My control scheme idea. All modes done! Everything finalised!

Here's how I think we should control our creatures. All modes done.

Org Mode
Move: Point & Click / Arrow Keys
Move Camera: Hold down Middle Scroll Wheel
Rotate Camera: < & > Keys
Interact with Organisms: (Similar to Sims Interaction method, except we'll differ just so as to not think we're copying)
Click, opens up an options menu of available things to do.
Click on option to performe interaction.
Interact with (objects, earth, etc.):
Click, opens up an options menu of available things to do.
Click on option to performe interaction.


Move:

Anywhere in QI is turning your creature up and to the right, QIIis up and to the left, QIII is down and to the left, QIV is down and to the right.

- If you click and hold anywhere, you will begin to accelerate forward.
- You can drag while clicking to change direction while accelerating.
- If you release the mouse button, you will continue to cruise at the same speed you left off at.
- To slow down gradually, you can click once and your creature will be carried forward only by momentum.
- To stop abruptly, right click.

Now with keyboard as well:

Instead of clicking to accelerate, use W and you will accelerate in the direction of your mouse. You will cruise when you let go of W, stop abruptly when you hit S, let momentum take hold when you press W again.

You can use A&D for right and left as well, plus E&C for up and down, so you are free to click, maintain one speed, and just cruise around while click-examining things around you.

*Note: Clicking on a clickable object will not affect movement.

Strat. Mode
Move: Point and Click faction / Arrow Keys
Move Camera: Hold down Middle Scroll Wheel
Rotate Camera: < & > Keys
To select all units of same type: Double click desired unit
To select a bunch of units: Hold & Drag to create a box then drag around desired units.
Interact with (anything):
Click, opens up an options menu of available things to do.
Click on option to performe interaction.


God Tools
Move Camera: Hold down Middle Scroll Wheel / Arrow Keys
Rotate Camera: < & > Keys


Note on Combat: The list of interactive options when fighting will obviously prove to be slow. to solve this you are able to hotkey these attack methods.

Why not just use the arrow keys in organism mode also? And what about jumping, flying, spitting, stinging, clawing, biting, etc.?

I like the controls so far..... but idk about the aquatic movement. We could try maybe using the mouse for interactions like the sims, hold down the left mouse button to swim in certain directions, and use the arrow keys for the y and x axis.
Just a thought.

I was under the impression that we would control movement on any organism using the arrow keys, and just clicking on objects to interact with them...

If you're talking about the click interaction in Org Mode, then maybe you should link to a thread about it? Like the one right underneath this thread...

I think WASD is the most ergonomic control scheme, E&C could control movement on the Y axis.

~sciocont wrote:

I think WASD is the most ergonomic control scheme, E&C could control movement on the Y axis.

That's what I was saying. However, I think we should allow for click-action movement as well, like they did in Spore.

InvaderZim wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

I think WASD is the most ergonomic control scheme, E&C could control movement on the Y axis.

That's what I was saying. However, I think we should allow for click-action movement as well, like they did in Spore.

I think both would be best. Considering that we are having click-interaction, click-movement only makes sense.

US_of_Alaska wrote:

InvaderZim wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

I think WASD is the most ergonomic control scheme, E&C could control movement on the Y axis.

That's what I was saying. However, I think we should allow for click-action movement as well, like they did in Spore.

I think both would be best. Considering that we are having click-interaction, click-movement only makes sense.

Agreed.

As I said, my proposed Aquatic navigation method is only experimental. I'd like to hear from others.

Also, any alrenate action (spitting, climbing, jumping) would pop up on the appropriate item you click (eg. [Creature] -> [Click] -> Hostile: Bite).

Arrow key navigation is also possible.

Don't forget the almighty drag selection box in Strategy Mode Controls.

These seem pretty good, but i'd suggest that you use the scroll button-click for rotating the camera, and a click drag for panning the view instead of what you currently have.

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

That sounds pretty good in my opinion.

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

But how to interact when the mouse is busy?

I had to make this text small. The original size devoured the whole page.

While this scheme may be fit for everyday actions that are not too fast-paced, when you do get to fast-paced and intricate options, like combat, swinging through trees, or quickly navigating obstacles, how will we do it and make it look good? And when I mean good, I mean you should have a level of control over how you move. There should be a button for grabbing the nearest grabbable object with feet or hands at the end of your limbs fit to grab things, one key for each hand, symmetric or asymmetric. If the object can come off of the surface it's resting on (like a ball on a desk) your organism will simply pick it up (this can also be done via click-action but pressing a key is the fastest way, really), but if it can't, your organism will hang onto it until it breaks, (and, with the help of physics and momentum swing back and forth if it was rushing towards it earlier, thus allowing for flashy stunts) until you press that key again. And if it's higher than your waist-line or (and when the momentum of swinging back and forth has died down somewhat), your organism will pull itself towards that object (like monkey bars) and if it can, get on top of it (like almost falling off a ledge), possibly for dear life, but only if it has sufficient energy or hasn't been hanging for long. The creature's weight and strength also comes into play here, if it can be possibly programmed.


