Odyssey - Optimisation/Performance and UI (Galaxy & System Map) Feedback

[Akarana]

Overall Thoughts

I am not keen on this design style personally. While it does look nicer visually and has the potential to be good, it currently represents a significant downgrade in terms of usability as well as in the information it provides.


General Observation

When not exploring the galaxy, I am a professional educator. I have concerns that this UI design can be exclusionary to anyone who is not a visual learner. Icons to represent everything may be minimalist and visually appealing but this approach presupposes that people will be able to quickly learn and process what each picture represents as well as retain it. Those with learning styles other than visual are not catered for.

Personally, I learn through reading and processing of lists and text. I have been struggling with this UI for a month now and am still no more used to it than when I started. I have to run the mouse down each column of icons to show the tooltip, reminding myself what each one is before clicking though I do now retain where a couple of the most regular functions are located. It is the same with the fleet carrier interface. I don't just click to whatever I need bacause I can't readily remember its location and it is not logically grouped.


Specific Issues

• Design not accessible enough for players with learning styles other than visual (see above for context).
• It's critical that all information currently missing from the Odyssey Galaxy Map and System Map is restored as per Horizons.
• First Discovery and related tags are no longer displayed in some cases, such as stars.
• System Map icon should be visible and easily accessible on the Galaxy Map at all times.
• Routes cannot currently be plotted from a bookmark.
• Very convoluted to delete a bookmark.
• The use of arbitrary folders in the bookmarks system has wrecked expedition routes which typically contain systems, bodies, POIs, stations and settlements along the route which are displayed in order for explorers to follow.
• Arbitrary bookmark folders are too limiting for players with lots of bookmarks to manage or for specialist playstyles.
• Icons need reordering to be more logical and reduce button presses. Malic had some excellent suggestions early in this thread which I agree with.
• Icons divided on either side of the screen can make for a confusing and uncomfortable workflow.
• All planet information should be available in a single tab as it currently is in Horizons. You should not have to click multiple times to see the same amount of information.
• Fleet Carriers currently don't display the owner's name or squadron.
• As a non-console player I don't personally find the concept of holding to select very natural or familiar.
• The pop-up on system selection giving quick access to route plotting, system map etc was far quicker than having to click around the screen on other icons as well as an intuitive workflow progression. It needed some refinement rather than outright replacement.
• The repositioned search box is a good addition but it's important we should be able to go to a searched system just by pressing Enter rather than having to click again on the drop-down search results.
• The copy system name icon is a brilliant addition, well done (just to end on a positive note!)

Suggested Fixes for the Issues

• First and foremost, you should offer an option for players to use either the Horizons UI or the new Odyssey UI in the settings. That way you would be catering for everyone in the playerbase, whatever their personal preference may be.
• Give an option in the settings for the text labels to be permaently displayed next to the icons which would make each column of controls appear as a concise menu for those of us who prefer to use menus.
• Restore all information missing from the Odyssey Galaxy Map and System Maps to the same level and quality as Horizons.
• Restore all First Discovery and related tags where they are missing. Explorers put a lot of time in to get these, we would like to see them.
• Could we have text descriptions of body type (e.g. "Earth-like world") returned rather than just an icon behind other information to represent that?
• System Map icon should be present at all times on the Galaxy Map (but greyed out whenever system information is not available).
• System Map would probably be better suited on the left, as this is a major and often used function.
• We need to be able to plot a route to a bookmark as easily as we could before, preferably by one or two clicks.
• Bookmarks need to be removed as easily as possible, preferably by one or two clicks.
• Bookmarks should have an ALL filter to display all bookmarks in a list for whenever this is required.
• By all means keep the Systems, Bodies, Stations etc folders for bookmarks. These could be useful starting point for a new player unsure how they want to organise their bookmarks. The previous system was clunky and much in need of improvement but arbitrary categories can be too limiting for exploration or more specialist playstyles. Give the rest of us the ability to create custom folders for our bookmarks and organise them that way.
• Colour coding for bookmarks on the map would also be really useful.
• Perhaps give players the ability to rearrange the order of icons to suit their playstyle (e.g. a Powerplayer might want that icon near the top)
• Give players the option to display the icons as two rows along the top or bottom of the screen, as they would then be together and so reduce button presses to reach particular icons.
• Give players an option in the settings to remove all references to keybinds from the screen. This would provide more space.
• Merge planet information into a single panel.
• Restore the Fleet Carrier owner's name and squadron to the relevant panel.
• Allow multiple panels to be pinned open at once for when you are clicking around bodies in a system and want to view multiple pieces of information.
• Give players an option to use double-click to select a system rather than hold to select.
• Return the quick access pop-up as an option for those who prefer it.
• Allow pressing Enter to move the map to a searched system.
• Publicise the brilliant copy system name function as much as possible! This is invaluable for all of us who use resources like EDDB, EDSM and INARA or maintain our records outside the game.

