On December 28, 2004 2:00 pm, Gary wrote:
> Yeah see that's what makes me wonder...is this just developers thinking like
> developers instead of users? In some cases it might be critical to identify
> things (for coders it is!), but in others I wonder if the aesthetic is more
> important.
I've had one tester make a comments to the effect of:
"WTF? Why did my tank pick up that cactus?" and "Where did that infantry go?
It's too hard to see 'em when they move across those sand dunes..."
Adding halos gave enough of a distinction between sprite and background object
(even the background objects are haloed) that both types of confusion were
eliminated. (The first example had the background scrolling the same speed a
tank was moving at - giving the appearance of the tank becoming one with a
doodad.)
I always have a handful of friends or family nearby to ask, "Which looks
better, this, or this?"
> Users, of course, don't care whether things or haloed or antialiased or
> what-have-you...they just know what their eyes like, right? ;)
True, and everyone's opinion differs on the subject. Guaranteed giving the
user an option between all three (normal, AA, and haloed) would be the best,
but given development time constraints...
> As I recall many of the great adventure games of the early 90s had halos
> right? All those LucasArts titles and the Sierra stuff (Kings Quest, etc)?
I'm not sure... it's been awhile since I've played those classics. (Loom,
anyone?) I don't think the ones I played did, but the point is moot. PalmOS
displays have such low resolution and high pixel density, that without halos
or substantially contrasting colors objects may become indistinct. This is
no good if differentiating between objects is part of the game.
In mine - the tanks are colored to fade into the background using camo, but
you still need to be able to see your own forces. As with almost everything,
it's a trade-off.
> You also raise some very valuable points about translation to other color
> schemes.
Playability at all possible combinations of resolution (160+x160+) at all bit
depths was an important engine feature, and I believe we have succeeded.
Support for all displays is not something many games can claim.
> I get the impression yours are done programmitically?
Again, a trade-off. For speed, everything is pre-rendered into a single V5
bitmap resource per sprite. Halos were part of the graphic design.
--
Matthew Bevan, Margin Software
- Re-inventing the wheel, every time.
First law of debate:
Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.
--
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