High-res font = yay; Now, how about the title screen?

[Cowardlybabooon]

Please add descriptions to sphere effects when they are on you thx.

[Kristal]

Time for me to bump this thread again to bring you some more awesome news from Producer Hiromichi Tanaka.

Nice! Spiffy new icons! I don't think Overdrive (3R4D) is really working for me though... I'd expect a more.. overdrive-y.. icon... maybe something more like:

In essence, it's a circle divided in 8 parts to match the 8 maneuvers, with a gauge-like redzone to indicate the meters are in the red for that 110% overcharging effect. I'm sure your graphics artists can do better then this

Could you also find out if buffs with identical icons will get their own new icons, as some people already mentioned?

[Seiowan]

Nice! Spiffy new icons! I don't think Overdrive (3R4D) is really working for me though... I'd expect a more.. overdrive-y.. icon... maybe something more like:

In essence, it's a circle divided in 8 parts to match the 8 maneuvers, with a gauge-like redzone to indicate the meters are in the red for that 110% overcharging effect. I'm sure your graphics artists can do better then this

Could you also find out if buffs with identical icons will get their own new icons, as some people already mentioned?

I'm sure you've already noticed, but the icons follow the same graphics as the animation displayed when you use the ability. Benediction is a halo emitting light, Invincible is a shield and crossed swords. It makes sense, therefore, that Overdrive would have the same icon as its in-game animation. It makes sense to keep things uniform across the board rather than mixing things up for only one icon.

Though, your icon idea was rather nice

[Elliander]

Please tell me the UI changes won't be mandatory. I'm dreading this. I played Everquest before they updated the UI to allow for adjustable windows and transparency settings, and now it's such a jumbled headache! The main reason I will never play the new Final Fantasy online is the UI. (that, and I experienced the Beta)

I absolutely love the current FFXI UI. It's simple and easy to navigate. With a few button presses everything is gone and not obstructing my field of vision, and just as easily I can expand anything out. I can make the text fill the entire screen and change filters to view, say, only what has been said on the linkshell and then remove it all from my view in just a few button presses. It's all so perfect!

I don't want transparent windows. I don't want multiple chat windows either. I don't want to be buried under a mess of complicated windows. Please tell me this won't be a mandatory change! If they make this change so it resembles every other game out there it will be the death of the game for me.

[Ziyyigo-Tipyigo]

I suspect the original UI will always be an option if only because they'll have to maintain it anyway for console players.

[Alhanelem]

Please tell me the UI changes won't be mandatory. I'm dreading this.

Why in the world would you be dreading improvements to functionality?? This is easily the best thing to happen to the game in a long time.

It's simple and easy to navigate.

FFXI's UI is without a doubt one of the slowest, clunkiest UIs in the known MMO universe. Nothing is in plain sight- Fine if you're a minimalist, I guess, but for the player who needs information, having it all buried 1-3 levels deep in menus makes information a pain to acess, and drastically increases the number of button presses required to do anything. (I'd have fewer qualms with the current UI if I wasn't blocked from using 90% of text commands just because I have a window open- being able to do this would at least give me the freedom to use certain commands without having to leave the interface I'm on.

The main reason I will never play the new Final Fantasy online is the UI.

You can make such UIs look and feel exactly how you want them to. I don't understand how you could possibly have an objection to this. If you don't like clutter, just shove what you don't want to see out of the way. The problems with FFXIV's ui are in the huge delays in response to input. Once those issues are fully resolved, the UI will be just fine. There's a reason why most MMOs have been gravitating to that type of UI- and it's certainly not because they want to aggravate some of their users.

Long story short: You're just used to the current system and have adapted to its crap factor, just like the rest of us. You just happen to be more resistant to change than the average person. A few months after these updates, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it. I've played FFXI for years like many of you and I can do anything quickly in it, but that's because i'm used to it after playing for so long- not because it's well designed.

It's not much different from the gamepad vs keyboard debate. For the most part, which one someone perfers is purely a matter of which one they're most used to (Often the first one they picked up), and it has very little to do with any true advantages or disadvantages of one or the other.

Finally, I think you're heaivly jumping to conclusions here. I don't think they're going to drastically alter the overall appearance of the UI itself (short of the addition of distinct icons for every ability instead of those generic "Ab" icons). I think they're just extending its functionality to lift some of the limitations and restrictions on it- e.g. improving it's useability, not its flashiness.