Please take on board the excellent suggestions being put forward by everyone in this thread. I hope that the end result will be a UI that we all like and can use easily.

Thanks for reading. Good luck with the improvements.

 

[robbyp]

Galaxy map.

Search for "Pond Terminal" There are multiple ones of this exact same name (according to 3rd party data) in the galaxy. The UI only shows one of them.

 

[Allan251]

My experience of Odyssey so far? The series of updates has basically broken the entire game for me. (I've put in a ticket and am awaiting the reply) Neither Odyssey not Horizons will launch now. Both crash straight back to the desktop. My alt account on Epic has just updated. It is also now broken. I've been playing for six years and tbh much as I hate the idea of losing the results of all that grind, I have reached the point where I'm ready to ask for a refund for Odyssey and delete the entire game from my computer.

 

[sabretoothed]

Please keep in mind that I play using a HOTAS.

Overall thoughts: – please keep this brief (one or two sentences)
The new UI certainly looks nicer, but without labels on the icons it adds a learning curve unnecessarily. I also feel like the current iteration of the UI has added extra steps to what were previously simple procedures.

Specific Issues:

• Plotting to bookmarks for anything besides systems takes additional steps and manual opening of the system UI to complete the plot - whereas before I could select my bookmark and it's done.
• It's not obvious when you have run out of bookmarks and you cannot bookmark anything else.
• It's not obvious why some options are unavailable and have disappeared (eg system map).
• Bookmark organisation is more difficult.
• It's not always consistent or obvious what icon you're going to when you change columns.

Suggested Fixes for the Issues:

• Restore the functionality of plotting to non-system bookmarks.
• Put the names of the icons with the icons - "System map", "Bookmarks" etc.
• Put the map icons in a single row, not in two rows either side of the map. This will make fast movements easier.
• Grey out unavailable galaxy map options instead of hiding them, and provide a tooltip/note as to why the option is disabled. This would be useful on the Add Bookmark and System map options.
• Allow me to set up folders for organising bookmarks. Separating bookmarks into system/carrier/base/etc carriers is a good start, but I would like my own categories/folders.
• Lift the bookmarks cap. I've a lot of bookmarks due to having booked a lot of Distant Worlds 2 waypoints, and would very much like to retain this.
• Indicate to the player when they have reached the bookmark limit.
• Allow bookmarks to be removed from the same screen with which they are added.

I'm sure these have been posted before but thought they were still worth mentioning/reinforcing.

Thanks.

 

[Cori]

Something missing from the System Map that would be useful to know; although it lists the number of biological / geological features on a planet, it would be really useful to also know how many of them we have already scanned into our Codex. Or, even better, throw up a list of the known ones followed by (Unknown Biological×2), for example.

 

[RocketRacoon729]

Getting used to the new galaxy map and quite like it.
However... Specific problem:
Selecting a bookmarked station in the galaxy map used to target the system for hyperspace jump and once the jump completes it would target the selected station. In Odyssey it only targets the system.
Also, if your destination is behind another object (such as a planet) although the system remains targeted it does not show on the compass so you don't have a clue where to head.

 

[Packo Jacko]

Hi, I don't like the way you interact with this menu and I have proposed an idea, if you like to visit this thread that I have made:
Visit thread.
I leave an example:

 

[redthorne]

Overall thoughts – please keep this brief (one or two sentences)

Overall, I love the potential that Odyssey brings in terms of content. The execution, however, has made the entire DLC and my favorite non-Odyssey activites useless for me. I believe changes to DSS and UI were made just for the sake of change. I now have zero desire to explore as a result, which is my preferred playstyle. Therefore, at this time, Odyssey and the base game changes have honestly killed the game completely for me. Why was there a need to completely change everything?

Specific Issues – clear and concise (bullet points are ideal)

• UI for Galaxy Map, system map, and DSS are confusing, imprecise, and break workflow that we are all used to, and add nothing except headaches.
• UI for GalaxyMap requires multiple clicks for things that only took one or two before. Just give me raw data, not a tablet-OS interface
• Bookmarks...I had them all nicely organized by naming conventions that make sense to me. This is the purpose of bookmarks on any app, on any platforms. They are now completely out of order and instead organized the way FDev wants them. This is not catering to your playerbase.
• On foot is completely broken and brings my 1070ti to it's knees. Not worth it for me. It isn't my hardware, it is your coding. Every other game that is newer than Odyssey performs better than Odyssey.

