Research Screen UI from hell

The mouse wheel zoom doesn't inverse - just me getting confused because I expected it to scroll. Rest of the problems still stand.

 

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The layout is terrible and not fitted for any kind of screen format used by humans.

 

Please consider laying out the research screen like the screenshots below. I was thinking of writing the same thing as OP. In Galactic Civ 3 you have a list format and a research tree. Also, please remove the closing of the research screen from the top right. Guess what else is there, closing out the game if you are not on full screen.

List View

Tree View

 

One tech tree I really like is the one used in FreeOrion. What really makes it stand out is the autogeneration meaning it doesn't have one fixed layout. Instead if reshapes itself to match whatever filter the player picks. The filters are stuff like "already researched", "researchable now", "techs where one requirement is met", "techs where no requirements are met". Stuff like that to make a big tech tree easy to read for new players because the default setting is already researched techs+what can be researched right now. This means when starting out, players will not look at the most advanced techs and be confused. Instead it is small and easy to read.

The ability to filter based on category seems like a good idea too. "Only display power techs" would be a nice filter if you are low on power and looking into what can be done about it.

The main reason why this would be great for ONI is that it would adapt to include modded techs. Modders wouldn't have to pick coordinates. Instead the coordinates is selected based on tech requirements. This means no tech location conflicts.

Looks like both games were released about a year apart. I'll have to check that game out. To expand on what Nightinggale mentioned, the below screenshots are examples of how the filtering works in GalCiv3.

 

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This means when starting out, players will not look at the most advanced techs and be confused. Instead it is small and easy to read.

I agree with this 100% and the rest of the post. Looking at this research tree or in other games that do this is very intimidating. The first thought is usually, what the heck do I need to research. Once you play the game you know what you need. But, breaking things down in smaller chunks helps greatly. I like the fact in GalCiv3 broke this down into tree and list view. So if I need to look at the tree to see what research path I need to beeline, I can easily do that. The bigger picture here is I am in the research screen less and playing the game more!!