   Best User Interface ideas
  What are the best UI features and ideas out there?Looking for specific examples from gameplay.Any standout games that have re-designed or re-considered stock solutions like meters, maps or inventory in creative and useful ways?Which next-gen features (ex: UI-augmented scenes ala GRAW and GOW, picture-in-a-picture video console pop-ups) have the most potential, and which games have taken advantage of them best so far?Of those games that have innovated in this often overlooked area, which have the best, most fun and most useful overall UI design?-Larry   
  You should check out Doom 3's UI, which is very well done.   ;  In Delta Force, you had a small window that displayed yourself in either 1st/3rd person, the opposite of which you were in, in the main gameplay window.It wasn't all that great IMO, but I think it got overlooked way to fast.   ;  What got me thinking about this was I saw a trailer for Gears of war where the player does something with the a HUD type display that is actually mapped onto a gun:Thought this was not a huge leap, but an interesting decision nevertheless.  It points to blurring of lines between UI / menus elements and player controls and gear, which is cool.i'm interested in trying to find other example of games that break down the barrier between UI and gameplay like this...;  >What got me thinking about this was I saw a trailer for Gears of war where the >player does something with the a HUD type display that is actually mapped onto a >gun:oops, meant to say Crysis - though GoW does some cool stuff with a HUD that it appears you can only access while holding down another button:">;  Back and White.   ;Quote:Original post by Mage2kBack and White.Wow, I've been waiting for a puzzle game involving surgically modyfying Michael Jackson's appearance forever !As for great UIs, I wish more games would allow the use of the opaque gui elements in sidebar mode instead of at the bottom of the screen.  Much better for wide-screen displays.Stracraft and Farcry are two games where I tought the UI was particularly good.   ;  I like the HUD in the sidebar idea.  What about games like Condemned, where you have HUD type devices that are actually objects in the game?  Personally I'd like to see more UI items like that - but it's hard to put text on them....;  For console user interfaces, the best has to be Beyond Good and Evil.  The text input interface, especially, was brilliant and should be used in every console game... especially those that use any sort of chat feature (you can "type" very quickly in it once you get the hang of it)If you don't have access to the game, the basic idea is that the letters are on a spiral, and you press toward a letter using the analog stick to choose it.  If you move the stick, the spiral spins in the direction you moved it... it's hard to explain but in practice it is wonderful.   