Suggested Fixes for the Issues – clear and concise, directly linked to the issues

• Let me choose which UI I want, or return it back to the way it was.
• Return the DSS back to concise points of interest, at least for old content. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with a giant, glowing blue planet, nor do I enjoy the idea of the whole things. I completely gave up on this new Odyssey plant-surveying idea after 45 minutes of wandering around. I'm not saying I need instant gratification, but 45 minutes with zero progress is disheartening, frustrating, and makes users do something else/quit. I quit, hung up the suit, and won't touch it again.
• Fix your graphics optimization planetside. You have fans that have pointed out exactly what could help, yet I have heard no acknowledgements of it. Stop blaming our system hardware.

Remember that a lot of us who play this game are super geeky computer nerds; we are here to work with you, you can also just give us raw, hard data. We know what to do with it. This isn't a Fortnite-level gaming audience. Bring some fans in to work directly with you.

 

[AlexMG1]

- BOTH -​

• There REALLY should be a color option for the UI, the old color-change workaround does not seem to apply to the new UI.
  
  
• PLEASE optimize/fix the UI for Ultrawide or Super-Ultrawide aspect ratios, do not waste the potential Elite has to be played on such displays.
  
  
• Currently the UI has the same position like on a 16:9 Screen on my 32:9 Screen, It would be better if the UI would automaticly move to the borders of the screen whatever Size it is. Other games do that.
  
  - GALAXYMAP -
  ​
• When having clicked on a System, the Bookmark Button should also be able to remove Bookmark​

 

[ZakNaZul]

I do not like new UI at all.
Galaxy map is a mess now.
For Instance: show system map button is hidden if player do not have visited system before(do not have map). I spent solid 10 minutes in search for that button, before i realise that button exist only when system map is available. Why it dissapier insted of turn gray?
For Instance: it is not comfortabe to use Bookmarks now.
Station UI is a mess now.
For instance: To transfer cargo to the "mission cargo hold" for transportation missions , player now need literally burry in to the UI. Is it under 5 or 6 layers of UI?
ALSO: i actually somewhat hate new equipment/ship fitting menu.

 

[Ninjitsu]

Galaxy/System Map UI feedback

Overall thoughts
I like the galaxy/system/planetary map overall! I like the division of bookmarks and the search box with suggestions. I'm not entirely sold on the right hand menu but i can get used to it. Do think the old style menu just above the cursor should be brought back though. I think the order of the menus is mostly okay. But yeah minor but numerous issues.

Specific Issues and fixes

1. Galaxy map
   1. Plotting directly to bookmarked body/settlement/station doesn't work (i.e. the object isn't selected when you reach the system).
   2. When I added Fortune's Rest to my bookmarks, it got added to the system bookmarks.
   3. Pressing enter in the search boss should retain the old behaviour.
   4. Hold-click-to-plot is weird because it's also how you rotate the map. Probably remove it or toggle via control options.
   5. The cursor menu with "plot route", "open system map", "add to bookmarks" etc. should be brought back. Stuff like description and stuff can remain on the right.
   6. Right menu
      1. Markets and powerplay should be much lower priority. Everyone just uses EDDB and INARA.
      2. Plotting, selection, system map, bookmark should all be moved to the first group below description.
      3. There should be a list of known stations and settlements in the system
      4. "Open System Map" should not get hidden, merely greyed out.
   7. Left menu
      1. Changing the population size sliders pans the map in the background
      2. The sub menus should collapse if another main menu is selected.
      3. "Select all" and "deselect all" should be options in the filters.
      4. Route settings should probably be in the first group or at the top.
   8. Mouse wheel scrolling on the bookmarks manager zooms in/out on the map behind.
   9. The little orange selection circle around stars moves away from the stars as the map is panned.
2. System map
   1. "loading simulation" takes a really long while sometimes. Not clear what it is even for.
   2. The plot route state seems to be lost on the map when switching to orrery view
   3. Orrery view should centre on selected object
   4. Perhaps consider changing the light blue atmosphere around non-landable planets?
   5. Left menu
      1. System info should be on top
      2. Points of interest should be just below factions.
      3. Scrolling on any of the sub menus via mouse wheel causes the map to zoom in the background.
   6. Right Menu
      1. Market info should be much lower down, maybe above focus and copy name.
      2. Planetary info should be merged with description or just below it
      3. If there are no features on a planet, it should say "no features" under features. Right now it looks like it is missing information.
      4. List of settlements on that planet should be a menu item.
3. Planetary map
   1. Right menu should always have at least one menu with a list of all settlements on the planet. Then upon selection the current pop out menu can appear.

