Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[BvG]

I really like Dwarf Fortress, despite only having played 4 times up to now (and only in dwarf mode). However, I think that there are quite a few possible simplifications for the player in the interface.
I have seen people demanding more complete/complex management screens, and that is one part. But the other part is making the existing interface simpler to use.

One example that aggravates me often is the switch between +/- and up arrow/down arrow between screens. Why do I need to use one or the other, when there is no second option to take up the other keys? For example in the nobles screen, one has to always use arrow keys, and can't use the +/- keys. Most workshop/building tasks however only allow the +/- keys, most probably because the map keeps scrollable to select stuff. In some of them that could be nice (like when building a workshop), but why would I select a different location while choosing stone boulders for a bridge? Additionally, when currently choosing a workshop from the list, there is nothing to place at all, so moving around is somewhat irrelevant while doing that (all placing happens in a separate screen when building (but not for designation and storage/waste areas)). Same thing goes for many screens, forcing one to remember every screen's favourite keys to navigate it.

Don't get me wrong, there are certainly less intuitive ASCII games, but that's no reason to copy them.  

[Xgamer4]

Compared to other roguelikes Dwarf Fortress actually has pretty intuitive controls. I mean, one of its contenders is Nethack, which uses every key on the keyboard PLUS capitals PLUS more. And all you have going for you there is that you occasionally get lucky and find out that "o" does, in fact, open doors.

[Koja]

Ditto on the last post. Damn intuitive for an alpha. Damn popular for an alpha as well... as a placeholder, this is better than most finished games.

Good idea to use +/- for all menus... I've noticed myself pressing the wrong directional keys as well. Throw interface could also use a zoom-to-nearest-mobile-target function as well. Maybe +/- to cycle targets. Assuming there isn't one already... I keep discovering wonderful little things in this game.

[Haedrian]

It gets worse in adventure mode... you have to use * and / ...

Myself *sighs* I'm on a laptop with no number pad and I have to use an emulation to reach most keys...

[Axehilt_VuP]

I agree with the OP.  There are a lot of little UI tweaks that'd make the game far better.  Standardizing it so you can use arrow or +/- at every screen would be good.

And a second inconsistency is selected dwarves.  Whether you select them from the job/dwarf list or use a Look command on them, you should get the same menu.  Currently the Look menu only lets you view their mood.

[Fieari]

What would be REALLY intuitive, would be to have ONE key for "Look at/Modify/Tweak/See Properties".  Not q and t and k and so on, depending on whether you want to look at a workshop or a bridge or a dwarf or just a bit of dirt... just one query tool.  If there's multiple things under your cursor, let +/- select which one you meant.

[iluxan]

I have played this game quite a few times, and lately even with some success.  After the immense amount of hours that this game requires, of course most of the keys become second nature.

But I do agree that the most important thing this game would need is user interface centralization and cleanup.  I wish this was an open-source project, perhaps I could even try to help with these efforts.