Interfaces & Immersion • Video Game Analysis

Analysis of video games often neglects the heavy lifting done by the Interfaces.
Interfaces are an unsong hero for video game immersion and in this video, we explore the qualities they bring to the table.
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[@lostinsalem6562]

Nier Automata has the greatest HUD customization imo. HUD elements are literal microchips the player instals. You can have all the info on your HUD if you want, but you wont have space for some upgrades. Or ditch some if not all the HUD elements, making your game riskier, but allowing the player to equip more offensive upgrades. I think not only is that a clever way to encourage experimentation and adding the HUD into the game's narrative. But as the protagonists get more unhinged, and you the player get better. It starts to make more sense as a player to ditch some of the early HUD elements meant to help newcomers in favor of tools that better suit your playstyle.

[@AesirAesthetics]

enjoy :)

[@novelezra]

You're wrong. I never ever get suckered in by the queue candy. Oooh! M&M's!

[@jimmybuba2683]

I personaly love the Killer 7 interface adding so much style to the game along with the sound design

[@ArchOfficial]

I always loved how flight simulations especially about modern aircraft can display 99% of the needed information inside of the world via gauges and MFDs. Some planes have a better UI, some have a worse, and the individual plane does more than just change the "stats" of what you're using, but it also somewhat changes *how* you use it, especially when you get into the modern military jets with their very different layouts for the MFDs.

[@benservey9295]

I loved how star wars squadrons/the old x-wing games had the HUD as the cockpit. Really makes you feel like a pilot

[@simonrockstream]

I cant believe you didnt mention the Metro games. Most of the hud is in-game items, the map, watch, etc. It's fantastic

[@AesirAesthetics]

thank you :)

[@TempestDacine]

Armored core drew me in so hard as a kid. Great video.

[@hazzar7784]

Thanks for producing! Lovely video. I always get a kick out of seeing old HUDs from PS1, early ps2 days. I myself don't mind minimalism, i would go without HUDs, if I could, but games usually can't relay all necessary info with out. I don't blame them for that. On the other side though, the Armored Core argument shows how much a HUD can add to the experience, and I have nothing to say against that lol.

[@AesirAesthetics]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@fredhrodrigues9019]

I like how it always seems that you are smiling while you talk, great video

[@AesirAesthetics]

😊 thank you

[@WellImNuts]

The Metroid Prime games are also great examples of excellent hud design. No other games has put this much effort in making you feel like you are behind a helmet's visor. Nearly every bit of the games interact with the visor, or through it, in some way, whether its purely visual, like getting raindrops on it when looking up into the dark sky, dust and other environmental effects, or crusial gameplay information like a lock-on reticle, missile count, energy, scan info, thermal display or effects showing what type of damage you just took. It is also 3D! It moves slightly when you do, conveying that it is indeed a helmet you are wearing and not just some flat numbers and icons on a screen. It's non-minimalistic yet non-intrusive.

[@ZaidMohammedAlShaheed]

I remember wanting to play it because of that back in the day but ended up settling with republic commando.

[@WellImNuts]

@@ZaidMohammedAlShaheed RC's visor HUD also kicks ass! Great game.

[@wailingwarlie]

My prediction is that the HUD/interface will follow a cyclical trend. At the moment when it seems to have almost completely have disappeared in AAA titles, a game will be released with the most complex and well thought-out HUD. It will be a smash hit, and suddenly Big HUD will be back in fashion.

[@hazzar7784]

Your prediction could more or less come true with The Callisto Protocal. Being developed by the same people behind the original Deadspace. Great use of HUD. I always thought the health bar on the back was a little immersive breaking though. It make sense to have one there in both VG logic and real world, but another on my arm would be appreciated. I can't personally see the health bar on my back lol

[@snakeshepard9761]

@@hazzar7784 it's on your back so you don't get demoralized, so the only thing to occupy your thoughts is to keep on keeping on.

[@hazzar7784]

@@snakeshepard9761 works for me lol

[@AesirAesthetics]

that honestly wouldn't surprise me

[@MemoriesLP]

I dont understand this. Why would you create an overly complex UI for Resident Evil, Last of Us, Uncharted, Dark Souls... Minimalistic UI can show more the world for the player, and some games benefit from that. A game with a fixed camera on your back is much easier to have am UI printed, while a game like Horizon Zero Dawn how are you supposed to see your HP if it is fixed on your back? Also looks easier to make an UI with technology, while games that dont have those are harder to have a good UI. How would you make the UI of Last of Us fit more with the world? Yeah the backpack would make sense to look like a backpack, but what about HP bar, and weapon icons?

[@NikolaiKojevnikov]

so glad you mentioned AC

[@avibi]

When you talked about the mecha fantasy in the Armored Core section I couldn't help but reminisce about the interface for Gear battles (both turn-based and arena) in Xenogears.

