Poll: Do we need an in-game map?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Alleine Dragonfyre, Sep 20, 2017.

Tags:
?

Do we need an In-game map?

  1. Yes

    158 vote(s)
    72.5%
  2. No

    60 vote(s)
    27.5%
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Elwyn

    Elwyn Avatar

    Messages:
    3,617
    Likes Received:
    4,783
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    San Antonio, TX
    My point is that you have to save that "fog" somewhere. It sounds easy if you don't know anything about programming, because it's an arbitrary 2D area. You could have it stored locally, but then you would have to un-fog each time you used a different computer, you could store it online, but that's a lot of data for what it does, multiplied by hundreds of scenes and thousands of players, you could make it a grid, which takes up a lot less space to store, but looks less immersive. Trade-offs everywhere.
     
  2. Merlota

    Merlota Avatar

    Messages:
    292
    Likes Received:
    611
    Trophy Points:
    28
    I do hope that storage space would not be a limiting factor in any map choice.
     
    twofoldsilence likes this.
  3. LoneStranger

    LoneStranger Avatar

    Messages:
    3,023
    Likes Received:
    4,761
    Trophy Points:
    165
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Petaluma, CA
    Fog of War is easily done with a 1-bit bitmap. If we imagine that the Novia world map is split up in one-meter cells, let's say that the entire map is split up as 1500x1500 (I eyeballed it, and it's probably a little smaller). That would only take about 280k per bitmap without compression. Compression would easily take that down, especially since a good deal of the map would be either on or off. This is smaller than your typical texture on an object, and could be stored in a database. Individual scenes, the biggest of which are probably like Blood River Outskirts, would only be about 800x800, which are a quarter of the Novia world map size, and would need less space.

    TLDR; It's not a big deal.
     
  4. Curt

    Curt Avatar

    Messages:
    1,639
    Likes Received:
    2,356
    Trophy Points:
    125
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Sweden
    We needs a map but it don't need to be so detailed.

    A fog of war on the world map that shows where you not been could be nice
     
  5. Elwyn

    Elwyn Avatar

    Messages:
    3,617
    Likes Received:
    4,783
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    San Antonio, TX
    Object textures aren't stored on servers and aren't sent over the internet. (except during game updates) There's a big difference between static data that is kept on your PC and dynamic data that is stored remotely.
     
  6. LoneStranger

    LoneStranger Avatar

    Messages:
    3,023
    Likes Received:
    4,761
    Trophy Points:
    165
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Petaluma, CA
    You are exactly right. I was just trying to give someone who isn't as well versed in this something that they could compare it to.

    I'm still saying it's no big deal. Seriously. It's not.
     
    Paladin Michael likes this.
  7. mike11

    mike11 Avatar

    Messages:
    1,588
    Likes Received:
    1,562
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Gender:
    Male
    Yes, but also need a standalone app for use in off screen.
     
    Alleine Dragonfyre likes this.
  8. stile

    stile Avatar

    Messages:
    2,664
    Likes Received:
    5,447
    Trophy Points:
    165
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    United States, Indiana
    I want the ability to drag UI elements, such as a map window, out of my clients screen and as its own window onto other monitors.
     
    Alleine Dragonfyre and mike11 like this.
  9. Barugon

    Barugon Avatar

    Messages:
    15,679
    Likes Received:
    24,293
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    I still don't have one, so this pole really means nothing to me. Nice job necroing this thread BTW.
     
    mike11 and Jaesun like this.
  10. SmokerKGB

    SmokerKGB Avatar

    Messages:
    2,227
    Likes Received:
    2,805
    Trophy Points:
    165
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Pittsburg, CA
    What are you talking about? There's been an ingame map for many months now, I use it all the time... SotAmap.com is still active, if you want it on your desktop too...
     
    mike11 likes this.
  11. Barugon

    Barugon Avatar

    Messages:
    15,679
    Likes Received:
    24,293
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    In-game means that it's within the game client.
     
  12. SmokerKGB

    SmokerKGB Avatar

    Messages:
    2,227
    Likes Received:
    2,805
    Trophy Points:
    165
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Pittsburg, CA
    I think pressing "M" to open the map window is within the client or do you need to remap that key? I thought it was defaulted to it... I remapped it when SotAmap.com was acquired by Port, and they added it to the client... Are we talking about the same thing? I'm confused...
     
  13. Barugon

    Barugon Avatar

    Messages:
    15,679
    Likes Received:
    24,293
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    Right, this is not available in the Linux client.
     
    Paladin Michael likes this.
  14. DeadnGone

    DeadnGone Avatar

    Messages:
    601
    Likes Received:
    794
    Trophy Points:
    93
    Paladin Michael likes this.
  15. Floors

    Floors Avatar

    Messages:
    4,265
    Likes Received:
    6,621
    Trophy Points:
    165
    This is why to save your soul, you really should install OS X, which is still System V :)

    Although the in game map is not working super well, it's regressed since R53 unfortunately.

    I'm not sure I'm a fan of it in underground areas where it sometimes ruins what's up ahead and sometimes is out of date or missing anyhow.
     
  16. Paladin Michael

    Paladin Michael Bug Hunter

    Messages:
    2,649
    Likes Received:
    4,202
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Perennial Coast
    Great: after 9 months the thread is still alive ;)

    And as we told over the last 4 years:

    One great experience is lost, if we have a map, which shows everything without any effort by us ...

    The great experience to visit and explore the lands and citys ... to watch our progress and how the world grows on our atlas :)

    This would be more interesting by having an automap cartographing our progress.
    Okay, maybe we need a SKILL Cartographing and enough paper in our inventory ?
    So everybody who won't like to have this, mustn't learn it :)

    And the "old" maps wouldn't be lost. They could be integrated in our "World Journal" (there was a plan earlier). And special places and NPC's could be marked on them...

    Still in hope for a great solution, which is connected with the Quest Journal!
    Quests could be clicked and the map could show -colored- the way from x to y (of course, only as far as we visited the targets!)

    Running from a to b to c would be more interesting and we would RECOGNIZE (think about NEW players!) new areas more as we do now ...


    Would be a great Stretch Goal, @DarkStarr and @Lord British :)
     
    Jaesun and Brugas like this.
  17. Feeyo

    Feeyo Avatar

    Messages:
    1,716
    Likes Received:
    2,520
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Aelasar’s Forest
    Let you in a little secret, when playing on my windows machine. I do have a map, guess what? That map does not even work 80% of the time. Its frozen because I use a higher "unsupported?" resolution..
    I made a few bug reports about it, but yeah you know that story.
     
    Barugon likes this.
  18. Paladin Michael

    Paladin Michael Bug Hunter

    Messages:
    2,649
    Likes Received:
    4,202
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Perennial Coast
    @Feeyo, that's truly another story - could it be, both of us are playing inside this one? ;)
     
  19. Floors

    Floors Avatar

    Messages:
    4,265
    Likes Received:
    6,621
    Trophy Points:
    165
    The map definately has some issues, but the world map itself is working okay.

    The britanny map is not working well for me. I see the map, but the cursor is not following it around properly now and that seems the case in several other areas, It's that way in Dragons rest too. (just looking at POT locations for my newly acquired endgame deed)

    Also alot of maps are missing and some show things they shouldn't.
     
  20. Anpu

    Anpu Avatar

    Messages:
    7,944
    Likes Received:
    9,015
    Trophy Points:
    153
    Location:
    Hemut
    I would love a Cartography skill!
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.