HUD in games

[Kadoodle]

I sort of feel that people have a tendency to ignore the quality of a game's HUD. Nobody ever compares HUD from game to game, and nobody ever complains about the overall quality of HUD. Take, for example, Assassin's Creed. That game had an awesome HUD, with the DNA theme and the nucleotides, and the text and data that blinked all over a selected enemy. Enter Assassin's creed 2, a game where the HUD was reduced to ugly white quadrilaterals. How did it go from complexity to vomiting simplicity? I'd rather have small DNA encrusted rectangles over blank white diamonds any day. It was the HUD change that made me loathe AC2, and I suspect I might get flamed for that statement.

Another example is F.E.A.R. That game had a decent looking HUD that didn't take too much of your attention away from the shit inducing scare sequences. Then came F.E.A.R. 2, with an overly futuristic and fancy HUD (somewhat like in the Metroid Prime Series) that totally ruined the scares. No, ruined is the wrong word, rather, it made them feel like a different kind of shock.

Now look at the HUD for Just Cause 2. Generic, bland, uninteresting.

Now look at the HUD for Battlefield Bad Company 2. Awesomeness due to excellent design and color scheme.

Anybody get what I mean?

 

[benderinTime]

The HUD can be whatever it wants as long as it displays the information I need, and it does it well. Otherwise, I couldn't care less.

 

[Kadoodle]

The HUD can be whatever it wants as long as it displays the information I need, and it does it well. Otherwise, I couldn't care less.

I guess you're not as picky XD

 

[Mittens The Kitten]

Fable 3 got rid of the HUD altogether, and my 2 cents is that it made the game better, so i am pretty much of the opinion that increasing the amount of info available from non-HUD element is better for building immersion. But thats not always possible.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

The Metroid Prime series did it really well, even down to Samus' eyes reflecting in the visor during flashes in dark environments.

 

[Badgersaurusrex]

I Personally loved the Dead Space HUD it was melded into the Character and you didn't have to worry about look at the little block in the corner of your screen, in a way I feel most HUDS spoil games. Feels like they get in the way of the art of the game.