Iconic base menu

[Alex]

This is more an eye candy suggestion than anything else.

I think it would work very well to remove the right hand menu from the base view.

Then, when the user clicks on a building, like the research facility, they see the research window, or when they click on the hangar, they get the equip aircraft screen.

To build a new building, click on an empty space, which brings up a list of building types, which you can select and put in place.

The base inventory and buy/sell screen can be accessed by clicking on the stores, etc.

I would prefer this system than the current one, it would feel more intuitive.

Would it be hard to implement, or would it be relatively straightforward to rearrange the gui?

[vvb]

Your idea is good, but not everyone will remember how research laboratories look like. And it become more pixel-hunting, when you have to move mouse untill find needed building...
 So, current system is nice. And if developers decide to imlpement your idea, it should be optional. 8-)

[Alex]

Yeah I thought it might not be for all people - but I am thinking, there is an alt-hud in the battle scenes, is it possible to make an althud for the baseview?

The seperate building's purpose should be obvious by the way it looks anyway.

[blondandy]

i think i'm right in saying that currently the only way to use a hospital is to click on it.

the GUI should go all one way or the other.

[Zenerka]

the GUI should go all one way or the other.

Yes, the GUI should be consistent, which means we should be able to either enter every menu base-related from menulist (not the case for aliencontainment or hospital currently) or by clicking given building. Or both.

[Alex]

What I like about the idea of having to click on a base building, is if you don't have the building, the option isn't there, which makes sense.  You need the building before you can access the menu...

It would look nicer than having a menu with certain options "greyed out", in my subjective opinion at least.

[Voller]

you could use a tooltip type approach to make it more obvious which building does what. Just hover your mouse over the building your interested in and it gives you information e.g.

- type of building (e.g. lab)
- capacity (15/20 spaces for quarters)
- maintenance cost
- brief description of what it does

[lfloden]

I like this idea. Currently when you mouse over a building it tells you what it is. So finding the building is no big deal.

For any menu that doesn't really belong with a building (market) there could be a button system near the top of the window, along with (global view, other bases, email, whatever)

[Alex]

Thinking about it some more, market really corresponds to the stores right?

You can't buy and sell stuff if you have nothing stored and nowhere to store it ... So clicking the general stores could bring up the market window.

The main reason I like the idea of clicking a building to access its functions is because it is a similar system used in RTS's like Command and Conquer, etc...  Click the construction yard to build stuff, click the production yard to make units, etc...

I'm not sure about the hire menu though, maybe that would need a button of its own.