Making this part big because it's important.

More options and freedoms is a good thing, no matter what kind of UI you like.
If stuff becomes moveable on screen and you don't like that, then don't move stuff on the screen. If you don't like having icons to visually identify abilities, then don't use them.

I don't want transparent windows.

Then don't make them transparent. You already have that choice.

I don't want multiple chat windows either.

then don't use them. None of the games i know of that have this feature force you to have multiple chat windows if you don't want them.

I don't want to be buried under a mess of complicated windows.

Then don't open a bunch of windows. You are in complete control of your own user experience. That being said, I highly doubt any of the UI windows themselves are being changed- they're just making it so you're not forced to close one window to open another if you don't want to.

[Daniel_Hatcher]

Why in the world would you be dreading improvements to functionality?? This is easily the best thing to happen to the game in a long time.

FFXI's UI is without a doubt one of the slowest, clunkiest UIs in the known MMO universe. Nothing is in plain sight- Fine if you're a minimalist, I guess, but for the player who needs information, having it all buried 1-3 levels deep in menus makes information a pain to acess, and drastically increases the number of button presses required to do anything. (I'd have fewer qualms with the current UI if I wasn't blocked from using 90% of text commands just because I have a window open- being able to do this would at least give me the freedom to use certain commands without having to leave the interface I'm on.

You can make such UIs look and feel exactly how you want them to. I don't understand how you could possibly have an objection to this. If you don't like clutter, just shove what you don't want to see out of the way. The problems with FFXIV's ui are in the huge delays in response to input. Once those issues are fully resolved, the UI will be just fine. There's a reason why most MMOs have been gravitating to that type of UI- and it's certainly not because they want to aggravate some of their users.

Long story short: You're just used to the current system and have adapted to its crap factor, just like the rest of us. You just happen to be more resistant to change than the average person. A few months after these updates, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it. I've played FFXI for years like many of you and I can do anything quickly in it, but that's because i'm used to it after playing for so long- not because it's well designed.

It's not much different from the gamepad vs keyboard debate. For the most part, which one someone perfers is purely a matter of which one they're most used to (Often the first one they picked up), and it has very little to do with any true advantages or disadvantages of one or the other.

Finally, I think you're heaivly jumping to conclusions here. I don't think they're going to drastically alter the overall appearance of the UI itself (short of the addition of distinct icons for every ability instead of those generic "Ab" icons). I think they're just extending its functionality to lift some of the limitations and restrictions on it- e.g. improving it's useability, not its flashiness.

Making this part big because it's important.

More options and freedoms is a good thing, no matter what kind of UI you like.
If stuff becomes moveable on screen and you don't like that, then don't move stuff on the screen. If you don't like having icons to visually identify abilities, then don't use them.

Then don't make them transparent. You already have that choice.

then don't use them. None of the games i know of that have this feature force you to have multiple chat windows if you don't want them.
Then don't open a bunch of windows. You are in complete control of your own user experience. That being said, I highly doubt any of the UI windows themselves are being changed- they're just making it so you're not forced to close one window to open another if you don't want to.

I get the feeling the change will be quite minor in reality. (if that makes sense)

Don't get me wrong it'll take them a long time, I just mean they'll just make the framework, most the customization will come from users as opposed to SE.

The update could allow you to be even more minimalistic if that's what anyone wants.

[Elliander]

Why in the world would you be dreading improvements to functionality?? This is easily the best thing to happen to the game in a long time.

I'm not dreading improvements. It's the idea that it may resemble every other MMO's UI. There is definately room for improvement in the resolution department. Macros, for example, look weird on my widescreen HDTV and text can be difficult to read from a distance, but these are still minor in comparison to the problems I would have if it even comes close to resembling the UI in any other MMO.

FFXI's UI is without a doubt one of the slowest, clunkiest UIs in the known MMO universe. Nothing is in plain sight- Fine if you're a minimalist, I guess, but for the player who needs information, having it all buried 1-3 levels deep in menus makes information a pain to acess, and drastically increases the number of button presses required to do anything. (I'd have fewer qualms with the current UI if I wasn't blocked from using 90% of text commands just because I have a window open- being able to do this would at least give me the freedom to use certain commands without having to leave the interface I'm on.