 

[Vortex-XIII]

addendum to my previous post <https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threa...alaxy-system-map-feedback.578093/post-9214849>
(this is both added to the original post and posted separately - I am not sure how this thread is being parsed)

regarding the "Issue: current conflict status of wars/civil wars/elections is not shown on systemmap." and the subsequent suggestion to implement a "conflict status" menu:

Issue: not visible which Odyssey settlements are actively contested during conflict
importance: high
EDO-settlements are (supposed to be) transferrable not with the 'old' conflict mechanic. Instead, post-conflict owner will be "the faction that won the most Conflict Zones at that particular battle site during the War" - see <https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/elite-dangerous-odyssey-bgs-and-crime-details.575842/>
(yet to be seen how that actually works - or how this works for elections)
Currently, there is no way of seeing which EDO-settlements are actively being fought over (or, how much)
Keep in mind: it can be a long list. (For example, I know a system that now has 98 additional EDO-settlements)
suggestion / fix:
add a list of active battle sites to the 'conflict menu'.
Include an indicator which side has won the most battle zones for each single battle site. (either a counter, or a simple indicator who has the upper hand).
For flair / completeness sake: list the space conflict zones as well.

alternatively:
do not do this "conflict status page" on system map - but as a menu option at a station terminal. (not the Frontline desk - space outposts don't have them, and some systems have no large station or planetary port).
PS: It is a gameplay design decision - whether that info should be accessible from anywhere via system map - or only in-system, at a station. But, it should be available somewhere.

 

[jernavy]

Greetings Commanders,

First of all, we’d like to thank all of you for supporting us throughout Odyssey’s development and at launch. For those of you who have access to the expansion and are able to play without issues, we hope you’re enjoying yourselves!

That said, we are aware of some commonly reported issues and will take this opportunity to address them. In this post, we’d like to specifically discuss optimisation and UI.

Optimisation and Performance

We’re aware that performance in Odyssey is varied according to PC builds and other factors. While many players are enjoying the game at the intended standard, unfortunately some are not.

If you are experiencing performance issues, here’s how to report them and include some especially useful information. Please send us as much information as possible to edoperformance@elitedangerous.com using the template below. To report any other issues, please go via the Issue Tracker as normal.

Please provide as much information as you can from a DXDiag report (see link for help)

Where were you in-game, and what were you doing? (Solo/Open, in Wing/group or not etc.)

Are you running Odyssey in borderless/fullscreen/windowed?

Are you running Odyssey in VR?

Do you have any other apps running at the same time?

Are you running any third-party shader suites?

In addition to the above, please send us your graphics configs. To do this:
1. Navigate to this file location: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Frontier Developments\Elite Dangerous\Options\Graphics
2. Copy all folder contents to a ZIP file and attach it to your submission

We’d like to thank you in advance for submitting this information. Your reports will be invaluable in assisting our team and expediting performance fixes.

UI Feedback

We’re also keenly aware of feedback on several aspects of the updated User Interface in Odyssey. The comments on this topic have been followed closely since the beginning of the alpha phase and your feedback shared in our Alpha feedback forum has been gathered and collected. Your concerns over the ease-of-use and accessibility of these systems are being heard and passed to the development team.

While fundamental issues such as connection and performance remain a priority, we’d like to build a clear understanding of issues surrounding features such as UI to lay the groundwork for in-game improvements.

In this thread, we are looking specifically for feedback on the Galaxy and System Map UI. We have noted feedback on other UI elements, but would like to start with these in particular.

If you have feedback on the Galaxy and System Map in Odyssey, please leave it below in a reply using the following format:

Overall thoughts – please keep this brief (one or two sentences)

Specific Issues – clear and concise (bullet points are ideal)

Suggested Fixes for the Issues – clear and concise, directly linked to the issues

Please keep all replies to this post in the format above. Any discussion that is off topic or replying to other posts may be removed to keep the thread as useful as possible.

Thank You

Odyssey represents a huge change to Elite Dangerous at multiple levels. All of the teams across Frontier, are working hard to deliver an experience that meets a standard the community deserves.

On that note, thank you again for your support and patience. As soon as we have any more information regarding the points above, we’ll make sure to share it with you.

o7

Edit: please use the edoperformance@elitedangerous.com mailbox to report optmisation issues in Odyssey rather than the Issue Tracker.

