[Feat Suggestion] New viewmode for MCE and integrated: "Floating Window"

[TiagoTiago]

This would work kinda like the Hybrid or the Free Aim mode, but instead of the relative part working like a joystick, it works like how when you set the screen resolution to bigger than your display device can handle (if your graphics driver got this feature of course), when the cursor reaches the edge of the physical screen it scrolls the virtual screen, in games with integration when the cross hair gets close to the edge of the screen (or a user defined rectangle or ellipse) and the user moves it further, instead of the crosshair moving on screen the avatar starts turning (for MotionCreator, since we can't have a free crosshair, aiming past a certain amount will move the "center" position, the position you get when aiming the physical 'chuk straight ahead); it's kinda like as if the screen is a loose frame, when you push against the sides you move it.


As an additional feature, the "window" could have user settable momentum and friction (respectively: how long it keeps moving after being nudged; and the curve of the slowdown rate, between sharply slowing down near the end of the period , and slowing down quickly at first and slow at the end).



What do you think?

[Leonard Callus]

This would work kinda like the Hybrid or the Free Aim mode, but instead of the relative part working like a joystick, it works like how when you set the screen resolution to bigger than your display device can handle (if your graphics driver got this feature of course), when the cursor reaches the edge of the physical screen it scrolls the virtual screen, in games with integration when the cross hair gets close to the edge of the screen (or a user defined rectangle or ellipse) and the user moves it further, instead of the crosshair moving on screen the avatar starts turning (for MotionCreator, since we can't have a free crosshair, aiming past a certain amount will move the "center" position, the position you get when aiming the physical 'chuk straight ahead); it's kinda like as if the screen is a loose frame, when you push against the sides you move it.


As an additional feature, the "window" could have user settable momentum and friction (respectively: how long it keeps moving after being nudged; and the curve of the slowdown rate, between sharply slowing down near the end of the period , and slowing down quickly at first and slow at the end).



What do you think?

Is it a sort of Windows 8 feature (the one you shift screens) but special for Razer Hydra? I think if yes it shout be controlled by a gesture!
And how will it be made available to Razer Hydra end users?

[TiagoTiago]

The too-high resolution thing was just an analogy; i'm talking about a new viewmode, like free-aim on games with integration and all those MotionCreator offer (MouseLook, FreeLook, Dual Analog, Hybrid and Akimbo).



I don't think i have to answer your last question after explaining this but i will anyway just in case: if they implement this suggestion, games with integration should be getting an update with this additional mode, and the next version of MotionCreator will have this additional viewmode.

[axelbernadotte]

Sounds like it could work nice in some sidescrolling games.
Is your main point to give the "screen" a certain simulated weight, so that if you toss it to the left with high velocity it will move quite far before it settles down, and to slow it down and stop it you must make a countering exaggerated movement to the right to balance against its simulated weight and momentum?

I guess that feature is equally possible to do with hybrid.

But as i understand fps games you never move a pointer to the edge of a virtual screen, but always move the virtual screen in an open edgeless space. If i understand it correct then you would first have to reprogram the specific fps game engine that you want this feature to work on. But if you base the "weight simulation feature" on hybrid it should be possible to make it work also in fps games.

[TiagoTiago]

Sounds like it could work nice in some sidescrolling games.
Is your main point to give the "screen" a certain simulated weight, so that if you toss it to the left with high velocity it will move quite far before it settles down, and to slow it down and stop it you must make a countering exaggerated movement to the right to balance against its simulated weight and momentum?

I guess that feature is equally possible to do with hybrid.

But as i understand fps games you never move a pointer to the edge of a virtual screen, but always move the virtual screen in an open edgeless space. If i understand it correct then you would first have to reprogram the specific fps game engine that you want this feature to work on. But if you base the "weight simulation feature" on hybrid it should be possible to make it work also in fps games.


In FPS games with integration the crosshair is not locked to the center of the screen in FreeAim mode, the same would happen when they implement Floating Window mode; in those cases once you stop pushing against the edge of the "window" (either the edge of the screen itself or a user defined region) the crosshair would remain still relative to world coordinates (would remain aiming at the same thing, if both the player and the thing aren't moving relative to each other) while the camera itself remains moving, though if it moves enough the opposite edge would eventually touch the crosshair terminating the kinetic movement prematurely; but when using MotionCreator there would be no premature termination since the position of the crosshair is relative to the "center" and the "center" itself is being moved.


edit: that is if you're using the kinetic mode; if the time to stop is set to zero then the camera would stop moving the moment you stop pushing the edge

[Danny]

This sounds like a 2d approach, similar to what Killzone 3 does. Am I mistaken?

[TiagoTiago]

I haven't played Killzone 3 yet; do you got any videos that demonstrate that camera mechanic you are talking about?




My idea is kinda like waving a stick thru a picture frame without a picture in zero-G while embedded in a substance of arbitrary viscosity properties; if you don't move the stick too much the frame stays in place, but if you move it enough it pushes against the insides of the frame causing it to move (in the FreeAim-like mode that would be used in FPS with integration, the stick is the crosshair and the frame is the screen edges (or the edges of a user defined region); while for the MC the stick would be the center of the screen (with the camera movement controlled kinda like MouseLook but without a ratchet mechanism), and the frame would be the edges of an imaginary region around the "center", the "center" being the point the mouse cursor goes when the 'chuk is aimed straight ahead)

[cookies4you]

Interesting...

So by expanding an angle-based approach, you're suggesting the ability to set a custom "dead-zone" based on a physical screen? The only problem with this is, that monitors come in many shapes and sizes. You would need a calibration of sorts to make it work correctly.

[Danny]

Killzone 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=levDGb1FY6E#t=439s

[TiagoTiago]

Interesting...

So by expanding an angle-based approach, you're suggesting the ability to set a custom "dead-zone" based on a physical screen? The only problem with this is, that monitors come in many shapes and sizes. You would need a calibration of sorts to make it work correctly.


Obviously the screen's aspect ratio and resolution should be taken in consideration in the math if you wanna make it not have unused spaces on each side or move the crosshair outside the screen when moving up or down.

It's not exactly a deadzone, it's kinda like plain MouseLook with direction based ratcheting and a "deadzone" where no ratcheting takes place (outside the deadzone only motion away from the center is used to turn the camera, but inside the deadzone, it depends on whether it is in a game with integration or if you're using MotionCreator; in an integrated game while inside the deadzone the motion only moves the crosshair, and with MotionCreator it works like MouseLook mode without a ratchet button).


I'm in the middle of trying to make an animation to show how it would work right now.

[TiagoTiago]

Killzone 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=levDGb1FY6E#t=439s


Ok, no, it's not really like that; outside the "deadzone" the motion is not joystick-like, it is still kinda MouseLook-like.

[TiagoTiago]

Well i kinda gave up on the animation 'cause my OCD was kickin in a bit too hard regarding the lighting and render quality (those things are not really important for this, but trying to beat OCD with logic is of little use) so i decided to try somthing else for the moment; unfortunatly i'm kinda hitting a little roadblock with this new approach. I am trying to code a rough mockup in GlovePIE using the desktop scrolling thing (vertical scrolling standing for pitch and horizontal for yaw), but i can't figure out the math to have it work the way i want it to, i could probably make it work using conditionals but i got a feeling there is a way to make it work with math, not quite sure though...