Re: handheld nethack interface thoughts
- From: jimrandomh <usenet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 22:16:55 +0000 (UTC)
dtvernon@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
I'm in need of some help from the community to provide input on best....
interfaces for playing nethack on small screen devices.
What I AM interested in, especially from people who have played Nethack
for some time, is your thoughts on what would be your ideal control on
a handheld device like GP32 with 8-way directional and 6 buttons? How
about if the device was capable of touchscreen like a PalmOS device?
Ultimately I'd like to add more support to nethack for small screen /
limited input devices that would ease the future porting to other
devices. What has worked well from any roguelike ports that you've
experienced? What do you wish was done differently? Even if you've
never tried handheld roguelikes, what do you think would work well?
There are probably different answers for new players and experts.
Take a look at CalcRogue's PalmOS port (calcrogue.jimrandomh.org). I
designed it after getting frustrated with the user interfaces of iRogue,
iLarn and kMoria (which are all by the same person and essentially the same
interface). CalcRogue also has a tileset designed for legibility on small
screens, which you are welcome to use.
On most PDAs, the buttons are placed so that it's hard to use both the
buttons and the stylus at the same time. Not every PDA has enough buttons
to make a usable interface, so you should think of the stylus interface and
the button interface as separate. For the button interface, follow Jeff
Lait's advice -
For the stylus interface, you need on-screen buttons for common actions
like pickup, cast spell, drop, and so on. The most important thing, though,
is how you handle moving and running.
In CalcRogue, the commands are
Move: tap the edge of the screen for the direction you want to move in
Run: tap the center of the screen, then the edge, OR drag the stylus from
the center of the screen to the edge.
Fire: Drag the stylus from the center to an edge and back
Scroll view: Draw a squiggly line from the center to an edge
Each pen action (tap an edge, drag center->edge, drag squiggly, drag
center->edge->center) is configurable.
Pay attention to the autopickup behavior. NetHack only has "on" and "off"
for autopickup, but CalcRogue has a third (default) choice: "prompt".
CalcRogue also prompts for the obvious action when you step onto stairs or
fountains.
Make sure the travel command is easily accessible, but don't make it the
default for tapping on the screen, because a tap on the screen is not
precise enough for combat actions.
--
CalcRogue: TI-89/92+, PalmOS, Windows and Linux: calcrogue.jimrandomh.org
Remove the "NOSPAM" from my e-mail address to contact me.
.
- References:
- handheld nethack interface thoughts
- From: dtvernon
- handheld nethack interface thoughts
- Prev by Date: Re: Knights and undead turning?
- Next by Date: Re: PATCH: colourised walls/floor in special dungeon areas!
- Previous by thread: Re: handheld nethack interface thoughts
- Next by thread: Lucky Samurai seeks advice on surviving
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
