely noone is actually bothered by that.

And well, let's face it. It could actually help some of the new players. It takes a while before you know what icon is what skill and if your hexed to hell it can be handy to know what strange Icons are actually helping you and which ones are hexes. (could be very handy for first-timers using CoP for instance).

Edit: and my guess is we'll see a lot of other triangles in the future too. This is a first step in making the game more accesible to new players once the different skill types really are aplenty.

Katari

Katari

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Aug 2005

Upstate

Me/

It dosn't bother me much I guess. I had some neat idea in my mind of how they weren't that bad, but then I didn't.

So, we have indicators for hexs and enchantments. Arrows that match the indicators on helath bars. Next update should, by that logic, put little grey arrows on condition causing skills.

Since hex, enchantment, and condition causing skills would be labled, shouldn't they label attack skills, spells, 'skills' in such a way? Inconsistancy I say!

Racthoh

Racthoh

Did I hear 7 heroes?

Join Date: May 2005

Scars Meadows [SMS], Guild Leader (Not Recruiting)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Katari
It dosn't bother me much I guess. I had some neat idea in my mind of how they weren't that bad, but then I didn't.

So, we have indicators for hexs and enchantments. Arrows that match the indicators on helath bars. Next update should, by that logic, put little grey arrows on condition causing skills.

Since hex, enchantment, and condition causing skills would be labled, shouldn't they label attack skills, spells, 'skills' in such a way? Inconsistancy I say!
They should. When it comes to interrupts it would be rather useful.

Red Locust

Red Locust

Site Contributor

Join Date: May 2005

I suspect this addition was meant to complement the new classes being introduced. Aside from the fact that most of us won't have a clue what most of the new skills do at first, all those new ritualist spirits, weapon spells and such, might make things confusing.

And for christ's sake, it's just a little arrow. It doesn't take up any room or anything.

Lady Lozza

Lady Lozza

Forge Runner

Join Date: Dec 2005

Oz

Angel Sharks

Me/N

I got nothing against the arrows. I now don't have to actually read the skill descript properly

Ensign

Ensign

Just Plain Fluffy

Join Date: Dec 2004

Berkeley, CA

Idiot Savants

Quote:
Originally Posted by Yamat
Ensign, I hope that was sarcasm.
Dripping.

Feel free to disagree with me, I might be odd in this regard, but most of the time I only notice things on my UI that I'm looking for. For example skills refreshing - after a thousand hours in this game I don't even notice when specific skills recharge unless I'm paying attention to a particular one to ride the recharge or whatever. What's going on with the minimap is another, and health bars used to be but I've trained myself to keep an eye on those unconsciously now. I do miss some really obvious stuff, though, like the huge 'Enemy Captured Tower" messages in GvG, simply because it isn't terribly important to my job at the time.

So, at least to me, the new arrows are completely useless, because I know what the skills on my bar do, and if I'm affected by an enchantment or hex the big border around the effect tells me exactly what it is. What gets me about it though is that it isn't even an interesting distinction, since the only time it matters if something is an enchantment spell or a hex spell is when it's actually on you, and then you have the colored borders. What would be useful would be a spell / nonspell distinction on the interrupt bar so that you didn't have to memorize hundreds of skill icons to figure out what you can Power Drain. Maybe there's something coming in the expansion that'll make these little arrows useful, but right now they're just useless.

What I'm pissy about is the black box around everything in your UI now, specifically the targeting bar. Over time that bar has gone from a simple red bar with your opponent's status, to a bar with some frills around it to clutter up your screen, to a bar in its own black box that serves no apparent purpose other than blocking your view. This isn't as big a deal in the default configuration, but if you move that bar down to more prime real estate for better viewing it's annoying to have to give up more viewable area because...well, I don't know why. They've done some really good things with the UI in the past, particularly the upgrade that let you move all the objects around and customize (and resize!) your layout, but these black boxes, and random arrows, aren't one of 'em.

Peace,
-CxE

Phades

Phades

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jun 2005

I usually notice when a effect hits my own buff bar and the arrows do not matter that much to me, but it helps keep continuity between the training area tutorial and the rest of the game. What i would normally miss at times is the purple down arrow on the party bar that is not a health degen effect. Not every build can do something about that if you do see it, but that is commonly one thing ill miss durring normal play. I am rather indifferent about the up and down arrows on the skill icons, as the more dangerous/annoying effects i already know about by the picture of the skill as a result of being required to deal with them before.

Maxiemonster

Maxiemonster

There is no spoon.

Join Date: Jun 2005

Netherlands

Mo/

Whiners.

Fyre Brand

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Sep 2005

Shadowlight Order [SoR]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ensign
What I'm pissy about is the black box around everything in your UI now, specifically the targeting bar. Over time that bar has gone from a simple red bar with your opponent's status, to a bar with some frills around it to clutter up your screen, to a bar in its own black box that serves no apparent purpose other than blocking your view. This isn't as big a deal in the default configuration, but if you move that bar down to more prime real estate for better viewing it's annoying to have to give up more viewable area because...well, I don't know why. They've done some really good things with the UI in the past, particularly the upgrade that let you move all the objects around and customize (and resize!) your layout, but these black boxes, and random arrows, aren't one of 'em.

Peace,
-CxE
I noticed that too. I couldn't figure out for the life of me why in the hell they put a black box around the target bar. It isn't even a "pretty" frame but just extra black space.

Since I have a mid-end machine and play at 1152 x 864 I size and arrange my interface to maximize my view. I do appreciate more than anything being able to resize my interface and choose a general size option. I like nice artwork but most importantly to me is being able to see whats on the screen.

If there was anything to realistically complain about it would be the black borders. They serve no imaginable purpose and take up more screen space to keep the item they surround at it's original size.