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Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 7:50 pm
by Arioch
We're currently working on the tree view for the research screen. Here is a mockup of the layout:

tech_tree_ui4.jpg
tech_tree_ui4.jpg (475.95 KiB) Viewed 24146 times


The idea is that the player would be able to toggle back and forth between the current list view and the tree view, and most elements of the tree view would work the same way as the current view does.

It goes without saying that this is just a concept, and is subject to change as we implement it.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:19 pm
by SirDamnALot
That is a beautiful tree :)

Are you planning to have both views ? I see this view leaves out the science advisor (even if he/she did not much advising).

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:27 pm
by Arioch
SirDamnALot wrote:That is a beautiful tree :)

Are you planning to have both views ? I see this view leaves out the science advisor (even if he/she did not much advising).

Yes, you'll be able to toggle back and forth between the two views.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:39 pm
by zolobolo
Looks good. It will surely improve the research planning.
Is it possible to display the hard-point designation when hovering over the piktogramms?
I was thinking the same when you have introduced these for the ship editor designs, but especially on the tech-tree the players might want to see this info

I thought the list is also fine, though I did notice that all the hulls are cramped on the top in the early game:
Please consider adjusting the research cost slightly so the hulls do not overly fall into the first research era.
After a couple of plays with each faction it seems to me that we usually research most of the hulls before actual fleets are formed, and most of them are cheaper then other techs such as weapons and colony improvements.
e.g.: A heavy Cruiser requires the same amount of research as Escort Cruiser and Anti-Missile

Maybe this will be resolved with the tree though as we would not concentrate too much on the direct research cost of each tech and more on the long-term research goal..

Looking forward to it!

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2017 9:44 am
by Arioch
zolobolo wrote:Is it possible to display the hard-point designation when hovering over the piktogramms?
I was thinking the same when you have introduced these for the ship editor designs, but especially on the tech-tree the players might want to see this info

You can view the normal info pane for a tech by clicking on it, which will show you the same information (including hardpoint icons) as in the list view. We can add more information to the on-hover tooltips, if necessary. Once the basic system is implemented, we can all try it out and decide what tweaks need to be made.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Sun Mar 12, 2017 10:05 am
by DDPD
This is great!! Well done!

I hope SiS sold well enough to fund further development for a long time. It's turned out to be a fantastic game and is only getting better!

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2017 3:51 am
by bjg
DDPD wrote:I hope SiS sold well enough to fund further development for a long time.

Not according to the steamspy. :(

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2017 8:24 am
by SirDamnALot
bjg wrote:
DDPD wrote:I hope SiS sold well enough to fund further development for a long time.

Not according to the steamspy. :(

I'm using the "old" updater and not start with steam (but redeemed my key). Maybe lots of other early buyers fly under the steam radar too.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2017 4:54 pm
by Arioch
The SteamSpy numbers are not accurate. Our sales are modest, as you would expect of an indy game from two people no one has ever heard of, but I'm very pleased with the sales to this point.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2017 6:36 am
by SirDamnALot
Arioch wrote:The SteamSpy numbers are not accurate. Our sales are modest, as you would expect of an indy game from two people no one has ever heard of, but I'm very pleased with the sales to this point.

Happy to hear :) This kind of games are slow burners that generate sales for years. MoO2 is still being sold for a reason ;)

Out of curiosity, will your techtree be placed manually or generated dynamically?

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2017 5:30 pm
by Arioch
SirDamnALot wrote:Out of curiosity, will your techtree be placed manually or generated dynamically?

Some of both. It's dynamic in the sense that it can adapt to additions or subtractions of techs for different factions and situations, but it will have manual overrides for positioning so that traffic-jam areas can be tidied up by hand.

Sven already has a crude prototype working, which includes a zoom feature. We'll see whether or not that actually works in practice.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 17, 2017 9:25 am
by zolobolo
Arioch wrote:
SirDamnALot wrote:Out of curiosity, will your techtree be placed manually or generated dynamically?

Some of both. It's dynamic in the sense that it can adapt to additions or subtractions of techs for different factions and situations, but it will have manual overrides for positioning so that traffic-jam areas can be tidied up by hand.

Sven already has a crude prototype working, which includes a zoom feature. We'll see whether or not that actually works in practice.

Sound great!

Please beware faction speciifc tech as these can mess up the tree if not controlled individually, and emerging tech (such as "Slave Collars") which need to be displayed somehow withouth knowing when they are going to be researched

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Fri Mar 17, 2017 4:02 pm
by Arioch
zolobolo wrote:Please beware faction speciifc tech as these can mess up the tree if not controlled individually, and emerging tech (such as "Slave Collars") which need to be displayed somehow withouth knowing when they are going to be researched

Yes, this functionality is supported; the tree has different layouts for each faction (this is already working in the prototype), and techs can be added during play.

Re: Tech Tree View for Research Screen

Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2017 8:12 am
by zolobolo
Arioch wrote:
zolobolo wrote:Please beware faction speciifc tech as these can mess up the tree if not controlled individually, and emerging tech (such as "Slave Collars") which need to be displayed somehow withouth knowing when they are going to be researched

Yes, this functionality is supported; the tree has different layouts for each faction (this is already working in the prototype), and techs can be added during play.

Great to hear :)
Sorry to hear you guys got a lot of negative vibe due to the lack of a tree view.
I didn't mind the list myself, but hope that those who did, will be satisfied, and you can get back to creating new content to fill out this new universe :)