• Overall thoughts – The easy of use of the previous maps is gone. Rolling over an item really should give you the ability to quickly see critcal infromation about it. The new lay out really does look nice but, the menus are clunky and it's now difficult to see even what star type it is or if someone has visited before. Thank you for fixing something however. When clicking on the map it no longer pulls you back to the random star you had selected!
• Specific Issues – Very difficult to find what menu has information where. The previous menu in the star map, would let you see star types etc while being able to move around. It also showed if someone had visited the planet/body with just a mouse over, please go back to this. The galaxy map no longer let's you plot route with boosts and other functions seem broken in route plotting.
• Suggested Fixes for the Issues – I'd start with bringing back the old maps with a icon/button refresh vs complete rebuild. Focus on the bug fixes. The maps were a loved feature of this game, though they did have problems. If I could have a bonus item, it would be to manipulate what stars you see on the gal map without it effecting your route. I'd also like to see the ability to plot based on what stars you'd like to see most. Example: If I'm traveling 3000ly, and I'm looking O type stars, let me say to the route plotter, this is my main focus.

Thanks for taking this seriously. With route plotting broken, I really recommend folks building the route at least in Horizons and then moving to OD when you need to explore. Sorry Stuart and FD but I think that's a pretty crippling bug. I know the graphics stuff will get sorted out, and in fact I truly believe you are all dedicated to getting this stuff fixed.

 

[1xok]

First of all, I play under Linux/Steamplay. With a Nvidia GTX 970 and the binary driver 460.73.01. I know that Linux is not officially supported, but I would like to know if Windows users have the same problem.

The performance is actually normal when I am in space (I am an explorer). I get constant 60 FPS at medium settings. On planets, it's still between 30 and 40 FPS. On foot a little less. But it is quite playable.

But after a while, the performance drops significantly and my GPU goes to a permanent 100% load. I then still have around 20 FPS. Interestingly, even when I switch back to the main menu. Until now, this state has always been triggered by switching to the system map and back again. Sometimes it also goes away again when I call up the system map again. But at some point it seems to be permanent. The only way out is to quit the game and restart it.

It takes maybe about half an hour for this to happen, when I play normally. When I land on planets it happens immediately. I never had this problem under Horizon, although I played there for over 400 hours (under Linux).

Can anyone reproduce this under Windows?

 

[sp33dweed]

Overall thoughts – Some changes are appreciated but in a lot of places you guys just added more work/clicks to get to the information we need.

Specific Issues
-Gal Map icons are now all the same color, bad idea.
-Outfitting store now impossible to check which module has what engineering on it.
-Sold modules cannot be bought back. Rip engineered modules we accidentally sell.
-System map takes too long to load.
-System map now missing information on whether or not i am Wanted on a station
-Several removed features need to be put back in. A lot of information that we used to have is just not available now, not at a first glance at least.

Suggested Fixes for the Issues – Pay more attention to making the UI first and foremost if not more useful then at LEAST as useful as the old UI. Its just more work to use it now, we get less information, its cluttery. You guys took away features instead of adding more while making it harder to use. Looking "good" is not top priority here, especially not in a game like this. Dont forget who your core audience is.

 

[Hydrino]

Overall thoughts – UI taking up less screen space is a good improvement. But that could have been accomplished with a toggle or sliding the old menu to the side. I like the new open look better than the old. However, not all icons are intuitive and the number of clicks to do what I want has increased and this is bad. Also, no amazing new functionality was introduced that players have been requesting or that would blow our socks off. If FD had Focused Feedback Forum posts to get player input on designs and managed like this thread (remove comments on other posts, stick to topic, etc.) then FD could have avoided this mess. Imagine how much better EVERYONE would feel right now including the Dev team, Marketing, CM team and David Braben, if instead of developing in a vacuum in old-school style development, you instead engaged end users in some agile feedback loops.

In summary, it seems sometimes that FD management prefers less fun and more unwanted grind and doing things the hard-way for everyone, devs and players alike.

