Why does the game clock run backwards?

[TykoTek]

I didn't notice this until I started playing with automation timers, but the game clock runs counterclockwise. 

Think in terms of taking a lunch break from 12-1 every day. Does the 12-1 time slice rotate around until it gets to the top? Which way would the slice rotate? Now check the image of the clock below and you'll see what I mean.

You really see this when you go to automation and set up a timer. In this case the game keeps the face fixed and moves the minute hand in a counter-clockwise direction.

This is unnecessarily confusing.

• Can I figure it out? Sure.
• Wouldn't it be easier for the face to stay fixed and the minute hand sweep around? Yes, much easier.

 

[metallichydra]

i dont think its a clock, but the asteroid that's rotating, and it just happens to rotate counter-clockwise.

but yes, its confusing.

[abud]

And it will be easier if we can input manually by keyboard. Sometimes that slider, I'm sure same number but open/close not exactly same time. Just let me type a number and hit enter please.

 

Edit: NVM, I thought clock on sensor

[Gwido]

Never had any problem with that.

[axelevert]

Sure it's not much of a problem, but it doesn't make sense that the clock by the cycle number goes one way, and the clock sensor goes the other way. It'd be less confusing if they went the same direction.

 

[bobucles]

The asteroid display on the clock sensor should be consistent with the display on top left corner. It's pretty hard to figure out what "5% day" means, but if the asteroid dial spins then it makes sense.

[Gwido]

The two runs the same way.

I think the thing that disturb you is that the asteroïd turns in the clock, but not in the sensor.

 

But if it was the arrow that turns arround the asteroïd in the main screen, you'll see that the two of these runs the same way.

[TykoTek]

Either way it's (IMHO) added complexity that doesn't make the game more fun for me...just annoying. I was trying to set up a chain of events with several timers and having the clock spin backwards with the face spinning in one screen and the red indicator moving on the other screen was unnecessary.

[Ambaire]

On 7/14/2019 at 3:47 AM, Gwido said:

Never had any problem with that.

Just because you never had a problem with it doesn't mean anyone else never had a problem with it nor found it confusing.

[bobucles]

Why force players to learn two different points of view when reading a clock, when the same clock display can be used twice?

[cpy]

I thought it's an asteroid, not a clock too.

[Nightinggale]

Space is a mysterious place where what we take for granted might not be valid everywhere. Venus has sunrise in west and sunset in east. It also has a yearly cycle, which is shorter than the day cycle (it rotates slower around itself than it rotates around the sun). Asteroids rotating either way makes perfect sense in a scientific sense.

However the human brain is buggy. It's optimized to not spend time/energy analyzing everything like it's the first time we see it. Instead it will just detect "it's something of that nature" and then fill in the blanks from past experience instead of spending the time observing and studying everything like it's the first time we see it.

Since we can't fix brain optimization bugs, we should just work around them and make the asteroid rotate like it's a clock. It will feel more natural to the player.

[Gwido]

3 hours ago, Ambaire said:

Just because you never had a problem with it doesn't mean anyone else never had a problem with it nor found it confusing.

When someone ask a modification on a feature that already exist in a game, it's also important to say if we don't want any change. Else there will be only posts showing people that don't like the feature as it is.

[Nightinggale]

7 minutes ago, Gwido said:

When someone ask a modification on a feature that already exist in a game, it's also important to say if we don't want any change. Else there will be only posts showing people that don't like the feature as it is.

I completely agree. While I very rarely agree with both viewpoints whenever this happens, I still support the freedom to speak your mind for or against any proposed idea. If we can never say it's fine the way it is, then a proposal can look like everybody wants it even though it might be just 0.5% of the forum.

3 hours ago, Ambaire said:

Just because you never had a problem with it doesn't mean anyone else never had a problem with it nor found it confusing.

When I wrote about the human brain, I considered adding something, which I now regret I didn't. Since we are all different, there are people who will have no problem with a backward clock while other people will have a huge problem and everything in between. Just like with left/right handed people, it's about no two brains working precisely the same and it has nothing to do with IQ or anything of that nature.

[ONIfreak]

Clock works the same way as pipes. Move backwards. I think that was general intention from devs to mess with gamers reception to be honest i kind of get the used to it and i started to like this mirror reception