Topic Further thoughts on inventory and controls
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In Response to Zapper
The context menu would in most situations be currently less important than the left mouse button or the space bar, sure.
But I believe that it still would be something that could improve the user interaction and feeling of the controls a lot.
Not to say, that I would put certain actions in the context menu that are currently either impossible or hardly accessible:
That could for example be:
- Chopping a tree with the axe. This is an action that the Clonk executes, I don't get why you have to hold the button for that. (the strike would go to click)
- Taking your ammunition from a bow or switching ammo.
- Taking single sticks of dynamite out of a dynamite box (currently impossible, but was requested)
When we have more objects, use of the context menu will become a lot more frequent. And it would be nice to have a solution in place that scales well.
Another advantage of the context menu is that it can contain actions that are not obvious to players - for example taking dynamite from a dynamite box or change ammo of the bow.
The context menu would contain an iconic graphic and when you hover over it at least the name of the action. It would be the first place for new players to look if they think "How do I do that now?" - which would greatly increase accessibility.
Why I dislike two actions for one item on both mouse buttons:
1. the actions are most likely not clear for the player: when does an object have two ways to use it and when are they active? (hatchet: with tree in background)
2. developers might feel forced to implement two actions for items - see the sword example. I am deeply in doubt whether parry or another type of attack would be good for gameplay (and that is after having tried many iterations with how the sword works).
3. having two actions will either be the standard case (and players wonder why object X does not do anything on RMB) or the exception (in which case players do not even try RMB) - or it will leave players completely unsure about when an object has two actions.
4. in any case it will mean additional info in the HUD, which will also stay there when the player is more experienced and would not need that extra info.
5. at some point we will have items that might need three functions - or more (for example: a bow in front of a torch could have the additional option "incinerate arrows"). I like the idea of having a scaling solution from the beginning
Why I am against having the context menu on another button on the keyboard:
This is merely a "feeling" argument:
The workflow of using the context menu would be more cumbersome: It is a huge difference whether I click the RMB, move it into a direction and let go or whether I click Q, let Q go, move my mouse, click RMB, let RMB go. - Especially since it involves both hands.
Another argument would be that the mouse would be the tool for interaction: When the player wants to move around or manage his inventory he would use the keyboard while whenever he wants to interact with something, he would know that the mouse is what he is looking for.
As I said: that's just an argument about the general "feeling" of interaction, but I believe it's not an unimportant one, but one that could add a lot to the feeling you have when you play.
That the context menu on mouse click comes with a "info about this object"-entry which is dependend on mouse position (and which imo is needed in Clonk) goes without saying I guess.
But I believe that it still would be something that could improve the user interaction and feeling of the controls a lot.
Not to say, that I would put certain actions in the context menu that are currently either impossible or hardly accessible:
That could for example be:
- Chopping a tree with the axe. This is an action that the Clonk executes, I don't get why you have to hold the button for that. (the strike would go to click)
- Taking your ammunition from a bow or switching ammo.
- Taking single sticks of dynamite out of a dynamite box (currently impossible, but was requested)
When we have more objects, use of the context menu will become a lot more frequent. And it would be nice to have a solution in place that scales well.
Another advantage of the context menu is that it can contain actions that are not obvious to players - for example taking dynamite from a dynamite box or change ammo of the bow.
The context menu would contain an iconic graphic and when you hover over it at least the name of the action. It would be the first place for new players to look if they think "How do I do that now?" - which would greatly increase accessibility.
Why I dislike two actions for one item on both mouse buttons:
1. the actions are most likely not clear for the player: when does an object have two ways to use it and when are they active? (hatchet: with tree in background)
2. developers might feel forced to implement two actions for items - see the sword example. I am deeply in doubt whether parry or another type of attack would be good for gameplay (and that is after having tried many iterations with how the sword works).
3. having two actions will either be the standard case (and players wonder why object X does not do anything on RMB) or the exception (in which case players do not even try RMB) - or it will leave players completely unsure about when an object has two actions.
4. in any case it will mean additional info in the HUD, which will also stay there when the player is more experienced and would not need that extra info.
5. at some point we will have items that might need three functions - or more (for example: a bow in front of a torch could have the additional option "incinerate arrows"). I like the idea of having a scaling solution from the beginning
Why I am against having the context menu on another button on the keyboard:
This is merely a "feeling" argument:
The workflow of using the context menu would be more cumbersome: It is a huge difference whether I click the RMB, move it into a direction and let go or whether I click Q, let Q go, move my mouse, click RMB, let RMB go. - Especially since it involves both hands.
Another argument would be that the mouse would be the tool for interaction: When the player wants to move around or manage his inventory he would use the keyboard while whenever he wants to interact with something, he would know that the mouse is what he is looking for.
As I said: that's just an argument about the general "feeling" of interaction, but I believe it's not an unimportant one, but one that could add a lot to the feeling you have when you play.
That the context menu on mouse click comes with a "info about this object"-entry which is dependend on mouse position (and which imo is needed in Clonk) goes without saying I guess.
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