Those Persona 5 menus look like a nightmare if you dont like the Smash 4 menus.
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Best and worst graphic design (art, UI, etc.) in games
- Thread starter Majestad
- Start date
Those Persona 5 menus look like a nightmare if you dont like the Smash 4 menus.
Looks quite good. At least the elements are arranged vertically.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
I don't see how. They're certainly toeing the line of "overstylized" but everything is clear in the order of menu progression. I still get confused about where things are in Sm4sh.
Sakurai's wife got lazy.
DOWN
Banned
On the crap side of the spectrum, the recently released Witcher 3 is a monstrosity of awfulness.
You can't tell in that picture, but it's a bitch to go through every possible tab. I've spent hours doing inventory management in that game, and it's mostly because of garbage GUI design. The text being tiny as all hell doesn't help. Poor readability, poor usability, and just plain fucking ugly.
Awful HUD, awful UI
ProvenDeadly
Member
Dead Space in game UI is fucking phenomonal.
bobawesome
Member
It was a mistake for Sakurai's wife to design the menus for his games. They all look horrible.
Would you go so far as to say they're nothing but trash?
EatinOlives
Member
It was the same style they used in Brawl, except worse because shit in Smash 4 is way less logically placed. And the style isn't unique either, the general aesthetic also is similar to Kid Icarus Uprising.
I don't want to insult Sakurai's wife or anything, but she needs some inspiration to be able to make a new UI from the ground up. It looks like she really enjoyed the Brawl UI and just keeps using it over and over.
Smash 4's horrible implementation is truly understated. All the single-player content is inexplicably hidden behind "Games and More" with the same visual emphasis given to Smash Tour, a single mode. Smash Tour is given main-screen privileges for no reason other than "this is a new mode for this game".
"Games and More" doesn't tell me anything. What the hell does that mean. "Game?" I'm already playing a game. "& More" is even more vague. The truth of the matter is, everything got bunched together in this section and they couldn't come up with a name to describe it all, so they just with generic whatevers. They could've just called it "random shit" and it would've been more informative. The fact that they didn't know what to name this category makes it abundantly clear that they needed a better hierarchy.
Smash 64 and Melee have the best general idea. Things are divided between multiplayer and single player. Then you have trophies, options, and Statistics. Within single player you can have the Single Player Events, Classic, All-Star, Master and Crazy Orders, etc. (not necessarily in that order). Within multiplayer you can have 2-player Events, special Smash, "Straight up Smash", Online, Smash Tour, etc. (again, not necessarily in that order). Within Data you can have statistics, Challenges, Video Replays, Stage Creator, Masterpieces, etc. Within Trophies you can have Trophy Rush, shop, Gallery, Hoard, etc. Far more logical, far less bizarre hierarchies.
Personally, I don't really have a problem with Smash's menus. I think for the most part, I know where to find everything. But I understand that they're a bit "form over function".
My comment about Persona 5 was about that. The items may be on a list, but the way they animate and become part of the dense amount of visual information on the screen is an even bigger push in the direction of "form".
My comment about Persona 5 was about that. The items may be on a list, but the way they animate and become part of the dense amount of visual information on the screen is an even bigger push in the direction of "form".
RandomSeed
Member
Up/down and right/left on the right stick has uses. The left stick goes through tabs, the right stick goes between inventory and vendor. Up and down on the right stick can be used to scan long lists, and up in the inventory will return you to the tabs.
Call Me A Hero
Member
Chrono Cross UI, especially that ugly brown background and the plain colours used for elements. Also, the save menu.
What the hell? Where do they tell you that in the game?
RandomSeed
Member
I just tried different things. It could be in the tutorial section, but I never got around to reading it.
pixelation
Member
Ridge Racer Type 4 is king. King I say.
How sexy was that Wipeout HD Fury menu? Too damn sexy.
Needs music for full appreciation: https://youtu.be/uOjjJBx8eTU?t=2m47s
Very good choices!
The only good thing about that menu was that it looked like it ran at a higher resolution than the rest of the game, and it looked pretty nice and sharp for a PS1 game.
pixelation
Member
I'd add Wip3out to the mix, one of the first games to use minimalism in game menus. Still looks awesome to me.
ebullientprism
Member
My favorite example of going from best to worst has to be Halo 3 to Halo 4 UI*.
Halo 3 -
In typical 343 fashion of fixing what aint broke, they looked and it and went "nah we can add shit to it to make it better".
And we ended up with this monstrosity -
GfuckingG.
*Best images I could find.
Halo 3 -
In typical 343 fashion of fixing what aint broke, they looked and it and went "nah we can add shit to it to make it better".
And we ended up with this monstrosity -
GfuckingG.
*Best images I could find.
