Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

Nou · 2015-09-28 20:22:15

*EDIT*

After reading the thread and collecting feedback I think I've come up with the ideal compromise:

http://i.imgur.com/tWs6aZD.png (too large to fit here so click it).

The designs aren't final, I'm just looking for more feedback.

- You get to choose your own style: Classic, Compact, or Ultra Compact.

- Each style gets the additional features.

- One-ways will be moved to the Action tab.

Initially I liked the sidebar design, but considering its lack of futureproofing, I decided against it.

Two questions:

1: What do you guys think if the proposed designs/features?
2: For the custom tab (not yet in preview), how should you get blocks to the custom tab, making it as user-friendly as possible?

With an overwhelming amount of blocks available and a relatively small screen, I'm sure you've noticed the block bar is becoming an issue. In fact, it even covers your smiley right now:
We want to improve the ease of use and keep it organized, so the block bar (and quick bar) need a redesign. To be clear:
This is the quick bar:
This is the block bar:

We would like you guys to come up with some designs, provide feedback, provide feedback to each other, so we can solve this together.
We love the idea of saving the quick bar or a custom tab (a popular request), but just that won't cut it.
So present us with your ideas, go wild, think out of the box (you don't need to stick to the current design).
We've come up with some things of our own, but we feel it could be done much better. Here's what we came up with for feedback and inspiration:

Different pages per category:

Different pages per category: style 2

Different pages per category: style 3

Different pages per category: style 4

U-shape block bar popping out:

Priddle, Thanel, azert, The Living SticK, shadowda, Weirdoverse, Fastmapler, Arber, madiik, Jedpogi, Zumza, Fradeshan, Bobithan, Xfrogman43, Onjit, Pingohits, Anch, Badoosh, Stubby, tak4n, ttskate53, Insanity, Prodigy, Swarth100, Schlog, AlphaJon, SilverStar, Krosis, MikeK, oranj, Gosha, Br0k3n, SirJosh3917, Falk, Era, AmdS, W24

capasha · 2015-09-28 20:29:24

I like style 2 more. Style 3 and 4 just take up space. And the last. I don't even...

SirJosh3917, SilverStar, Different55, iPwner, Null, Pingohits, Jesse, Minimania, MikeK

Anak · 2015-09-28 20:30:58

U-bar is a bit weird, but maybe if there was a sidebar with blocks going downwards that might work better. (Block bar transparency wouldn't be too bad either)

KingFudge, W24, Krosis

Schlog · 2015-09-28 20:32:23

I think style 1 would be the best. 2 would be fine, 3 and 4 could be a tiny bit irritating, and 5 incredibly confusing.

EDIT: I thought I'd make a strawpoll for this: http://strawpoll.me/5605425

SilverStar

W24 · 2015-09-28 20:33:34

I like style 1 & 2 the best.

lrussell

Krosis · 2015-09-28 20:35:34

i personally like the style 3, one of the factors is because it's better to see, and new players maybe not see it if it was style 1, and i think it's better for people who memorize wheres the blocks they use most, than the style 2, and to know prescisly in wich tab you are
the u-shaped one i didn't like much, mainly because theres not many space for the blocks, but it could be a option on the settings
i was thinking about this some weeks ago

iPwner

Anch · 2015-09-28 20:36:18

Nou wrote:

think out of the box

Was that supposed to be a pun?

Anyway I like the tab pages idea and the custom tab idea.

Thomas · 2015-09-28 20:45:02

A option to hide certain block packs. When you click on the title of a block pack, the blocks dissappear but the name remains. If you click on it again, the blocks come back. I can imagine that a lot of players don't use all their blocks, and maybe only 3 block packs regulary. If you can hide block packs, you hide everything you don't need at the time and only have to search through a few packs.

You could also make the fog and cloud decorations like the scifi decorations. Instead of having 4 tiles for the same block, make it 1, and make it rotate if you klick multiple times on it.

Koto, W24, Krosis, SilverStar, Aoitenshi, Zoey2070, Bobithan, Xfrogman43

Fastmapler · 2015-09-28 20:49:58

I perfer number 3 since the buttons are easy to hit and new players will understand what the tabs do quicker than if they were just small little arrows.

I also recommend turning this into a strawpoll and share it around everybody edits.

Different55, Krosis

some woman · 2015-09-28 20:52:29

maybe just add a scrollbar?

BuzzerBee

Anak · 2015-09-28 20:55:18

Tomkazaz wrote:

No pages please, we want to speed things up, not slow them down.
Also, the U-shape bar shows an incorrect rotation of the blocks. No thanks.
Seriously, are you trying to attract player or scare them away with those complex ideas? Everything you want is right here, and it has already gained enough support.

Oh gosh golly! How will a new player like me ever navigate two pages? I will never play again!!

Xfrogman43, Null, BuzzerBee, Anch, Krosis, Schlog

blizzard · 2015-09-28 20:56:33

Liking #3 the most

iPwner

Nou · 2015-09-28 21:00:48

I'd like to emphasize, we'd also love to see your designs, so post them here!

Tomkazaz wrote:

No pages please, we want to speed things up, not slow them down.
Also, the U-shape bar shows an incorrect rotation of the blocks. No thanks.
Seriously, are you trying to attract player or scare them away with those complex ideas? Everything you want is right here, and it has already gained enough support.

First line is good feedback.

