Larian Studios Forums Divinity - Original Sin Divinity Original Sin - Beta Beta UI Wishlist (Menus, Controls, Etc.)

(Edited post thanks to others' feedback!)
Now that we've moved to beta and Larian is going to start to "polish" the user interface, here's my wishlist of must-have improvements. I adapted this from my old thread "List of suggestions/issues/bugs - Alpha 1.0.167," but since others also agree with some of the ideas (like a key ring!), I'd be interested in everyone's other thoughts. Cheers!



USER INTERFACE IMPROVEMENTS WISHLIST



INVENTORY/CHARACTER AND TRADING MENUS/CONTROLS

1) All items of an identical type (except equipment) should stack with each other in the inventory and trading menus
Items that should stack, but don't: all "junk" (i.e. (large) bottles, broken bottles, (flower) pots, globes, lab junk, plates, tubes, vials, vial racks), arrow shafts, arrows/arrowheads (identical types), books (including all identical recipe and blank skillbooks), bonedust, empty bottles, folded shirts, golden cups, golden spoons, nine inch nails, parchment, pillows, pixie dust, rope, soap, starfish, wooden figurines, apples/bottles of beer/cups of water/drudenae/hams/herrings/logs/minor healing potions/roasted pork dishes/skulls (only some items of these types currently stack with each other), "Cyseal Pie" and "Cyseal Fish Pie" (duplicates?), etc.

2) A "Sort By Type" inventory sorting option should be added

3) Items should be consistently arranged in the same item grid slot order in all NPC trading and current player inventory menus

4) Left-clicking (rather than left-clicking-and-holding/dragging) on an item within the inventory menu should allow you to pick it up

5) A key ring (functioning as an "openable" container) to automatically store all acquired keys should be added

6) Inventory container fixes (backpacks, pouches, barrels, crates, etc.)
Newly acquired items should automatically stack with identical items already within a container in player inventory; keys and quest items within a container in player inventory should be automatically "used"/recognized in-game just as they would be if they weren't in the container

7) Activating a character via its portrait or the "F1"-"F4" keys should also switch to that character's inventory or skills menu, if open

8) An option to tag/mark items as "junk" for later quick/one-click sale should be added

9) The price listed for a stack of items in the trading menu should be displayed both for one individual item and for the entire stack

10) An option to manually type the number of items to move/trade from within a stack should be added

11) Each NPC's Identify/Repair ability levels should be displayed in the NPC's trading menu

12) The effects of both the player's Barter ability and the NPC's attitude on price should be shown in each item's trading tooltip

13) The value of every stat/ability modified from its base value should be displayed in a different color in the inventory menu

14) Ability tooltips that still need to describe exact percentage/numerical effects
Armour Specialist, Body Building, Willpower, Charisma, Lucky Charm, Offense Rating (doesn't include +3/level effect of Lucky Charm)

15) After drinking from a container (bottle/cup/mug/flask/etc.), an empty container should generate in the player's inventory

16) After using a shovel, both your weapon and shield (if previously equipped) should be automatically re-equipped



CRAFTING/IDENTIFICATION/REPAIR MENUS/CONTROLS

1) Crafting overhaul
Anew dedicated crafting window in which items can be combined should be added; recipe information for at least those recipes the player has successfully crafted should be explicitly listed in the format "A = B + C" in the journal; for sample mockups, see: http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=34882&Number=494715#Post494715

2) Loremaster/Identify overhaul (current click-intensive system is extremely tedious, and adds no challenge)
If a player has an identifying glass and sufficient Loremaster ability, all items (items that are picked up, as well as items displayed in all trading menus) should be identified automatically (except those beyond the player's ability)

3) Blacksmithing/Repair overhaul (current click-intensive system is extremely tedious, and adds no challenge)
If a player has a repair hammer and sufficient Blacksmithing ability, a new "Repair All" icon/button usable only outside combat should repair all items equipped by the party with one click (except those too damaged for the player's ability)



COMBAT MENUS/CONTROLS

1) The ability to attack enemies with "regular" (non-skill) attacks by clicking their icon at the top of the screen should be added
I.e. similar to how attacking with skills works currently