Specific Issues –

• One click to do what I want if at all possible; too many layers and non-intuitive to go back or clear the menus again
  • this might necessitate moving the right-hand menu back to the left, at least for some items for convenience and speed!
  • or context menus/ pop-up menus
  • clear display of active filters/view selected
• Get rid of the 'hold to target' ; hover for info, click to select, double click to plot route (or pop-up menu)
• review the order of the menus, logical flow vs. Alpha order?
• review how we "back out" of views- go to previous view by default like exiting system going back to galaxy map keep focus on the system just viewed
• Color scheme changes need to be ditched or just use a robust and gamma adjustable palette - it's 3307 not 2021 where even small airplanes have full-color glass cockpits
  • Everything in Odyssey that is dark is too dark and this includes the map menus
  • nice/bonus would be an on-screen brightness slider so we can dim the icons and menus completely to enjoy a galaxy or system view, but crank up the brightness if we need it.
• Bookmarks, add and remove (needs to be re-added), bookmark management needs improvement and did before as well, but the changes made it worse
• Reduce space for text - this is a PC release
  • I realize the UI has to accommodate consoles but it sometimes seems over-compensated and we lose PC centric advantages
  • PC users are often used to more dense information rather than UI designed for 720p or 640x480 tv
• add back functions that were removed like wanted status on the map
• keep the view system button on all views but grey it out if not available and maybe give the reason why (not visited, not in public GalMap database, etc..)
• snap view to any terminal the player activates, make it larger taking up the player's view so it's legible for different resolutions
• UI in lower resolutions gets cut-off on the sides
• No new functionality is an issue in a major release like this
  • on-foot usability enhancements for system maps?
  • discovery scan maps/data able to be overlay in system map views
  • the overall functionality of the maps was reduced, not increased and that is a bad surprise!
  • after plotting a route to a star have the option to open the system map and target a body immediately
  • Allow at least the system map to not take the player totally out of First Person view; I know there were some limits mentioned in 2013-14 but it's 2021 and this should be do-able as an upgrade to the engine tech after 8 yrs
  • better search and bookmarking, look-ahead searching, previous searches, plot to bookmark
  • bookmark any location on a planet, etc.
  • and the golden ticket is of course a logarithmic scale Orrey with beautiful graphics and Power Play type information overlays and USS/ISS signal overlays, combat zones, etc. etc. I know FD thinks they have to have gameplay use for everything but sometimes the map itself is gameplay! Also, maps need to be used in Galnet links and news articles as well to enhance the experience. Don't worry about "game play" when it comes to maps, just make the beautiful, packed with info and easy to use with minimum UI clicks and a UI that will "get out of the way" when we don't need it
  • toggle for fleet carriers just like in the ship left-hand Nav Panel various toggle/filter
  • make the System Map available in miniature but full-color with the closest star in multi-star systems put in the center of the Sensor disc for an optional in-cockpit Orrey view

Suggested Fixes for the Issues – clear and concise, directly linked to the issues

• suggestions are embedded with the issues- it's hard to separate the two in different lists and maintain the relationship; like the new UI, this was not the best idea
• General Fix - Use Focused Feedback Forums, you know actually ask players what they want since the game is now 7 yrs in release
• Have a member of the CM team documenting and categorizing every suggestion thread for review internally and promotion to Focused Feedback if needed, sure this is a general fix but applies to the UI also
  • Treat the players like valued customer partners that are paying your bills and really do want to see you succeed and take more of our money, instead of just sales marks to get microtransactions to fund what someone in sales thinks would be neat while ignoring the customer
• If you want to test some innovation, look at continuing the in-ship menu metaphor with left-center-right menus and views
  • like whatever star is selected could have a System Map show on the bottom of the screen on 3-d sensor disc like view as in the cockpit
  • of course run this by players for focused feedback
  • and of course, the above mentioned Orrey
  • add info tool back in?

If CM and Devs were really paying attention to Alpha Feedback, none of this is new and many posts already covered these issues!

 

[John_17]

GALAXY-MAP:​

Overall thoughts:​

I like the new style.

Specific Issues:​

1. different behaviour to highlight a system between using joypad and mouse
   joypad = you have to select the blue-circle (on the galaxy-plane) to highlight a system
   mouse = you have to hover over the system-star to highlight a system
2. different behaviour to select a system between using joypad and mouse
   joypad = after highlighting a system and pressing 'A' the system is selected and the galaxy-map will be centered (system-info will be updated)
   mouse = after highlighting a system and pressing left-click only the system-info will be updated, galaxy-map will not be updated
   (you have to left-click again to center the galaxy-map)
3. using mouse to highlight a system stoppes working when mouse hovers over any button, panel or info window
4. the indicator for an highlighted system (the white circle) is not aligned with the system-star
5. setting a route with a bookmark are only working to the system (not down to the planet, station or settlement)
6. number of maximal bookmarks is limited to 128
7. bookmarks can only deleted one by one
8. bookmarks are automaticaly grouped (into systems, bodies, stations, settlements...)

