Improvement: Optics Preview and Specs for the Weapon Selection Screen

[Erendil]

Summary:

In the Optics Tab on the Weapon Selection screen I propose adding a Sight Preview Window and Sight Specifications Table to the screen once you click on a set of optics from the list.



Description:

The idea behind this is pretty simple. Right now when you're browsing through the different scopes, you get a small tooltip that briefly describes the capabilities of the scope in question (power, night vision, FoV etc) and you also get to see what the scope looks like when attached to your weapon.

Here's an example of the Optics selection screen for a VS Infiltrator:




In the screen you can see that the player is looking at a fairly powerful scope (7x) and you get to see what it looks like mounted on the weapon.

However, although the information provided is useful to him, it is not very specific and doesn't contain a whole lot of information. In addition, he has no idea what it is like to actually look down the scope until he attaches it, respawns, and actually uses it in-game. And perhaps even more importantly, he has no easy way to directly compare the capabilities of all the different sets of optics that are available for that weapon.


With that in mind, here's an example of the same Optics selection screen, but with additional information added for the scope in question when you click on it:



I have made four modifications to the original screen:

1. The picture of the weapon becomes smaller and moves up away from the center so it is no longer a primary focus on the screen.
2. A new preview window is added in the center, which contains an example screenshot of a player actually aiming down the sight in-game.
3. The statistics of the weapon itself are moved from the upper-right corner down to the space underneath the weapon tab, so it's still visible but no longer a primary focus of the screen.
4. A new "Sight Specification Table" appears in the old weapon stats location, which contains specific quantitative data on the selected optics.

Benefit:

The preview window I suggest will give you whole bunch of useful information with a single click:

• Sight magnification, if any
• Field of View width at 100m
• How much of the screen is taken up by the "sighted" portion
• What style of crosshairs you have
• If it has any sort of night vision capabilities
• What it actually looks like to use it in-game
• If the style of the reticle is useful to you and to your liking
• How much if the screen may be blocked by the sight's border, casing, etc and thus how much of your FoV may be blocked
• How its specs, style and utility directly compares to all of the other sights available by quickly clicking back and forth between the different sights

So what do you all think? Thoughts? Suggestions?

[Gonefshn]

Can't argue it's an improvement but it seems unnecessary to me. Wouldn't argue or complain if it's added though.

[Dagron]

Good idea, but that would be kind of unnecessary if the VR room lets you try stuff before you buy it. Getting to use it so you can see and feel how it really works in game is better than just seeing a picture of how it would be.

[Erendil]

Originally Posted by Dagron

Good idea, but that would be kind of unnecessary if the VR room lets you try stuff before you buy it. Getting to use it so you can see and feel how it really works in game is better than just seeing a picture of how it would be.

Last I heard there wasn't going to be a VR room. Has this changed recently? I must admit I haven't been religiously following PS2 since shortly after GDC.

[Elays]

Originally Posted by Erendil

Last I heard there wasn't going to be a VR room. Has this changed recently? I must admit I haven't been religiously following PS2 since shortly after GDC.

There is, as yet, no plan for the VR room. That being said, it is one of the most widely-endorsed player-base requests out there, so its inclusion seems somewhat likely at some point. And if it were indeed to be included, then this idea would be redundant. Not that it's a bad idea on its own merits, mind you, I just think VR Room would give that necessary familiarization in a better fashion.

[Erendil]

Originally Posted by Elays

There is, as yet, no plan for the VR room. That being said, it is one of the most widely-endorsed player-base requests out there, so its inclusion seems somewhat likely at some point. And if it were indeed to be included, then this idea would be redundant. Not that it's a bad idea on its own merits, mind you, I just think VR Room would give that necessary familiarization in a better fashion.

VR room would let you see things in a different - not necessarily better - fashion. TBH I think the two concepts serve somewhat different purposes and would compliment each other pretty well. Ideally I'd like to see both implemented.

VR would certainly give you the ability to test things out much more thoroughly. However, it would require that you leave the battlefield and spend more time away from the action doing said testing. A preview window OTOH could be done at any equipment term or respawn screen, so it would be faster and more convenient since it doesn't take you out of the action for those times when a fast acquisition is preferable to a thoroughly research one.

And it doesn't need to be limited to just optics. It could also be applied to other weapon mods, like the affect a foregrip would have on your crosshair, how much quieter having a suppressor would be, etc. It could even be used for different vehicle mods.

I'm also guessing it'd be much faster and easier for the Devs to code in than a VR environment would be.

[fb III IX ca IV]

I like having both of them. The training map in Tribes: Ascend was useful for trying out weapons, I would like to see this apply not just to scopes, but to everything.