So I did a fast sketch with photoshop to show my ideas.
(Please note that it's only about the placing and stuff, this sketch is of course not meant to look good)
Description.
Starting from the left bottom:
The map
I changed the map from round to square because with this you can show almost twice as much information in the same space.
- Button top left: The button to access the tactical map.
- 2 Buttons bottom left: The buttons to quickly select inactive soldiers/vehicles
- 3 Buttons bottom right: Team notificatons: Attack here, Defend here (not existent in CoH2 but vCoH), Cap this point (not existent in CoH2 but vCoH).
Now going to the right (black/gray circle).
The commander/ability selection
I did not change this section much. I just made the XP to the next level indicator smaller and the inner circle bigger. The icons themselves got a bit smaller.
Now going down (gray rectangle).
Ressource overview
It is by far easier to overlook your ressources when they are displayed from the top to the button unlike in CoH2 where they are aligned from the left to the right. This is much more like vCoH that used almost exactly the same system. The orange squares resemble the ressource icons.
Now going to the right (black rectangle with green/blue rectangles inside).
Unit picture and overview
- The green rectangle is the unit picture as we know it from CoH2. It is a bit smaller than the current version.
- The three orange squares on the top show the veterancy of the selected unit.
- The 2 orange squares on the bottom right resemble the buffs/debuffs this unit currently has (can of course be more or less).
The very small blue line underneath the picture is the exp bar of the unit (showing when its veterancy will go up).
The bigger blue line underneath shows the squads current health.
The even bigger line underneath shows from left to the right it's kill count.
From left to the right (displayed with icons before each number):
- Infantry
- Light Vehicles
- Tanks
- Buildings
Now going to the right (gray rectangle).
The unit selection/description
- The upper text shows the player that controls the selected unit
- The square underneath this text shows the unit's icon with the remaining squad members on the top left side (not shown in this screenshot). The red square is the indicator that shows up if this unit is idle atm. The orange square shows it's cover state.
- The text to the right of the unit's icon shows the name of the selected unit. This text disappears when multiple units are selected. In this case more unit icons will take up the space.
- The text underneath is the unit description we all love so much. The text can be smaller if needed. This text also disappears when multiple units are selected. In this case more unit icons will take up the space.
Now going to the right (black rectangle).
The unit upgrades
(as seen on the last image)
The upgrades the unit can purchase from top to bottom.
Now going to the right border (black rectangle).
The unit abilities
(Yes, this screenshot was necessary,
)
The unit's abilities as they appear in the current version of the game. The quick selection of the buildings is above (not shown in this screenshot).
Now going to the top (blue squares).
The army selection
I decided to put this selection above the unit abilities again and not on the screen's top as it is in the current version. This gives you the ability to select units much faster without scrolling the whole screen. The unit selection itself is displayed as in the current game. Unit groups will appear above the army selection (not shown in this screenshot).
Now going to the top border
Victory point counter
The VP counter in this screenshot has a bigger gap to the top border and is a bit smaller. I would also suggest to change the font of the timer because that font style is annoying me since CoH2 Alpha.
Summary
I tried to make a much smaller UI that contains all the things from the current UI and even more. You can see even more because that damn big container in the middle is now much smaller. I also think that using this UI would me much easier resulting in better and faster gameplay.
Your opinions?