I strongly disagree with you there. It's one of the fastest, most elegant UIs in the known MMO universe. I am not a "minimalist", I just don't like clutter. If I had to choose because something requiring 2 extra button presses to access, and having half the screen covered in junk, I'd choose the extra button presses. I have seen what happens to an MMO when they make so-called "improvements".

You can make such UIs look and feel exactly how you want them to. I don't understand how you could possibly have an objection to this. If you don't like clutter, just shove what you don't want to see out of the way. The problems with FFXIV's ui are in the huge delays in response to input. Once those issues are fully resolved, the UI will be just fine. There's a reason why most MMOs have been gravitating to that type of UI- and it's certainly not because they want to aggravate some of their users.

Again, I disagree with you. You can't make UI's look the way you want them to unless they were programmed to allow it. Even in Everquest where they have support for community UI modifications it is impossible to go back to the simplicity it once had. The problem with allowing extra windows is that the windows have to go somewhere. With the current UI everything fades into the background after it's done being used, but if we get multiple windows there will be more - not less - button presses required to access such information.

Long story short: You're just used to the current system and have adapted to its crap factor, just like the rest of us. You just happen to be more resistant to change than the average person. A few months after these updates, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it. I've played FFXI for years like many of you and I can do anything quickly in it, but that's because i'm used to it after playing for so long- not because it's well designed.

Wrong again. I'm used to both systems. I have already gotten used to the "crap factor" of what I see in other MMOs. I have played MMO's since 1999. Most of that time I played Everquest, but a few months after it changed it's UI I quit and tried other games. I tried games like Rappelz and Flyff among others, but their UI was mouse click only which was really tedious. Then I tried FFXI and I found everything to be perfect. I don't understand - or really believe - how anyone can not do anything quickly on it. I can access my menus and make changes on a dime even while in combat. If I don't have a spell on macro I can easily access that as well just as quickly. I know crap when I see it, and the FFXI UI is certainly not crap.

I was also in the early Beta for the new Final Fantasy and I really didn't like the UI I saw. Actually, allot of people complained that it was completely different from the FFXI UI. It was so bad that I declined the several months of free play. I wouldn't have played it if they paid me to play it primarily because of the UI. The fact that they went in that direction with FFIV is partly why I am worried about FFXI.

"The game was such a failure that Square Enix issued an official apology, and in Japanese company style, got rid of the entire senior staff and replaced them. A PlayStation 3 version was set to be originally released in March of 2011, but that has been delayed indefinitely."

I have friends who don't even play other video games at all because of the complicated UI, but play FFXI because of the simplicity. They aren't used to any UI to begin with, but find the FFXI UI intuitive. When I tried to get them to play games like Everquest they hated it the first time they played it.

It's not much different from the gamepad vs keyboard debate. For the most part, which one someone perfers is purely a matter of which one they're most used to (Often the first one they picked up), and it has very little to do with any true advantages or disadvantages of one or the other.

Wrong again. While there is something to be said about what someone is used to, there is a huge difference between topics here. The difference being that you can do exactly the same thing in different ways between types of input, but when there is clutter on the screen it fundamentally changes the way the game feels.

Finally, I think you're heaivly jumping to conclusions here. I don't think they're going to drastically alter the overall appearance of the UI itself (short of the addition of distinct icons for every ability instead of those generic "Ab" icons). I think they're just extending its functionality to lift some of the limitations and restrictions on it- e.g. improving it's useability, not its flashiness.

You may be right on that one, but they make adjustments in respond to community input. They specifically mention in the road map multiple windows and the way they choose to implement it can make it identical to every other MMO out there, or make it a non-issue. I am voicing my concerns entirely because I hope that if they hear from people who don't want a mandatory change. Again, I have no problems with "improving it's usability", but we clearly have different ideas about "improvements".

When they said they wanted to improve the accounts, they meant requiring a computer instead of a console to handle all account activity, and now news and updates are not even in consoles anymore. There is just a long URL. I miss being able to sit back and read the updates in game with music playing and such. Change isn't always good, and many times change is mandatory.

Making this part big because it's important.

More options and freedoms is a good thing, no matter what kind of UI you like.

Agreed, but only if players are not forced to adopt a significant change.