John Rabbit
Banned
Ridge Racer Type 4 is king. King I say.
these posts right here. late 90s PSX games are still unmatched in the sheer progressiveness of their design choices. wip3out and R4 are easily cream of the crop in this respect.
similarly:
Ace Combat 04
also, that end of mission screen with the arrows representing the fighters.
ResidentDante
Member
Ridge Racer Type 4 is king. King I say.
Great choice! R4's menues are sublime and slick.
How sexy was that Wipeout HD Fury menu? Too damn sexy.
Needs music for full appreciation: https://youtu.be/uOjjJBx8eTU?t=2m47s
The WipEout series has always had great design and art direction.
WipEout 2097/XL menues are easy to navigate and clearly presented, with type of race, ship and track, then a simple start button to get going.
WipEout 3 also had very minimalistic, but simple menues to navigate:
icecold1983
Member
Hardline has some of the shittiest, ugliest art ive seen in a long time
Ryse, order and driveclub have great art
Ryse, order and driveclub have great art
Modest Mauser
Member
tDR does great work in Wipeout. The logo design is great in addition to the UI and menus.
Ridge Racer Type 4 is king. King I say.
R4 definitely had the best racing art design of all time, and I say that while acknowledging the cyberpunk loglo bliss of the Designer's Republic. Namco was literally insane not to make that aesthetic their eternal brand. I'd pay out the ass to see it in HD.
Interficium
Banned
tDR does great work in Wipeout. The logo design is great in addition to the UI and menus.
This is actually Edd Wainwright stuff from one of the later WipEout games, although heavily inspired by tDR.
I love the design of Smash 4s UI but holy shit is it unorganized.
I think the Batman Arkham games have nice UI's and menus.
Sonic Generations too.
Persona 5 is looking to be one of the best ever. Sorry for no pics, I'm on mobile.
PlayStation All-Stars and Dragon Age Origins are the worst in recent memory. The Witcher 3 is guilty of shit menus too, Jett covered my thoughts on it.
I think the Batman Arkham games have nice UI's and menus.
Sonic Generations too.
Persona 5 is looking to be one of the best ever. Sorry for no pics, I'm on mobile.
PlayStation All-Stars and Dragon Age Origins are the worst in recent memory. The Witcher 3 is guilty of shit menus too, Jett covered my thoughts on it.
Jo Shishido's Cheeks
Member
Good = Final Fantasy XIII
Bad = Smash Bros. 4
Bad = Smash Bros. 4
MarkMclovin
Member
Demon Souls / Dark souls look like shit.
First one I thought. So fast and responsive.
I love Pillars of Eternity UI as well. I think for a kickstarter game (where they don't focus so much in these things) it looks really great IMO.
Dreadnought
Member
Reach has the best UI by design and functionality, worst is by far Halo 4. I don't know what 343 was thinking with Halo 4's UI
DOWN
Banned
My favorite example of going from best to worst has to be Halo 3 to Halo 4 UI*.
Halo 3 -
In typical 343 fashion of fixing what aint broke, they looked and it and went "nah we can add shit to it to make it better".
And we ended up with this monstrosity -
GfuckingG.
*Best images I could find.
Reach has the best UI by design and functionality, worst is by far Halo 4. I don't know what 343 was thinking with Halo 4's UI
Reach to Halo 4 was so pathetic and sad. Reach was a marvel.
Earthpainting
Member
A little surprised to see people bring up Final Fantasy 10 as an example of the "best". I'd describe it as a compost pile of clashing gradient colours, arbitrarily difficult to read, and just all-around unpleasant to look at. A veritable synaesthetic nightmare that could only have existed as a gaudy 90s screensaver, or a PS2 launch game where they were too enamoured by the colour depth of new hardware and the ability to do tacky gradients.
ResidentDante
Member
Speaking of FF. I really think FF13's menues and presentation are slick as hell. Love them and the smooth looking transition when switching screens.
diggmcbadass
Member
Guess I am more of a practically oriented guy, because all the prettiness made for a very slow menu system that infuriated me when I played. The stripped down menus of Dirt Rally are a hundred times better to me, because they are simple to use and fast responding.
Yup my favorite GUI design for a game, particularly on PS3/PSP/Vita. Beautiful, clean and simple.
I dislike the square+rectangles tiled smartphone UI style greatly. It is so fucking bland and uninventive. It looks clean, sure. But it's creatively shit and uninteresting.forza horizon 2 is smooth and clean, like Windows 8
Phat Michael
Banned
i didnt like the game that much but i thought the Last of us' crafting system was very easy to use and good to understand. The inventory system was well thought out.
Opposite of this is Dragon Age Inquisition. Terrible menu and inventory and load times to bring up a new damn character.
Opposite of this is Dragon Age Inquisition. Terrible menu and inventory and load times to bring up a new damn character.
