HUD Modification for attacks?


Skuopbahdwoop

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I thought about this when I got surprised attacked by my 5th wolf of the day. Could there be a visual HUD indicator when a wolf/other dangerous animal makes a noise threateningly at you but it's not within your eyesight? I've messed around with volume variables but it can be difficult at times to focus/triangulate a wolf bark before I get knocked out. It could be something even just turned on or off like camera movement in the accessibility options. It wouldn't need to be overpowered, either- just a visual hud on the screen that something dangerous is around you so you have to find it, like when you're on a steep incline and it warns you you're at risk for spraining; or the weak ice warning. 

Just figured I'd throw this out there as food for thought! 

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1 hour ago, Skuopbahdwoop said:

I thought about this when I got surprised attacked by my 5th wolf of the day. Could there be a visual HUD indicator when a wolf/other dangerous animal makes a noise threateningly at you but it's not within your eyesight? I've messed around with volume variables but it can be difficult at times to focus/triangulate a wolf bark before I get knocked out. It could be something even just turned on or off like camera movement in the accessibility options. It wouldn't need to be overpowered, either- just a visual hud on the screen that something dangerous is around you so you have to find it, like when you're on a steep incline and it warns you you're at risk for spraining; or the weak ice warning. 

I'm a little unsure what you suggest so bare with me ☺️ Are you mainly concerned with accessibility, difficulty or both? 

If you suggest a visual cue for howls and growls: hopefully it will be introduced in the closed captions subtitles with future updates, as an option for those with impaired hearing. As for triangulation, panned sound and growl volume changes with changed distance would be a nice addition, but as they are now they're no good for triangulation.  

If you suggest that the HUD indicate hostile wildlife near you, even though they don't stalk you, it's more a matter of difficulty. Since wolves are our minor boss fights they should be demanding in my opinion. If we keep cutting corners a wolf or something nastier will jump us eventually, a warning would make that and other scenarios too easy. Also, I really like how the HUD is thoughtfully minimalistic and subtle. It's almost like you're wandering through a painting. 

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On 11/21/2020 at 5:03 PM, manolitode said:

I'm a little unsure what you suggest so bare with me ☺️ Are you mainly concerned with accessibility, difficulty or both? 

If you suggest a visual cue for howls and growls: hopefully it will be introduced in the closed captions subtitles with future updates, as an option for those with impaired hearing. As for triangulation, panned sound and growl volume changes with changed distance would be a nice addition, but as they are now they're no good for triangulation.  

If you suggest that the HUD indicate hostile wildlife near you, even though they don't stalk you, it's more a matter of difficulty. Since wolves are our minor boss fights they should be demanding in my opinion. If we keep cutting corners a wolf or something nastier will jump us eventually, a warning would make that and other scenarios too easy. Also, I really like how the HUD is thoughtfully minimalistic and subtle. It's almost like you're wandering through a painting. 

Oh no I totally agree! Wolf attacks are fun because you can't ever expect them, and it's always terrifying to just be wandering around the area, admiring the scenery, and then see a shadow on the hill below stop and look over at you. 

I meant something more along the lines of accessibility- sometimes with all of the different parts of a scene I can find it difficult to notice or hear where a wolf bark is coming from- like when the wolf is actively charging right towards you and escape is inevitable unless you know where it is. Having a simple HUD icon kind of like the sprain risk, that activates around the time someone should hear the wolf barking, is probably the best option; since if the icon appeared just whenever there was danger of a wolf attack, that would give people an unfair advantage in the game, and I'm not really about that. 

I agree about the HUD style, though- the Long Dark is so beautiful and too many notifications would get in the way of that. And your ideas about triangulation are neat! Kind of like proximity volume and stuff would be really cool for immersive purposes. 

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On 11/25/2020 at 5:26 PM, Skuopbahdwoop said:

Having a simple HUD icon kind of like the sprain risk, that activates around the time someone should hear the wolf barking, is probably the best option; since if the icon appeared just whenever there was danger of a wolf attack, that would give people an unfair advantage in the game, and I'm not really about that. 