2) A "facing" indicator should be added to the circle under each enemy's feet to aid with backstab positioning



DIALOGUE AND NPC INTERACTION MENUS/CONTROLS

1) The effects of a dialogue choice on a Trait should be displayed next to the choice

2) NPC dialogue options previously chosen by the player should be "dimmed"/"grayed"

3) A more convenient method of ending an NPC dialogue at any time is needed
E.g. by hitting "ESC" to exit the dialogue screen, and/or moving the "end dialogue" speech option to the top or side of the list from its current usual position at the bottom in situations where dialogue can't be skipped for quest reasons, the "end dialogue" option may then be disabled

4) The player should be able to attempt to pickpocket each NPC repeatedly
But there should be a higher chance of discovery on subsequent attempts, due to the NPC being aware he/she lost something earlier



GENERAL MENUS/CONTROLS

1) "ALT" should consistently highlight all items/containers within the player's sight range
Currently, most items as well as chests (but no other containers, like barrels/baskets/crates/vases) are highlighted; however, some useful items are never highlighted (e.g. pillows, soap, whetstones), and neither are any "junk" items ((large) bottles, broken bottles, (flower) pots, globes, lab junk, plates, tubes, vials, vial racks although the non-highlighting of junk may be intentional); also, probably due to errors in calculating the player's sight range, many items placed on certain wall shelving or bookshelves, tables, sloped ground, etc. aren't highlighted (e.g. the fishing rod in the tutorial dungeon, items on the table in front of Esmerelda's shop, items on shelving/bookshelves inside Esmerelda's shop/Aureus's office/the cook's house/at the back of Bellegar's cave, items around the forge/anvil area above Cyseal west gate, the plants in the End of Time living quarters garden, items on the sloped paths just outside the lighthouse/just west of the cultist church, etc.); finally, although this should be an optional toggle in the main menu to satisfy both those who enjoy and those who hate pixel-hunting, there should be an option to make item/container highlighting always automatically active

2) The "chest" action icon color for containers that are "not owned" but not yet opened should be changed from yellow to white
This would assist colorblind players, as the "chest/door/hand" action icons for all containers/doors/items would be orange if "owned," and white if "not owned," with the label "[Empty]" added but the icon color unchanged if a container is empty

3) All keyboard controls should be fully reassignable in the "Controls" menu
Especially camera movement, so as not to interfere with using WASD for other controls; also ALT for item highlighting, etc.

4) The camera "zoom out" height/range should be increased

5) A "pause" function should be added
The game should auto-pause when a popup appears, or when the game menu is opened

6) All custom map markers should be fully editable
Currently, you can add a marker by left-clicking on the map (sometimes it's glitchy), and can delete a marker by right-clicking it, but there should be an easy way to select and edit the description for each existing marker as well

7) Pathfinding enhancements
Party members should always automatically avoid damage floors/environments (not only traps); where a damage area can't be avoided (e.g. a tight corridor), the player should be required to manually control any party member who must walk through the damage area; a new formation "Follow the exact steps of the controlled character" could also help

8) Hotbar/skill menu enhancements
Add a tooltip to each skill stating the skill category to which it belongs (e.g. "Fire Magic"); add new assignable keyboard shortcuts to switch between hotbars and/or increase the size of the hotbar switching icons; add the ability to assign an entire skill category to one hotbar slot, such that right-clicking the "Fire Magic" slot (for example) would open the player's Fire Magic skillbook menu; for sample mockup, see http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=34882&Number=494624#Post494624

9) Character creation enhancements
Add 360-degree rotation of character models; add a true "classless" option (with no pre-assigned attributes/abilities/talents/skills, and with the option to name the class); allow editing of starting skills and equipment

Not agree with that, the left click is usefull for item you can left click, potions, scrolls, identify lens, picklock, etc..


Agree with that, but there's an issue, how do you do if you want to give a particular key to your companion that has a door to open at the north of the map, and you need to go open a chest at the south ? Key ring would be usefull, but would make us lose some freedom. Why not an extra tab instead where all the keys would go, and that won't appear on the "all" tab, only in this particular one ?


