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Refreshing abilities should have only ONE animation.

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
edited September 2010 in Controls and User Interface
One thing that has always bugged me about Cryptic games, is their insistance of having TWO animations for an ability/skill/power timer.

When an ability (any ability) be it phasers, BO skills etc is used there are two timer animations on the icon. Is there any way that it could be dropped down to one?

Allow me to explain:
1) Press an ability. You'll notice that the ability darkens and then slowly a line goes from top to bottom until the ability is back to the normal color.
2) But then, it also does this little clock animation that isn't needed. That means that your brain thinks the ability refreshed, but it hasn't because you then have to wait for that stupid little clock arm animation.

Instead:
When you press an ability it should darken and then slowly it lights back up (the way it does now) with a timer on it.
That's it. It shouldn't also do the clock animation.

Why? Like every Cryptic game that does that (CoH, CO), I see myself constantly looking at the UI buttons instead of what is going on the screen. After playing WoW for a very long time, it was strange to me how in STO I found myself looking at the UI shortcut bar a lot more than my ship on screen (or super hero in CoH). I tried to figure out why was that and I finally figured out why. Cryptic decided to have two timer animations on any ability.

Additionally allow us to turn off the sounds for an ability that hasn't refreshed. There's no need for the thing to constantly be telling me it hasn't refreshed. Sometimes I'll hit a phaser right after the timer counts down but before the other animation (since I'm looking at it at the corner of my eye) my brain thinks it has refreshed. The current work around is to turn off UI sounds in the Audio options.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    The clockwise line from top to bottom is the global cooldown, I think. The other one is the actual power cool down.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Mourne wrote:
    The clockwise line from top to bottom is the global cooldown, I think. The other one is the actual power cool down.

    This.

    /10char
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Mourne wrote:
    The clockwise line from top to bottom is the global cooldown, I think. The other one is the actual power cool down.

    Wait, run that by me again?

    I think I see what you mean. So if I fire one torpedo, both torpedoes will get the second animation (global cooldown). Ugh...

    So are all abilities on a Global cool down? Is it by type of ability? Are all BO abilities on the same cool down?
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    I find the two refreshes helpfull. The timer is the "cool down" refresh and the "wipe bar" is the "caregory" refresh.

    So, for example, firing a torp will cause two timers, one timer is the funimental time before THAT specific weapon can be fired. The second timer is the timer before ANY weapon of that same class can be refired. Two very different times (potentially).

    I don't like the class crossovers, but, I do understand that they are somewhat required in Cryptics attempts to balance the powers fairly.

    I think Cryptic is doing such a great job! They deserve much praise (they even seem to have resolved most of the instancing issues, at least for all newer missions anyway).

    Go Cryptic! :D
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