3d battlefield and the road ahead!

[thendless]

I'm glad the layout is being redone but what's its priority in the myriad of things that have been previously announced and are yet to be delivered? With so much being constantly delayed, is it wise to focus your attention in yet another feature?

As far as my needs are concerned a simple choice of different backgrounds would suffice.

[Shadow Mann]

I'm glad the layout is being redone but what's its priority in the myriad of things that have been previously announced and are yet to be delivered? With so much being constantly delayed, is it wise to focus your attention in yet another feature?

As far as my needs are concerned a simple choice of different backgrounds would suffice.

hmmm...DP playmats we are still waiting on would give you those different backgrounds...but not sure when/if those will ever arrive.

[highmystica]

So thankful you decided to ditch the Hearthstone look. I see very little wrong with updating the look and UI, however the greatest strength this game has is we can play it on our phones so regardless of all other changes it needs to be designed with maximizing the space onscreen. As it is now there is something to be said for the elegance of simplicity. Also if I can't show of my sleeves I will want a refund of the SC spent on them.

I played Hearthstone for a few days because of a silly facebook add and was getting bored with dark prophecies. What I got from it is it's bright, friendly and inviting to play with its cute little toys you can play with and the well done voice overs. HOWEVER, it is a childish game with a really 2-dimensional strategy. I found it painfully easy to beat the other players. I am thinking though that most of them were six-year-olds which explains its crazy silly game board. Its not a game, its a graphical toy. Yeah I would recommend it for certain people who wanted to get into digital trading card games, but only on the condition they were 10 and younger. As an adult I find it terribly tacky. Besides, I don't want to play a game were I win most of the time ... again that makes me feel like I was beating up on children. Not a happy feeling. Also, in terms of design it can get away with things that are simply put impossible for Shadow Era to implement. It is a game designed for children to play on a PC so it can get away with all the wasted space. Everybody I know who plays Shadow Era are adults who tend to play it on their phones. Actually, of all my friends I alone play it also on my PC, mostly while I'm watching Netflix, and a little more so lately because after the last few updates it has become a huge battery hog on my phone.

The screenshots of MtG in my opinion would offer a better starting point. They are slick, elegant and maximize available space. Yet I'm not sure how they really help with 2 vs 2 play. Save the cutesy stuff for Phantom Spirit Battle Academy.

[thendless]

Besides, I don't want to play a game were I win most of the time ...

You should start a Twitch stream, to teach everybody to be as good as you. What rank did you achieved before getting bored?

[Airact]

The screenshots of MtG in my opinion would offer a better starting point. They are slick, elegant and maximize available space. Yet I'm not sure how they really help with 2 vs 2 play. Save the cutesy stuff for Phantom Spirit Battle Academy.

MtGO is pretty far behind as far as aesthetics are concerned. The interface isn't exactly friendly and while that interface does consider anything and everything, it's clunky.

The current beta client does make the game a bit prettier, the interface is still in progress. It's really hard to get rid of the clunkiness when you have to be so precise with your action so that will probably not change for a while.

[deathintheflesh]

Looks good but a bit much. I hope definitely pretty but too much. Needs sized down and more room for cards. I hate how the hero and items are in this boxes. I think you should keep the card lay out as is and make minimum changes working around it. 3d art is and Bord is not as important as card lay out. I really hate were the cards are played out. I feel closterphobic looking at it. If this how it ends up I'll be done with se. Look at mgic 14, you don't need to get this crazy. Not ranting in you all work hard and did a great job its just too much. I haven't hardly played since seeing this. I feel almost like I'm wasting time knowing the near future I will hate playing BC that Bord.
Edit: sorry for all that. I just seen kyles comment saying things have already been changed. Can't wait to see the next idea

[Nanock]

Glad to see a lot of good discussion and debate. Knowing how busy game devs can be, it's always a big plus if they can take the time to read and respond to concerns, feedback and love for their game.

A lot has been covered, but I want to start by saying that I myself have only started playing in the last 3 months or so. I am a long time veteran of CCGs from my youth, playing games like MtG, Overpower, ect. If that puts me in the target audience for bringing in 'new players', I'm happy to post my thoughts on the new UI.

What attracted me to the game was it gave me a very strong feeling of playing a table-top card game, and the free-to-play model that doesn't make it impossible to field a competitive deck. I've stayed because the strategy and deck design parts of the game are quite good, and it's fun to play.

To Kyle's first point though, while it is well laid-out, the UI itself looks a bit old. The low res backgrounds don't bring much to the game, but they aren't a distraction (which is also good). I agree that it's important to update the UI so it matches up with contemporary games, or new players will assume an 'old looking game' is simply not one that people play.

So, here are my thoughts and feedback:

1. Making the game as 'new player' friendly as possible. Someone here posted the idea of using markers on the cards for the common abilities. A persistent SFX might be a great way to show what the card does without changing much about the card itself. Cards with Protector could have an iron-cast border, Ambush could add a Camo effect, Steadfast could be a glowing ring. The SFX would not have to change the cards look, but simply be a thin border around the edge. Hidden is perfect like it is now, and more SFX like that would be great.

2. As others have pointed out, we really hope to maintain the playability of SE on mid-range mobile phones. Touch sensitivity makes the 'hover over' ability near worthless to me on the phone. I like the current ability to click on a card, then file through the attachments on that card one by one. I enjoy playing best on my PC with a mouse and using the hover over, but still like playing on my phone during work breaks.

3. The artwork on the cards is excellent in almost all cases, and remains a plus for the game. Having the cards stay large and the artwork visible is a big way to make it easier for player to understand the game as they learn what cards are and what they do. I won't plead for the SF artwork, I know you guys are working on it, but it does highlight just how much regular players rely on seeing the artwork and knowing a card by that alone. On phones, it's even more important with the small screen.

Thank you for your continued efforts, and I hope the new UI is right on the money for making both veterans of the game and newer players happy.

[Padawan Pete]

Ok so it looks like we are in the right direction now?

[highmystica]

Lol, I am not going to make a video to teach people how to win at hearthstone, besides I uninstalled it.

[Saf]

I really don't get all the comparison to Hearthstone it is SE but worse? The art is lackluster, the gameplay basic and the overall feel dull. I need to try Magic though there was a free version hosted by Sony but that got taken down any other methods? (mods this is not a warez request)