So if a wolf growl (and I suppose if a bear yelp or a moose snort) you get a visual cue that provides only the information that there has been a sound effect from hostile wildlife but no clue as to its position. How do you think this would change the way you play the game? Would it become easier and would you be less attentive to sound? Again I think it's a very neat idea for accessibility reasons. I probably wouldn't use it myself (if it was optional) since listening for potential dangers is such a significant part of the experience. Though I'm curious what such a cue would look like if it was to translate the slight stress response you get from a wolf bark into something visual. 

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On 11/22/2020 at 12:39 AM, Skuopbahdwoop said:

I thought about this when I got surprised attacked by my 5th wolf of the day. Could there be a visual HUD indicator when a wolf/other dangerous animal makes a noise threateningly at you but it's not within your eyesight?

I mean, isn't that what the audio cues are for?
It almost sounds like the original poster would like a "Spidey Sense" to warn them of danger... and I really do not support that idea.
 

On 11/22/2020 at 3:33 AM, manolitode said:

hopefully it will be introduced in the closed captions subtitles...  ...as an option for those with impaired hearing.

This, I'm in support of (because accessibility options are  always good to have).


:coffee::fire: 
Generally speaking though, I've discussed this kind of thing a lot so I will echo some of what I've mentioned in other similar threads:

On 9/4/2020 at 10:23 PM, ManicManiac said:

I think the better solution is for players to pay attention to what they are doing.

I still don't think player behavior (or in this case player mistakes) should have to be fixed  by a developer. 
I'd say this is more of a player issue, not a game issue.

On 8/17/2020 at 11:37 PM, ManicManiac said:

However, my perspective is rooted in where setting one president can lead down a slippery slope.  I'm already disappointed we have the "are you sure you want to eat that" prompt...  In fact I kind of hate it, but I respect the decisions Hinterland makes for their game.

I think any amount of hand-holding in a game about survival, undermines the some of the fundamental challenges that are part of the heart of the game.

On 8/17/2020 at 11:37 PM, ManicManiac said:

I think this game should "punish" mistakes.  In a survival game like this, if a player is not paying attention or makes a mistake... we should have to live with the consequences of our actions.

This is a game where taking careful and deliberate action is important... and frankly I really want it to stay that way.

 

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On 11/27/2020 at 4:42 PM, ManicManiac said:

It almost sounds like the original poster would like a "Spidey Sense" to warn them of danger... and I really do not support that idea.

👇

On 11/25/2020 at 5:26 PM, Skuopbahdwoop said:

Having a simple HUD icon kind of like the sprain risk, that activates around the time someone should hear the wolf barking, is probably the best option; since if the icon appeared just whenever there was danger of a wolf attack, that would give people an unfair advantage in the game, and I'm not really about that. 

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

@ManicManiac howdy! Apologies for digging up something old, but I just wanted to clarify my thought process on the HUD notification.

first off, I’m the first to admit I’m not a good TLD player. The longest run I’ve had is 46 days on voyager and I’ve come close to dying due to my own lack of situational awareness many times before. However, I know that this is due to my own lack of understanding of the mechanics of the game, and I would never want to suggest an unfair advantage or “spidey sense,” as you put it, simply because I’m not good at basic wildlife encounters. 

my reasoning is similar to why auto walk or press and hold accessibility options exist- just because I’m able to triangulate sound cues or hear the wolf barks, does not mean other players who may struggle with that could. Having a HUD notification much more like the sprain risk or encumbered risk, at the same time a wolf would be making a sound cue, would balance the playing field for those who may not be able to triangulate/recognize that sound cue exists. And this isn’t a perfect concept; for example, would the HUD icon be spawning in a corner of the screen much like the sprain risk, or would it be in the direction of the wolf? Does it spawn whenever the wolf is stalking you, or only when it is close enough to start charging? It’s not an easy mechanic to implement, and it would need to be balanced heavily to make sure it wouldn’t give ppl an unfair advantage- much like how the press and hold button was thought out. 
 

apologies if this responds sounds rude or defensive, I’m genuinely not trying to sound that way- I just wanted to clarify my thought process, and agree with your point that accessibility is always a good thing to have in a game.

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