6 ms·

Obviously I like the idea of a Portal 3. But I am afraid that they will make it controller-friendly to the detriment of keyboard/mouse controls so they can sell

by qtzfz 3y ago

Obviously I like the idea of a Portal 3. But I am afraid that they will make it controller-friendly to the detriment of keyboard/mouse controls so they can sell Decks or VR-only so they can sell their Index headsets like they did with Alyx.

rekoil 3y ago
Uh, it's not like Portal has a lot of inputs, it's basically just movement, jumping, looking around, interaction, and left/right portal. Why would it being controller-friendly be a problem for MnK players?
- deadly_syn 3y ago
  Controller-centric UI design usually translates terribly backwards to mouse and keyboard inputs. You have more button inputs on a keyboard but only 1 "analog stick" to manipulate 3d space in the form of the mouse. On top of that because of the limited inputs of the controller menus are extremely terse to navigate. But it must be a cardinal sin at gamedev school to do anything other than the following. A: Force console users to use a half thought out clunky pc interface Or B: Force PC users to go through a labrynth of ini files and menus because "well all the other platforms you can only adjust gamma and contrast so thats all were giving you in the options" Both suck, its an unsexy problem nobody wants to invest time into fixing, but will have a huge ROI in terms of expierence and potentially a first mover advantage in terms of licensing out a viable pattern to major studios.
  - rekoil 3y ago
    Sounds to me like you're comparing apples to oranges. Input method has nothing to do with why console games only allow adjusting gamma and contrast, that's because on a console the game is already optimised for the exact hardware as it only runs on one type of hardware, so you get almost no options because none are needed beyond things like whether or not you prefer motion blur, etc. But my argument was that in the actual game Portal not many inputs are even needed, which you didn't even respond to... The one thing that differs in the "analog stick" argument between controller and mouse is that the mouse offers much more flexible movement than the controller. You can only angle the controller at most 30° and that's it, while you can throw your mouse across your desk if you want to. This I could accept does theoretically limit design a little bit if you are aiming for an enjoyable controller experience in a fast-paced game where you're utilising all 3 axes in movement. But Portal is not a fast-paced game so that doesn't really apply...
    - deadly_syn 3y ago
      I guess im talking about ux just as much as gameplay, it isnt that these are the only 2 possibilities its just those are the most common outcomes you see. The gamma and contrast comment was specifically because it hinges on what im pointing to, that limit isnt on pc but the extra graphics options are not available through the in game interfaces because there is little incenive to provide the extra sliders to the crowd that can make sue of them. Apologies if you feel i misrepresented your argument, or hijacked the orivinal thesis. Perhaps the term that would be better for what im describing is console-centric game and ux design? Its basically the windows8 problem all over again.

by qtzfz 3y ago

rekoil 3y ago

Uh, it's not like Portal has a lot of inputs, it's basically just movement, jumping, looking around, interaction, and left/right portal. Why would it being controller-friendly be a problem for MnK players?

deadly_syn 3y ago
Controller-centric UI design usually translates terribly backwards to mouse and keyboard inputs. You have more button inputs on a keyboard but only 1 "analog stick" to manipulate 3d space in the form of the mouse. On top of that because of the limited inputs of the controller menus are extremely terse to navigate. But it must be a cardinal sin at gamedev school to do anything other than the following. A: Force console users to use a half thought out clunky pc interface Or B: Force PC users to go through a labrynth of ini files and menus because "well all the other platforms you can only adjust gamma and contrast so thats all were giving you in the options" Both suck, its an unsexy problem nobody wants to invest time into fixing, but will have a huge ROI in terms of expierence and potentially a first mover advantage in terms of licensing out a viable pattern to major studios.
- rekoil 3y ago
  Sounds to me like you're comparing apples to oranges. Input method has nothing to do with why console games only allow adjusting gamma and contrast, that's because on a console the game is already optimised for the exact hardware as it only runs on one type of hardware, so you get almost no options because none are needed beyond things like whether or not you prefer motion blur, etc. But my argument was that in the actual game Portal not many inputs are even needed, which you didn't even respond to... The one thing that differs in the "analog stick" argument between controller and mouse is that the mouse offers much more flexible movement than the controller. You can only angle the controller at most 30° and that's it, while you can throw your mouse across your desk if you want to. This I could accept does theoretically limit design a little bit if you are aiming for an enjoyable controller experience in a fast-paced game where you're utilising all 3 axes in movement. But Portal is not a fast-paced game so that doesn't really apply...
  - deadly_syn 3y ago
    I guess im talking about ux just as much as gameplay, it isnt that these are the only 2 possibilities its just those are the most common outcomes you see. The gamma and contrast comment was specifically because it hinges on what im pointing to, that limit isnt on pc but the extra graphics options are not available through the in game interfaces because there is little incenive to provide the extra sliders to the crowd that can make sue of them. Apologies if you feel i misrepresented your argument, or hijacked the orivinal thesis. Perhaps the term that would be better for what im describing is console-centric game and ux design? Its basically the windows8 problem all over again.