Totally agree with that, most of them have that in their name, but not all, and most of the time you have to guess with the AP cost.


Agree with that, but only at the merchants able to identify items. Some merchants can't identify, and I like the fact they sometimes don't really know what they are selling.


Why not, if it's only an option, don't want that by default XD


+1000, i love closing windows with the same key I used to open them.

I would add to this list a way to "lock/unlock" the chat log, so you can't move it when you try to move to the bottom right of your screen.

* Agreed.
* This is, infact, possible already. Sadly you need to hold left mouse while scrolling, not the most intuitive way.
* Agreed. My inventory piles over, and it's hard to find what I look for amongst the vendor thrash/ingredients. Other excluded items would be barrels.
* Yup. Increasing weight as it's been filled.
* Never really noticed. I suppose it's nice, but not too vital.
* Agreed if they don't already.
* Disagreeing here. Buying a strange item, and then seeing if it was good or not is all fun and games!
* Suppose that makes sense.
* While nice, I disagree with it from a balance standpoint.
* Yup. Also, options should close on escape (if the option is set), currently it doesn't, and you have to click back before getting the ingame options, which you can escape to get ingame again (hope that made sense)
* I think this would be unnecessary clutter. The current system works fine as is. Tooltips do display sources of bonusses.
* That's simply a bug. It also happens sometimes ingame without loading due to a questupdate
* Agreed.
* Can't say I noticed. Then again, the camera has been enough of a pain for me I might have blocked specifics from my mind...

* Agreed.
* No container, simply a possible tag, so it shows in a new tab called 'tagged'.
* ?
* I haven't bothered too much with these systems yet. The 'I cannot repair X' is too annoying. How about adding the repair skill of the NPC you talk to somewhere so it's not a shot in the dark wheter it can repair your item?
* Items that are owned have an orange hand/door icon hovering over them, compared to white if 'free-for-all'; already implented thus.
* Makes sense, good idea. Also, as others say, if you select another NPC through their portrait the opened tab (say, inventory) should switch to them... it's intuitive!

I like the ideas/feedback guys - editing my OP!



Actually, to use potions, scrolls, etc., you right-click, so it wouldn't be a conflict.



Good point - I was thinking to treat the key ring like an "openable" container, so you could still access/move individual keys from within the key ring, while still limiting the key clutter to only one grid slot in the main inventory screen.



Another good point.



+1.



EDIT: OK, that does work; I've removed this from the OP - the issue I was having was trying to scroll down to a "new" inventory grid row (below the 5 rows initially visible) when there was nothing yet placed in those lower rows, if that makes sense. But right, the requirement to hold the button is really my nitpick. It seems unnecessary, since simple left-clicking isn't reserved for any other function within the inventory AFAIK (you right-click to use an item).



Right, it definitely wouldn't be for everyone - just lazy people like me.



Yeah, I can see that viewpoint. More of a personal preference I guess.



Good to know!



Maybe my edit will make more sense - I meant expanding the number of inventory grid slots viewable on screen at once.



Derp, now I get it. Thanks!

No, that's dumb, unless the merchant is specifically a Diablo 2-ish "gambler" where buying potentially great unidentified items is the point. But even then, that does not work in this game where there are limited amounts of resources and no respawns.

There are plenty of ways to make more money... like buying an item, modifying it, then selling it back for profit (empty cup > cup of water). Also with stealing you can go quite a while.
Also, it wouldn't be unlikely for a loremaster to buy the item, identify it, and sell if back for proift. Especially combined with barter & affection.

I know for certain that there's very little profit to be made by paying a merchant to identify an item and then selling it. There's a little bit of profit, but most of that is eaten up by the cost to have the merchant identify it.

Since merchants tend to sell things at a higher price than they buy them, there's unlikely to be much profit in buying an unidentified item, identifying it (yourself) and selling it.

You're not obliged to pay the merchant to identify the item, you can identify it yourself (when it's not bugged).

I mean identifying it yourself... once that's fixed of course that is.

(Like Lynma already said... whoops).

