I'm really happy to finally unveil this input to which I dedicated spare time for the last 2 months. Thank you to all the players and RATS who have been previewing the work, especially to the dutch community (dutchd.nl) who made an avant-premiere, and to Soloje of the french community for his suggestions.

Introduction

This work contains suggestions to improve the architecture of the User Interface (UI) of Battleground Europe™. Some basics gameplay modifications are introduced as well to extend organizational possibilities.
The objective is to provide ideas to official BE architects who have been asked to perform a full overpass of the current UI ( released back in v.1.20 on 24th October 2005) for v 1.32 (may/june 2010 ?).
Features presented here are either ideas gathered/selected from community discussions or designed by myself . These try to take into consideration developers’ long-term vision for the gameplay , while exploiting existing code parts as much as possible or using similar approaches. I leave pictures free of copyrights but please don't forget to mention where it comes from.

This study only focused on a few menus to introduce the new architecture logics : the side HQ screen , the platoon HQ, and the brigade HQ, which are the main screens used to find action and deploy.


Preliminary gameplay modifications

• New mission categories : mercenaries automatic missions, platoon missions and squad missions.
• Missions no longer have a fixed origin
• Platoon can no longer be joined once it left ready room
• MSPs are tied to brigade instead of missions

SIDE HQ : Default display (welcome screen)

So that GUI is ripped off from someone's arse? :P

Didn't think about that metaphor, but it's probably what it is for DOC

I likeeee

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Nice Zebbeee,

I don't have time to fully explore this UI right now but I was wondering if you had a plattoon option that would allow:

-Platoons to launch together as a unit?
-Platoon Leaders to brief platoon members on mission before spawning and to administer duties to specific platoon members?
-Platoon Leaders to create ordinance packages before spawning?

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Yes, the first time a platoon is launched it's done automatically and simultaneously at ML's order. The purpose is to have sticking teams moving to their target. ML gets thus plenty of time to give orders since he decides when the platoon will be deployed. He must also approve everyone's spawn and unit.
Such severe constrains for platoons become possible because of the mercenaries support missions with no leaders, that doesn't force people to join a team if they don't want to. Though they would lose some privileges only given to platoon members, such as team shared points or the ability to capture depots (for example).

About the ordinance packages, I didn't mention it but it could be added as well, sure. Let's remind rats about this when they start working on the UI.

Let's remind that these features are just extra gameplay details and are not part of the UI overhaul itself.

Thanks for your interest urikbg

not even a HC tab to show which HC are currently online, who is Map OIC? naval OIC? air OIC? and ranking officer?

fixed

your side HQ photoshop clearly states the CinC and not the Map OIC.

if this was implemented in the next day it would say "Side CinC: Frantish" for the axis players.

Good Work Zebbeee! Man, you have put a lot of work into this.

The amount of data compiled in this UI will certainly help brigade and HC commanders to coordinate the map.

As I say, I am a bit concerned that platoon based missions have enough tools to produce effective teamwork.

I think a ready room screen (tab) that could provide a clear list of who was a part of the team, what ordinance they were bringing, what their objectives for the mission were, a timetable for expected results, and a mark-able map diagramming the mission would help bond the mission members and establish closer teamwork and better results in the field. these are items that are badly needed to organize game play for the average player.

Several years ago CRS said that a mark-able map was one of the things they were trying to develop. Another option might be the ability to link or upload one of the playerbase map programs.

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I agree with you, I think it's a great idea. I was just refering to the way you were saying it

Really good ideas have been suggested. But I won't have time to make any update soon because of IRL tasks. So let's gather new suggestions and these will be listed on he blog for Rats to read. An official opinion would be appreciated as well, I'm sure more players would contribute if we know more or less what Rats planned for the upcoming changes

nearly 1200 views and so few feedbacks. Rats will need more then that to redesign the UI.

MM, would it be possible to get a little official feedback about this on the website to encourage further discussions ? please

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I like it from the veteran player standpoint, but part of me feels that this is just contributing to the "overwhelming" perception in new players.