Suggested Fixes for the Issues:​

1. when using mouse to highlight a system also use the blue-circle on the galaxy-plane as target
2. when using mouse and selecting a system the galaxy-map should center this new position
3. fix the bug that galaxy-map loses focus when mouse hovers over a button or info panel
4. align the indicator circle of the highlighted system with the system-star
5. when plotting a route with a bookmark, plot the route down to the planet (or station or settlement)
6. remove limit or set maximum bookmarks to 1024
7. use a group delete method to delete multible bookmarks
8. let us group our bookmarks by ourselves by creating group names

---

SYSTEM-MAP:​

Overall thoughts:​

I like the new style.

Specific Issues:​

1. using mouse to highlight a target stoppes working when mouse hovers over any button, panel or info window
2. the indicator for an highlighted target (the white circle) is not aligned with the target
3. after clicking button "back" and entering galaxy-map another system is automaticaly selected

Suggested Fixes for the Issues:​

1. fix the bug that system-map loses focus when mouse hovers over a button or info panel
2. align the indicator circle of the highlighted target with the target
3. button "back" should only close the system-map and not change the selected system in the galaxy-map

---

PLANETARY-MAP:​

Overall thoughts:​

I like the new style.

Specific Issues:​

1. using mouse to highlight a target stoppes working when mouse hovers over any button, panel or info window
2. when using mouse and hovering over a settlement the text is displayed "[HOLD] plot route"
   but after left-click and "hold" the planet rotates and disables the selection.
3. after clicking button "back" the planetary-map is closed and the galaxy-map is active
4. day-and-night-line are not synced with the actual planet alignment

Suggested Fixes for the Issues:​

1. fix the bug that planetary-map loses focus when mouse hovers over a button or info panel
2. after rotating of the planet continue with plotting the route
3. button "back" should only close the planetary-map switch back to the system-map
4. draw the day-night-line in sync with the current planet alignment

O7

 

[Deleted member 38366]

UI Feedback

We’re also keenly aware of feedback on several aspects of the updated User Interface in Odyssey. The comments on this topic have been followed closely since the beginning of the alpha phase and your feedback shared in our Alpha feedback forum has been gathered and collected. Your concerns over the ease-of-use and accessibility of these systems are being heard and passed to the development team.

While fundamental issues such as connection and performance remain a priority, we’d like to build a clear understanding of issues surrounding features such as UI to lay the groundwork for in-game improvements.

In this thread, we are looking specifically for feedback on the Galaxy and System Map UI. We have noted feedback on other UI elements, but would like to start with these in particular.

If you have feedback on the Galaxy and System Map in Odyssey, please leave it below in a reply using the following format:

Overall thoughts – please keep this brief (one or two sentences)

Specific Issues – clear and concise (bullet points are ideal)

Suggested Fixes for the Issues – clear and concise, directly linked to the issues

Please keep all replies to this post in the format above. Any discussion that is off topic or replying to other posts may be removed to keep the thread as useful as possible.

Feedback is the same as in Alpha 1, the same as in Alpha 2, 3 and 4. You should already know all of it, as it was extensively given very distinct feedback. Was the entire Team asleep (?)
But as you asked, for the 10th time then (since you don't seem to operate any QA Team at all anymore and the Alpha Feedback Archives apparently got lost as well) :

Overall Thoughts

• Horizons User Interfaces did not require any significant changes, breaking with 6 years or proven and quite optimized Interfacing Standards of the Game for no need. A capital mistake
• compared to Horizons UIs, current Usability rating has dropped off a cliff, Galaxy Map and especially System Map are at best placeholders with exceedingly poor Usability
• you're probably aware that several UIs currently lack critical Information that was/is present in the Horizons UIs

Galaxy Map

• Neutron Plotter non-functional
• Carrier Filter missing (and even if it comes back, I assume it will still lack ability to display Carrier Presence when zoomed out further, same issue as Horizons, making it unpractical to impossible to locate Carriers in Deep Space)
• purchasing UC Data Filter will not indicate price of respective Systems anymore
• UC Data purchase still limited to a mere 10 random Systems within 20LY instead of permitting all qualifying Systems
• all useful Mouse-Over Information display and quick Interaction options are gone
• all Information is scattered all over the place under abstract Icons, no more comprehensive and contextual Information easily accessible as in Horizons
• all display of Information requires a Mouse Click or UI Action Input... which is a nightmare in terms of Usability