About the U-shape: it's a bad design I made in paint, as I said it's for inspiration of how crazy you can go.

Going fullscreen like that won't do, the game screen needs to be the same, for performance issues, general feel of the game, and the way many levels have been designed. Plus not everyone plays full screen.

Zoey2070 · 2015-09-28 21:17:43

personally, i like 1 and also the u-shaped one (except not the sideways thing, just have them be vertical), because it vaguely reminds me of WoW. i think like 2-3 lines of blocks on the bottom and then a few going sideways would be good.

(also what if you assigned like, keywords to each block, like "blue" or "mineral" etc and then had a search bar and then the block bar showed the results)'

edit: and for the least efficient, and also least space, just have each individual block pack on a page

or getting rid of the package names could help, but have like a setting for it.

Onjit

Napakeun · 2015-09-28 21:19:23

For now it would be good if admins fix the fullscreen feature: don't zoom in but let players have wider field of view.

That would fix the problem with block bar taking over half the screen.
But it wouldn't fix the organization of block bar, it would still be a mess, hard to find what u look for.

Still, that would make some progress...

Edit: oh and if I vote for different pages for catagory: Style 3

Muftwin · 2015-09-28 21:25:24

get rid of the titles of the packs

maybe even sort them by color instead of pack

vous · 2015-09-28 21:27:22

I suggest you choose style 1, but make it horizontally scrollable (=scrolling vertically on your mouse, but the pages switch horizontally). That would be pretty fast, in my opinion, and would not require extra mouse movement — moving mouse just to choose a different page takes too much time for lazy people like us

Zoey2070

Anch · 2015-09-28 21:28:03

Muftwin wrote:

maybe even sort them by color instead of pack

But there is still the same number of blocks. Unless you would want to remove the titles here too.

Pingohits · 2015-09-28 21:35:21

i like style 3 better, since it's an easier reach

you won't have to move all the way to the sides just to go to another page

Nou · 2015-09-28 21:45:30

vous wrote:

I suggest you choose style 1, but make it horizontally scrollable (=scrolling vertically on your mouse, but the pages switch horizontally). That would be pretty fast, in my opinion, and would not require extra mouse movement — moving mouse just to choose a different page takes too much time for lazy people like us

Mouse scrolling using the scroll button would be an issue for Kongregate users, keep them in mind too.

Xfrogman43

vous · 2015-09-28 21:51:14

Is that the scroll bar just not fitting in? I guess we can use a horizontal one then, or not use any at all.

Creature · 2015-09-28 21:54:53

Style 1: I already find the settings annoying with these arrows, please, not block bar.
Style 2: Well, maybe, but it's a bit confuse.
Style 3: I liked this more.
Style 4: I find the above more organized.
Style 5: Oh god, what you've done?

Nou · 2015-09-28 22:03:17

vous wrote:

Is that the scroll bar just not fitting in? I guess we can use a horizontal one then, or not use any at all.

No I mean using the scroll wheel on your physical mouse. Scroll bars can be done of course.

Evilbunny · 2015-09-28 22:31:40

Have an option in the lobby to set how high you want it to go.
Have ~5 options where the bar is just scaled down.

Anak · 2015-09-28 22:40:13

I couldn't be bothered to finish it but you get the point? I didn't include block names to conserve space, I suppose that could be an option but idk.
Basically blocks cascade downwards by the side, and there probably won't be enough room on that one side, so there could be a scrollbar on the side, or pages.
Whichever category you choose, it will turn yellow and go to the top (like Blocks)
When you open the block menu by clicking more, if possible, there could be a fun little animation where the sidebar bounces up from the bottom

Onjit, Anch, Zumza, Thanel, Nou, Falk, The Party Animal, Prodigy, Swarth100, Bobithan, Zoey2070, STD

Official Everybody Edits Forums

#1 2015-09-28 20:22:15, last edited by Nou (2015-10-28 23:49:15)

Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#2 2015-09-28 20:29:24

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#3 2015-09-28 20:30:58

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#4 2015-09-28 20:32:23, last edited by Schlog (2015-09-28 20:45:47)

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#5 2015-09-28 20:33:34

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#6 2015-09-28 20:35:34, last edited by Krosis (2015-09-28 20:39:11)

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#7 2015-09-28 20:36:18

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#8 2015-09-28 20:45:02, last edited by Thomas (2015-09-30 14:50:56)

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#9 2015-09-28 20:49:58

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#10 2015-09-28 20:52:29

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#11 2015-09-28 20:55:18

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#12 2015-09-28 20:56:33

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#13 2015-09-28 21:00:48

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#14 2015-09-28 21:17:43, last edited by Zoey2070 (2015-09-28 21:29:14)

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#15 2015-09-28 21:19:23, last edited by Napakeun (2015-09-28 21:25:27)

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#16 2015-09-28 21:25:24

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#17 2015-09-28 21:27:22

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#18 2015-09-28 21:28:03

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#19 2015-09-28 21:35:21

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#20 2015-09-28 21:45:30

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#21 2015-09-28 21:51:14

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#22 2015-09-28 21:54:53, last edited by Creature (2015-09-28 21:55:56)

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#23 2015-09-28 22:03:17

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#24 2015-09-28 22:31:40

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

#25 2015-09-28 22:40:13, last edited by Anak (2016-06-14 23:35:34)

Re: Feedback and brainstorming: The Block Bar

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