The process behind the whole hanging thing might go along the lines of this--

Energy low? >
If yes > let go of object
If no > use other hands if available >

Other hands? >
If yes > use other hands in addition to continue holding on until energy is low/object breaks
If no > hold on until energy is low

So basically I'm suggesting having more key-pressing take the place of click-action. The only problem I see here is that if you have a lot of hands, you'll have a lot of keys, pherhaps exceeding the amount of keys on your keyboard (millipede with hands for legs). Perhaps we should organise it in pairs rather than individual hands, or pherhaps pressing that key could only make the limb with the hand on it closest to the object you want to grab which is the object you'll be facing via camera rotation grab that object.

But what if you can't move the camera fast enough? Hm...maybe we should just stick with the individual hands idea. I mean, won't everything else be mostly click-action?

Then again you'll have to memorize every key for every hand. Maybe just the facing-the-object idea. Or maybe just click action...oh dear. I'm stuck.

US_of_Alaska wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

But how to interact when the mouse is busy?

When you release, you keep th same motion you had before- you neither accelerate nor decelerate.

~sciocont wrote:

US_of_Alaska wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

But how to interact when the mouse is busy?

When you release, you keep th same motion you had before- you neither accelerate nor decelerate.

Unless you go up and down.

Also, comments on my suggestion of grabbing things via hotkeys? I may improve it later on.

It sounds awesome, noit! It's a really great way to do things like climbing quickly and easily.

We also need flying navigation.

DragonEye4 wrote:

We also need flying navigation.

Probably the same as aquatic navigation.

InvaderZim wrote:

DragonEye4 wrote:

We also need flying navigation.

Probably the same as aquatic navigation.

The way I imagine it, it can be pretty simple.

Just press forward (the UP directional key or W) while dragging the camera around via right-mouse button (not everyone has a scroll-wheel) OR scroll-wheel. Your character should fly or swim in the direction of the camera even as it is being rotated, and thus be able to navigate in all dimensions. In other words its back will be turned to you until you begin navigating on the ground, if you can. This makes air antics such as front and backflips and nose-dives (dangerous!) easy, especially if the gravity on your planet is low. This might also apply to aerial devices such as planes, roflcopters, or kites.

The other directional keys, and A, S and D would become pretty much defunct with this method.

The other method is have some key (possibly SPACE) allow you to accelerate and have the other directional keys make you move (the keys can be inverted here via menu- UP goes down, DOWN goes up), but I've experienced this method in other games (I.E. battlefield heroes) and it's actually pretty hard. I've crashed into the ground several times. Personally I'd opt for the first method.

InvaderZim wrote:

DragonEye4 wrote:

We also need flying navigation.

Probably the same as aquatic navigation.

Read my post again. It says flying and vehicles are included.

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

I like this! (If I understood it)
I'm gonna post what I iterpreted from it.

You have your computer screen:




Now you won't see those lines, but this is just to give a sense of simplicity

When you click in any of these directions your organism will move that way.
To go say, to the distance, you click more towrds the centre.
To just go out directly in-line with your organism you click farther out.
Centre = To the horizon
Out on side of screen = Out right in line with your organism.
Now, unlike scio's idea. When you press the forward arrow key, you accelarate.
To go backwards you hold the back arrow key and turn around the direction.

EG; (1)
I see a creature in the far distance slighty to the north-east of me.
I'd click the start of the green line.

EG; (2)
I see a creature that's directly to the west of me.
I'd click the end of the darker blue line.

Seem good?

YourBreakfast wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

For 3d movement (aquatic, flight, or in vehicle allowing for 3d motion):

The mouse pointer will become a sort of reticle, like that of a shooter. When you want to move you click. If it's in the center of the screen, you will go forward, and if you hold your clock you will be accelerating until you hit top speed. If you click off center, you will turn up/down/right/left in the direction of the click. When you want to slow down, you use the right mouse button.

You can also use WASD for right left, forward backward, plus EC for up and down.

I like this! (If I understood it)
I'm gonna post what I iterpreted from it.

You have your computer screen:




Now you won't see those lines, but this is just to give a sense of simplicity

When you click in any of these directions your organism will move that way.
To go say, to the distance, you click more towrds the centre.
To just go out directly in-line with your organism you click farther out.
Centre = To the horizon
Out on side of screen = Out right in line with your organism.
Now, unlike scio's idea. When you press the forward arrow key, you accelarate.
To go backwards you hold the back arrow key and turn around the direction.

EG; (1)
I see a creature in the far distance slighty to the north-east of me.
I'd click the start of the green line.

EG; (2)
I see a creature that's directly to the west of me.
I'd click the end of the darker blue line.

Seem good?

Uh...

It seems good but I really don't want to have to click all the time to navigate through an obstacle course. I can't quite put my finger on the best example of problems that could occur here, and I don't mean to say that I hate this idea but I personally think my idea is better. Movement would not only be smoother but think of this; when driving, you use a steering wheel to navigate, rather than pressing on a screen to point out where you want to go.

However our ideas are somewhat alike; they make use of both the mouse, and the keyboard. Only difference is yours is click-action and mine is click-and-drag.