That's why I mentioned 'Loremaster', it's the skill that identifies

I had no idea you could make money by filling and selling cups of water... sounds goofy, so now I gotta try.

And I edited the OP re: my "modified stat/ability value" idea: to avoid the interface cluttering which would be caused by displaying modified stat values in parentheses next to base stat values (or vice-versa), I now suggest a simple color-coding system. I just like to know at a glance how reliant my character is on boosts from equipment/talents/consumables vs. his "natural" base stats. Anyway, I think it would be a classy little addition.

I am well aware that you can identify items yourself. I was a bit unclear though, so that's my fault. Merchants sell things for more than they buy them, so even if you buy an unidentified item, identify it yourself, and then sell it back, I don't think you'll be making much money on the sale.

Sadly, until loremaster is fixed, can't really try. It rally depends if the value increases/decreases upon ID or it remains the same.
I'm assuming it will be replaced for another item (bit like crafting and such) and thus there will be a new price.
Actually, should test that ingame by paying people in a moment (was hoping to use loremaster :() Even if I lose money, it's valuable intel for post-"loremaster" fix

Adding pathfinding issues back to the OP, based on my original alpha suggestion list and another current thread, as well as my time with the beta so far.

A couple issues/questions:

1) I'm colorblind, and am having trouble telling the difference between the colors for the "owned" and "not owned" container "chest" action icons - is there a difference?

Either way, I'm thinking they should make the container action icons consistent with door and item action icons: yellow/orange if "owned," and white/gray if "not owned" - besides, even a colorblind person can differentiate between those. (I'm aware that currently, a white/gray "chest" icon is used to mark empty containers, but these are already labeled as "(Empty)," so there's no need to reserve that color just for that.)

2) There seems to be some weird stuff going on with the left-most column of the inventory grid. If you place an item in the left-most slot of the bottom-most row of the grid (if lower than the top five rows that are always visible), then close the inventory window, you can no longer access that item without first dragging something else down to that row to view it. Also, at least in the alpha (I still need to test the beta), items in the left-most column of the trading panel sometimes couldn't be interacted with, and displayed no tooltip info. Has anyone else noticed things like this?

1) No? Orange is owned, white is not owned. Empty stuff has no own color, it remains orange or white upon being owned or not. It only changes from orange to white if the owner dies (and as far as I can tell is slightly buggy in that regard in that it doesn't update till reload or interaction instead of after that NPC is dead).
Feel free to correct *me* though if I am wrong here, anyone...

2) Yup, though it seems opening and closing inventory will fix this 'stuck' behavior. I only notice one such item at the marketplace, and that's actually an item I sold, and shouldn't even *be* in my inventory in the first place!

EDIT: I've been told that "owned" containers are orange (same for empty), "not owned"/not yet opened containers are yellow, and "not owned"/empty containers are white. This seems overly complicated - I'm editing my OP to vote they just leave it to orange for owned, white for not - the same as doors and items - and if it's empty (owned or not), just note "[Empty]" in the label.



OK, good to know it's not just something with my system, thanks!

I think there isn't, but just in case - is there currently a way to manually type the number/amount of an item stack you want to trade? Or do you have to rely only on the slider?

I just wanted to let you know that I tried this: I bought an unidentified Staff from a guy for 187 gold, used Loremaster to identify it, and tried selling it back: I would only get 147 gold for the sale. So there is zero - no, negative profit to be made by purchasing unidentified things and selling the identified versions back.

Depends on the item... I've had some major increases in item worth from unidentified to identified.
Also, what was your bartering skill? (I did mention barter too ;))

Hassat Hunter (or anyone who might know) - could you provide some more specific info on the effects of Barter on purchase/sale prices at different ability levels? I also just saw you mentioned in another thread that the NPC's Attitude affects prices as well - which I hadn't realized, but which makes perfect sense - so this may be a bit more complicated than I expected.

Either way, although I still agree with Lynma that it would be interesting to have some "scavenger/gambler"-type traders who are willing to sell things that they haven't identified themselves (though these NPCs would be the exception rather than the rule), that would still raise the question of how the item was being valued in the first place, assuming neither the trader nor the player knew exactly what it was. Hmm...