If stuff becomes moveable on screen and you don't like that, then don't move stuff on the screen. If you don't like having icons to visually identify abilities, then don't use them.
Then don't make them transparent. You already have that choice.

I am calling BS on that one. I have played multiple games where that option is enabled, and it got to the point of having so many windows that you pretty much have to move them around once implemented. Again, it depends on how they implement it. If it's like every other MMO it will be crap, but if it's a simple global settings option it might not be bad.

then don't use them. None of the games i know of that have this feature force you to have multiple chat windows if you don't want them.
Then don't open a bunch of windows. You are in complete control of your own user experience. That being said, I highly doubt any of the UI windows themselves are being changed- they're just making it so you're not forced to close one window to open another if you don't want to.

I am calling BS on that one as well since the opposite is true. See, it isn't just chat buttons. Once you can move one things everything else get's movable as well. Then when you have the ability to move stuff around developers add new windows that are similarly movable. In Everquest it's not as simple as having multiple chat windows, it's all the other windows as well. There isn't even a reason for multiple chat windows in FFXI because you can easily - with either a keyboard or gamepad - change the focus through a set of tabs to look at only, say, your tells. In games that have multiple windows it's no where near that seamless. They also tend to add additional information that gets put into text as a result so that most of the people I know who play Everquest have 3 chat windows open at all times because if they don't they miss information, and any time they open menus it takes much MUCH longer than FFXI UI.

Case in point:



Although FFXIV doesn't look that bad (most of the windows also disappear) it was the mess of detatched windows on opening things like equipment and such that resembled every other was was almost as bad.

I get the feeling the change will be quite minor in reality. (if that makes sense)

Don't get me wrong it'll take them a long time, I just mean they'll just make the framework, most the customization will come from users as opposed to SE.

The update could allow you to be even more minimalistic if that's what anyone wants.

As long as there isn't a heap of clutter, and windows are easily accessed from a simple drop down I'm sure I will be fine. I agree that it probably won't be as bad as I fear, but if I don't voice my concerns now I might regret it later.

[Ziyyigo-Tipyigo]

I'd just like to point out that, currently, the lowest possible resolution in XIV is 1024x768, and at that setting, the default placement of elements ends up overlapping.

I'm assuming that will be fixed by the time they get PS3 support (as it will have to support down to 480i TVs), but I do hope they avoid that kind of sloppy work with the "new and improved" XI interface.

[Alhanelem]

It's the idea that it may resemble every other MMO's UI.

i don't think it's going that far- I think it's just going to be options for various things like having the macro bar stay on screen as a solution to those who find it aggrivating waiting for it to pop up when they press ctrl or alt.

A UI that has a pile of crap on the screen and doesn't let you move/get rid of it is bad. A UI where everything is moveable and you can choose what to have displayed or not displayed is good. FFXIV's UI really is pretty decent. the 2.0 version seems a bit cluttered (Mainly the "micro" menu having 5 times as many buttons as it used to), but we already have the power to show/hide certain things and EVERYTHING is moveable and much of it is customizable to your individual tastes, and that's not likely to go away when 2.0 launches.

Aside from all of this, In XI UI scripting will finally become a reality, and if there's anything people don't like about the UI improvements, you can bet that someone will make a UI mod to put it back the way it was before- And this time, you won't have to worry about it being an illicit 3rd party program, as this feature is being specifically allowed by SE.

Once you can move one things everything else get's movable as well. Then when you have the ability to move stuff around developers add new windows that are similarly movable.

I don't get what you're saying here. It sounds like a complaint, but this is a good thing.

In FFXIV, the seocnd chat window is totally optional- you can turn it off and it doesnt exist. You also have the option of using tabs instead (Similar to what XI gives you when you fullscreen the chat log). Literally every single piece of the UI is moveable (the sole exception being the NPC dialogue box at the moment) and if you don't want to see something, it can generally either be turned off at best or shoved off the screen at worst. I'm not sure why you'd complain about being given options and customizability. It seems like you'll be happy to know you can only have one UI window open at a time in XIV, in most cases. XIV's UI really isn't overwhelming at all.

lowest possible resolution in XIV is 1024x768

Nearly every modern monitor and the majority of monitors made in like the last 5-10 years support 1280x1024, so I don't really see this as much of an issue.