iClone

Out with the old…

• Free-floating
• Single tap to select
• Single finger to move
• Double finger to rotate (about an ambiguous point)
• Pinch to zoom

The existing map controls in iClone, whilst bordering on adequate, have never really felt 100% right to me. Whilst spinning and zooming the universe map has worked, the controls break down somewhat when zooming in on items orbiting planets in the system map. In addition, rotation has always become steadily more glitchy the further off centre the camera moves. With the added item location data now exposed through the API a more intuitive and precise control scheme was badly needed.

Spectacular failure

• Free-floating
• Single tap to select
• Double tap for full-screen
• Single finger to rotate (relative to eye point)
• Double finger to move
• Pinch to zoom

The first attempt at solving the issues seemed workable at first, modelled on FPS controls — mostly memories of multiplayer Descent! When zoomed out, the controls made sense. However, problems quickly became apparent. Firstly, as you got closer to objects the sensitivity of the movement wasn’t adequate — what was sensible when navigating a light-years wide zoomed out map really didn’t work when you were within a constellation. Add to that a lack of reference points, and getting lost was a certainty. The icing on the fail cake was that the full-screen double tap was far too easy to trigger, so whilst trying to regain your bearings the map would keep changing sizes. Not good.

…and in with the new.

• Anchored on a point.
• Single tap to refocus on a new point
• Double tap with two fingers for full-screen
• Tap and hold to select
• Single finger to rotate about the focus point.
• There is no double finger dragging.

This system followed on from the work toying with the previous scheme; It was only during testing that I noticed that this is also how the in-game system map works! Tapping on the screen now finds the closest celestial — be it star, planet or POS — to the tap point and focuses rotation and zooming on that. This suffers from none of the sensitivity issues of the other schemes — at least not when zoomed in to the level of stations. I’ll see how it fares when I start integrating the new item position data soon… In addition, this scheme has a far smaller chance of gestures being confused, and mistakes are far more recoverable.

I’ll be posting a video of the new map once I’ve finished off a few more bits of polish, and you’ll be able to take a look at FanFest — you are going to FanFest aren’t you?