- I do hope that there are some preliminary option screens that can offer less detail.

One gripe from friends that tried the game (tried and left) was that there were too few screens guiding an intuitive step-by-step into the game world.

Most of us that have played a while understand how to absorb the information and organization but that culture hasn't been nurtured in the newly initiated.

All I am suggesting is don't forget to offer the fast-track option into the gamespace. Think of it as a Private First Class that doesn't have any clue of what's going and having the option of being "guided" (ordered) into battle.

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Ma

RAF 617 Squadron, The DamBusters

"The DamBusters - not just a squad, a game imbalance"

Apres Moi Le Deluge!
After me, the flood!

http://adultsheepfinder.com/

Hiding some informations to green tags could be a good concept (such as friendlies operating on the same AO in the brigade screen).
The side HQ screen could just show P1, P2 and P3 brigades as well for newbies (as for free rifle accounts if the rumor is true)

http://forums.battlegroundeurope.com...2&postcount=21
Once you spend a few time on it (actually less then 1 minute once you got a little pop up to explain the screen ingame) , you see that it actually structures and simplifies a large and complex flow of informations. You basically just need to select a town, and all related missions are filtered and displayed on the left. The more success the game has, the more scary it will look, but the more time you will win for finding what you are looking for.
That being said, remember I had to put everything on one screen and couldn't use the scroll feature.

Also, I'm not the first one who suggested such a layout (cf all missions on one screen). It's actually pretty old
http://gophur.playnet.com/gallery/posters/battles_1

I wish I had more time and the needed skills to create an interactive little freeware to show how it would dynamically behave.

If that huge Battleground Europe banner was taken off the top, it would give the GUI screen much more real estate and wouldnt seem so condensed. We really dont need that huge banner up there. Maybe just a line of text at the top that says "Battleground Europe v. 1.32.0.255" or something similar on one side and the TIME IN GAME on the other..

Just my 0.02,
alphie

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alphie
Retired Axis CinC

I'm going to agree the battleground europe banner needs removed.

why do we need a reminder we're playing a game we pay money to each month, and obviously loaded up to play in the first place.

why is the rank thing displayed so large? rank really has no bearing in this game except for when equipment becomes open for use to you. once you hit rank 7 it is not important anymore.

I know the current UI layout lacks ALOT of information for new players, but your UI contains so much information it might overwhelm new players.

This looks very good, it would greatly help with improving teamwork and making leading easier. I hope to see this implemented soon, although it will probably take a while before we even see part of this ingame.

As for it being too complicated, I don't think so*. There is more information on each screens, but it gives a visual representation of many of the game mechanics which otherwise have to be figured out (brigade/divisions/supply mechanics, attack vs defense, FB and spawn cp mechanics) as the greentag plays. It took me about a day to get all this, I think with an UI like that I would have understood the basics (where should I go? What does my side need right now?) much faster.

Ty for the reply nyax. That's exactly what I would imagine as well as a greentag. And it's actually even easier to join action with the town filter :

When you would select a town on map, it would filter displayed brigades and keep only the ones with active missions related to the selected target.










And if you go now through other branchs' tab, you would also filter air/naval units, giving a new powerful tool for global coordination.



>>> This and much more on the official blog<<<

You, yourself, cannot equal a proportionate representation of the individuals that successfully begin this game. When I have 6 co-workers that simply want to get into the game to understand the basic mechanics, of shoot-move-position, the initial UI is a detriment.

Again, I'm not saying that the information isn't important or handy, but to the new initiates who seek to get into the game rather than necessarily understanding the logistical dynamics this poses a delay; one that most MMO game players frown on.

Rats position has shifted from the niche players to the quick-action seekers of the modern FPS. Lets rope them in with the gameplay first, and then augment their understanding of the scope of the realm.

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Ma

RAF 617 Squadron, The DamBusters

"The DamBusters - not just a squad, a game imbalance"

Apres Moi Le Deluge!
After me, the flood!

http://adultsheepfinder.com/