[@existentialmoron6334]

I really love these kind of vids where it doesn't tackle a single game, great video! Altho I was kinda hoping you'd talk about Nier: automata :p

[@AesirAesthetics]

maybe someday :)

[@gangganggang2219]

I'm adding to the crowd that says the Nier games use HUD and menu elements to great effect. Automata uses loading screens in very interesting ways in the late game and for Replicant, Yoko Taro literally looked at a file select menu and said "how can I get an emotional response out of this" in his gdc talk. I'm a minimalist so the less covering the screen the better in my mind, I had never considered that unnecessary visual clutter could add to immersion instead of interrupting it. Very interesting. Great video, thanks for uploading! Bonus games: Undertale has a great battle HUD that is used to surprise the player in various battles (specifically the end of the genocide route) What Remains of Edith Finch uses a storybook aesthetic for all the menus and for spelling out voice overs as a form of subtitles. Metroid Prime has Armor Core similarities with everything being a part of the helmet that samus sees through. Even going as far as to add a reflection of her face on the screen when something bright happens in front of the visor.

[@golgarisoul]

Thank you for remembering Armoured Core. It's one of my favourite series. Shame, as it does appear From Soft has left it in the dust.

[@AesirAesthetics]

I have 5 videos left to make on Armoured Core, so stay tuned.

[@321cheeseman]

@@AesirAesthetics Just 5 videos? Do you intend to cover a single numbered entry and all of its derivatives each video?

[@AesirAesthetics]

@@321cheeseman no, just the numbered entries.

[@321cheeseman]

@@AesirAesthetics Aw man, that leaves out literally all of my favorites (MoA, SL, LR, fA).

[@letthebasscannon223]

ah, Armored Core, I hope that if we ever get a new game; it isn't just "Mecha Souls" and instead still plays like an AC game

[@vivecthepoet36]

Tbh I would be interested in both

[@EB_DC]

Well. New Armored Core on the way ( :] ), and according to some interviews (no exact sources, sorry) it won't be a Soulslike at least.

[@victorbianquini3636]

Notification squad signing up

[@ZaidMohammedAlShaheed]

I needed to hear this, thank you so much

[@aaronzucker7246]

Great job as usual, AesirAesthetics!

[@SiberianFenek]

Just discovered your chanel with the armored core video and hearing you talking about the comment section and looking at the type of videos you make and what games you are interested in. You are as underated as armored core is. I never heard anything notable about it and was wandering why the most interesting games are barely mentioned by anyone. For every succesful Sekiro and Bloodborne, how many games with interesting mechanics and ideas are ignored ? Anyway, from the little i saw i have to say you make great videos.

[@AesirAesthetics]

thank you :D

[@JuliusCaesar103]

Really enjoyed this video!

[@AesirAesthetics]

you got your Dead Space ;)

[@JuliusCaesar103]

@@AesirAesthetics you're the best Aesir

[@GrayFoxHound9]

I feel like clean minimalistic interfaces often do exactly the opposite of what they should. If it is there that means that you still need to look at it for the information. But now, instead of looking at stylised for the world interface that your brain interprets as a natural part of experience, you look at row numbers, lines, filters/layers and information and remember "yeah, videyagame". The same is true about many attempts to make games more cinematic. Like drastic contrast of visuals and/or action and pacing between cutscenes and the core gameplay, having adobe photoshop interface menus and gui for selecting stuff and pausing in otherwise cinematic experience, etc.

[@leftovernoise]

I really love this series you're doing!

[@Knight_Astolfo]

Let's Go!

[@autumnalvoid9646]

*interacting with the comment-part of the interface and waiting 5minutes to hit send instead of watching the next ad... I'm a rebel...*

[@Arionid]

No mention of Cruelty Squad. Sadge.

[@jimmybuba2683]

I loved how older versions had a fragmented star shaped thing near the ammo that when shooting fast enough it would spin and look lile a spiral now its just a face but everything else is great

[@awsgames]

Armored core looks bad ass, reminds me of comparing weapon drops in Diablo 2

[@AesirAesthetics]

It's great!

[@marquisdan7659]

Great video! What do you think about the interfaces in the Persona series, especially 4 & 5? I always appreciated how much effort they put into the aesthetics in those games.

[@AesirAesthetics]

I've never played a Persona game so I couldn't comment

[@fhjunior6183]

Thanks for the vid

[@AesirAesthetics]

You bet

[@henrycarpenter2252]

great video

[@AesirAesthetics]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@danielchequer5842]

one game where the interface is maybe the main aspect of the experience is Duskers.

[@KekkanSeihin]

#justacommentofappreciation

[@DevaPein]

i wish i could get like armoured core 3 remade cause i never got to own the game on ps1, but you bet your ass i played the demo a lot with my brothers and such

[@Evarakeus]

Fallout was practically forced to minimalism in the HUD with the transition to FPS. The bulky old HUD of the iso games would severely impact the presentation of the game in first or third person, much more than a boring HUD like 4's does. Even the power armor HUD, for as nice as it looks, has some very popular mods that make all but the actual info it presents completely transparent, so as to obscure less of the screen. I think 3/NV's HUD was about the best middle-ground they had. As for good HUDs, you completely ignored racing games, which almost always have used actual speedometers to present even superfluous info, like revs in a game with automatic shifting. Some of the old NFS titles even let you change the speedo's appearance as a part of a car's customization. Sim games, on the other hand, tend to emulate a race car's actual multi-function display (the screen you'll see on, for example, an F1 steering wheel), with games like Gran Turismo and Project Cars letting you scroll through relevant info screens and adjust settings with the d-pad.

