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[MochShot]

Hey there,

Just wondered what everyone's preference would be for a health bar. I am making a RPG game for android and apple phones and Im trying to get as much feedback as possible.... even on the tiny things like this! See images below!



We need all the feedback we can get. RPGs are one of the hardest games to get right, but we want to revive the good old gameboy days!

http://www.rollplaygamesltd.com
http://www.facebook.com/rollplaygamesltd

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: @rpglimited

[Sik]

Depends, if the maximum HP remains fixed then percentage is acceptable, but if not the current/maximum style is pretty much the way to go (you want the player to be able to get information as accurate as possible).

[Netsu]

If it's in any way important to the player what the actual MAX HP is then numbered is needed. Otherwise percentage is better imo.

[rj]

i vastly prefer the numbered over the percentage. percents seem iffy and inexact to me, but the amount of hp you have total vs how much you -could- have is a better metric for seeing how fucked you are.

i think.

25

[MochShot]

Yeah -- I am considering removing the number/ % displayed on the HP bar. I wouldn't want to copy Zelda but I do like their heart hp system -- I could change the hearts into azurite crystals (main element of our game)... that could also work. Just trying to get as much feedback as possible.

Thanks!

Drew

[Moth]

yeah I'm not sure a numeric readout of any kind is necessary when you have a bar, because you get your information at a glance from looking at the bar itself anyway, and it takes more time to think about numbers than it does to see how much is filled (imo)

If there's an item usage menu then of course it would be handy to have the exact numbers there so you know what potion you can use without being wasteful, but I think it's only really strictly necessary in contexts like that

[SirNiko]

Like Moth said, the percentage is redundant since the bar already shows you the percentage at a glance.

You might consider making the bar change color at 50 and 25% (Start green, turn yellow at 50% and red at 25%). This gives you the important stuff at a glance.

I like the idea of keeping the HP/MaxHP on the bar, but making it bigger and prettier.

MP as a percentage makes no sense unless Magic costs a percentage of your magic, then I'd just go for MP/100 instead. That's a place where you want the numbers so you know if you can cast a spell or not.

What are scenarios where the player might want to know their exact HP? Consuming potions, monsters or traps that deal a specific amount of HP? Think about those and consider if there are ways you can communicate these without the need for a HP count, such as highlighting a potion or putting an exclamation mark over the monster (As an example, games will often prevent you from drinking potions at max HP, or warn you if using the item will waste some of the effect). This is still useful even if you keep the HP number.

[baconman]

Are you going to have different classes of HP recovery?

Because that's the fine line right there. If your HP recovery items are doing a percentage of the max to recover, you can stick with the percentage; but if your HP recovery items recover a set amount of HP, then you should go with the numerical approach, to see if the player can benefit (later) from using one of the smaller items to get the full recovery effect of it or not.

[Ooops]

I prefer 100/100 to 100%

The former conveys a meaning of 100 distinct units of health, while the latter is continuous in nature. Percentage would make more sense if it was possible to have fractionary health values, like 85,4% for example, which doesn't seem to be the case.

[The Translocator]

Display the bar and the current amount as HP on the bar, and when taking or healing a damage number show the player the number, and when it's a percentage show the player the current percentage as well as how much it increased or dropped by- limit the amount of information shown to only what's needed for the current situation. The bar gives you an estimated percentage- it's a percent bar- so any time you don't need to *know* the percent, don't show it. The bar does not tell you what full health would be, though, or what half health means, so show the amount the bar represents somehow. The amount divided by the percent the bar represents gives you an estimate of the max health.