System Map

• System Map merely needed to get rid of large amounts of Carriers distorting it beyond recognition, otherwise the Horizons System Map is exactly how it should work
• instead, Information is as well scattered all over the place and buried behind abstract Icon Wall after Icon Wall
• each and every single standard action requires a Mouse click/UI Action Input.... That's utterly horrid and a nightmare to use (imagine to check a System with 100 Bodies for valuable Planets or quickly try to scan 50 Moons for presence of interesting Biological Signals). Currently a pure click orgy.
• all useful mouse-over Information Display and most quick-action Options are gone
• currently does not display "Candidate for Terraforming"
• currently does not allow to quickly visually discern between an Atmospheric Planet (not landable) and a Tenuous Atmosphere you can land on

Outfitting UI

• terrible and clunky to use
• stored Modules can't be equipped on-the-fly despite the UI being "almost there" , but instead the "Stored Modules" Page must be used separately for some reason
• new UI lacks display of almost all critical Data (focus Engineering State and key Details)
• lots of new, shiny (laggy) visual presentation but very little Usability

Shipyard UI
- similar to Outfitting, it has lost alot of useful Information about individual Ships in favor of fluff Visuals

Suggested Fixes

• import the existing Horizons User Interfaces and visually polish those only where needed (i.e. fix Carrier pearl strings in System Map)
• teach the Galaxy Map to display Services at any Ranges, teach it to display Carrier presence at any zoom level and range (it currently can't when zoomed out too far, causing the "Searching a haystack with a Microscope" effect when trying to locate Carriers in Deep Space), give it the ability to combine two Filters + add Luminosity Class Filter
• make the System Map highlight the 3 key body types for quick visual Identification on a quick glance : landable (no Atmosphere), landable (tenuous Atmosphere), non-landable
• avoid to have any User Interfaces fragment and scatter Information all over the place for no need ("Iconification" and fragmentation of Info that belongs into a nice & comprehensive overview)
• contextual Mouse-over Information with sensible action Options is one of the biggest strong points of the Horizons Galaxy/System Maps... retain that advantage!
• don't try to "fix" what is not broken, instead capitalize on the proven and established & effective User Interfaces of Horizons

----------------------------------------------------------------

I guess that's as C3 (crisp, clear & concise) as it gets having to write that all up for like the 10th time. Please don't ask for a 11th one.

 

[jahliar]

For the system map, I most miss three things:

1. An info popup with all data from Description and Planetary Information when I select a body. Currently it's separated and I need to bring it up every time.
2. A quick way to target a body, for instance double-click, space key, Joy 1 button...
3. Support for joystick navigation. It worked quite well before but now it seems the controls are gone, and I can't find the keybinds for them?

For the galaxy map, I actually like the new design and features, especially Copy System Name and Recalculate Route. But:

1. Search bar: I like the prominent place and the "type ahead", but when pasting/typing the full system name, it should be enough to hit enter or space to select it; currently I still need to select it from the search results.
2. The route settings (economic, fastest, etc) should be stored so I don't have to click them again every time.
3. Bookmarks: please, please use different colors, and let us customize them (also with different icons).

PS: please, please, please change the search in galaxy map so the best hit is first position, no matter if it's a bookmark of not.... it currently looks like this:

PPS: after using the Galaxy Map some more, I'd like to say THANKS for a few nice improvements.

1. When selecting a system, I don't have to wait anymore for the map to scroll all the way there before I can target it (or calculate a route). That's a nice flow improvement.
2. Removing the "hover" icons and instead having them on the right side makes it much more easier to use them when navigating the map; it was very easy to lose focus, especially in dense regions.

However, I also found more room for improvement.

1. Calculating a route to a nearby system takes a long time. It would help to have a shortcut in the code that goes "if current_jump_range > system distance, target and done".
2. Having keybinds for target system and route to system would be great (but I have to double-check if I maybe missed them)
3. Navigating through the buttons is "slower" than before, meaning very fast key presses do not register correctly.
4. Neutron stars are currently excluded from route planning even if the option is selected.
5. The new filter options are great, but a filter for undiscovered systems and/or those discovered by me would be AMAZING

 

[SWEDGE AV]

Performance:​

Specific Issues:​

1. Grapical gliches every 3 to 5 minutes. Vertical line across the screen for a split second.
2. Screen blacking out ever 3 to 5 minutes for about 3 seconds. As if the monitor lost connection.

When:​

• Grapical gliches are present mostly on foot. Not in space.
• Screen blacking out is present all the time. On foot and in space. Every 3 to 5 minutes.
  
  Side note: Sometimes its a smooth experience, and I dont have these issues at all, but the next day they will be be back again. So it seems to occur at random startups of the game.