[@TheGajknight]

On TLOU, it has a realistic setting and therefore, like real life, shouldn't have a GUI at all. I don't really know what you could do with TLOU's GUI to make it better, other than making it as much of a background element as possible, which Naughty Dog have. Would like to hear some ideas on this!

[@PhilipsLS1300]

do you reckon you could do another Lets Play Silent Hill commentary? Maybe Silent Hill Origins or The Room?

[@AesirAesthetics]

One day

[@madcat789]

Ah, Armored Core. Absolutely fantastic. I think you'd like Mechwarrior, if you liked Armored Core.

[@aelius3805]

Mechwarrior was my jam for most of my life (Loved the newest Elite Dangerous game too) The multiplayer stuff for the newer Mechwarrior games turned me off of buying them. I don't hate multiplayer games but I just prefer to play games by myself.

[@madcat789]

@@aelius3805 Mech5 certainly was a disappointment to me, but outside of that? Four great games and spinoffs for each.

[@aelius3805]

@@madcat789 Is there a good one for consoles? I'm not really a pc guy anymore. Lol.

[@madcat789]

@@aelius3805 Closest thing would be Titanfall I'm afraid.

[@aelius3805]

@@madcat789 Damn! A man can dream though.

[@vj7248]

A perfect example of this, UX being thematic vs mobile game 'clean' is non other than Demon's Souls. Look up a screenshot of the original Demon"s Souls and check the UI. Now, look up Demon's Souls Remake and look at the UI of that... The 'clean' UI just looks so out of place.

[@NeverduskX]

While this video addresses a lot of points, I think some of this discussion has to do with minimalism vs maximalism. Older games generally seem to have been much more maximal than newer games. As a result, I think player preference can heavily depend on what games they grew up around. The interfaces for games like Armored Core seem overwhelming, cluttered, and busy to me - but I can acknowledge and appreciate how you may prefer that over cleaner, more focused designs. What feels "clean" and "focused" to me might just be empty and lifeless to others. I personally enjoy UIs that feel like they're not even there so I can focus much more on the world itself, and I even play some games like Skyrim with the UI disabled altogether until combat starts.

[@relhimp]

Highfleet

[@phantomjoker5]

oooh

[@annyonny1224]

In before Kotaku spearheads the games 'journalism' industry's coordinated attack against this channel, doxing the owner and obsessing about his numbers, and purportingly debunking his allegedly 'far-right' video gaming 'conspiracy theories' not by addressing any actual points he's ever made but simply by calling him names, and, also, insinuating he has 'strong ties' to the (in their world) 'ongoing GG Pandemic.'

[@redtukeguy4263]

🤔

[@ozy667]

What a boring and mundane subject

[@AesirAesthetics]

:(

[@egoborder3203]

as someone who just completed a playthrough of Fallout 3 (on PS3) and Fallout 4 (on PS4) back-to-back, I can say the Pip-Boy interface is an awful choice

[@snakeshepard9761]

I replayed the PS2 Ratchet & Clank games a year ago and I couldn't agree more. Also, when I was a kid my favorite was 3, now 3 can kind of go fuck itself lmao it's so half-assed that playing it is almost insufferable and the plot gets dumber and more childlike with every sequel (I gave up on R&C Nexus and from what's I've seen of the remake/reboot I'll never play it). Now my favorite is 1, followed by 2. I like the HUD in Armored Core, but I almost always disable the altimeter since in the toughest battles it just gets in the way and I don't want other shit on the screen.

[@AesirAesthetics]

I'm on the same boat. I thought R&C3 was the bomb. But it really ages poorly compared to it's predecessors.

[@dethoza]

Seeing more games that embrace the Interface the way you described it, is probably not gonna happen for AAA or mainstream titles any time soon. I mean Amored Core was already more of a side stream game, just like most mech games. But I understand what you were getting at. Using the interface as a tool to enhance the game's world and make it feel like it is a part of it, is definitely always cool when it happens. I see this as a feature that is often ignored for the sake of streamlining games. But dismissing immersive features of interfaces as distracting or because they steal space in the HUD or not even thinking about these two arguments, because the creative process for HUD design doesn't give you the breathing room to even consider, transmitting a story telling element through it to the player, are all symptoms for the creative corruption big studios often suffer from. Checkboxes that are to be checked, don't animate creative thinking. Another example that I remembered were some of the Assassin's Creed games, where killing civilians or doing other things in direct conflict with the character you possessed would give you warnings about desyncronization, which is tied to the overall story, that you are just a character re-enacting scenes from their ancestor's history for the sake of information. Also I think a new challenge, which is currently tackled by game devs with more creative solutions popping up every day are VR game HUDs.

[@civilwarfare101]

You make some interesting arguments but I generally don't really care for all that stuff. When you complain about the whole cinematic thing, I think there is a bigger issue regarding them. That and people overly complaining about them and tons of double standard.