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Following on from that, we are thinking very seriously about how delay timing interacts with the tooltip contents and context. This is a contender for some configuration options. Enough people have asked about an off switch that I think I have to give a straight answer to this: a blanket off switch is not a strong contender as a configuration option.

One of the reasons for this is that many, many of the tooltips in the game are not new in a content sense. Format and delay may have changed but the majority have been around for a very long time and they are attached to so many systems and of so many content types that the 'simple fix' of an off switch is really not so simple. On the other hand, as changing delay has exposed some of these to people's perception for the first time, it seems much better to focus on that issue - with improving tooltip content formatting where necessary as a followup measure.

....

Following on from that, we are thinking very seriously about how delay timing interacts with the tooltip contents and context. This is a contender for some configuration options. Enough people have asked about an off switch that I think I have to give a straight answer to this: a blanket off switch is not a strong contender as a configuration option.

One of the reasons for this is that many, many of the tooltips in the game are not new in a content sense. Format and delay may have changed but the majority have been around for a very long time and they are attached to so many systems and of so many content types that the 'simple fix' of an off switch is really not so simple.

....

The list now has a maximum width limit

The list background has a slight transparency applied to it

There's been some great feedback and we're working through a list of tweaks and fixes, with some to come to TQ very soon.

First, I want to address some misconceptions. The test server, AKA SiSi. Some of the new tooltips were A/B tested on SiSi. All the new tooltips were subsequently on SiSi for all accounts on SiSi for two weeks.

Then there is the matter of pre-existing content that has not changed. An example of this is the solar system map. It hasn't changed. Feedback on how much that needs some love is welcome but it's not feedback on the last release. Other examples are many, many tooltips that were pre-existing but are now in a new format, with a different delay. This makes them more noticeable.

Following on from that, we are thinking very seriously about how delay timing interacts with the tooltip contents and context. This is a contender for some configuration options. Enough people have asked about an off switch that I think I have to give a straight answer to this: a blanket off switch is not a strong contender as a configuration option.

One of the reasons for this is that many, many of the tooltips in the game are not new in a content sense. Format and delay may have changed but the majority have been around for a very long time and they are attached to so many systems and of so many content types that the 'simple fix' of an off switch is really not so simple. On the other hand, as changing delay has exposed some of these to people's perception for the first time, it seems much better to focus on that issue - with improving tooltip content formatting where necessary as a followup measure.

To the list of things we will have ready to deploy very soon:

UI tweaks:

When you hover over brackets in space the full name and distance is displayed next to the bracket.

The tooltip that explains the details of the icon associated with an overview entry is now displayed only when hovering over the icon in the overview.

The tooltips for the buttons in the Selected Item window no longer overlap with the important information in that window.

The tooltip for the skill queue in the NeoCom now continuously updates the remaining skill training time.

The name column in the overview now has a tooltip with detailed name information for that entry.

A number of changes have been made to the bracket list tooltip for overlapping brackets in space:

• The bracket list tooltip is no longer displayed for single brackets
• The logic for picking which brackets to include in the list has been greatly improved
• The bracket status information (such as reinforcement time and anchored status) has been added to the entries in the list
• The list now has a maximum width limit
• The list background has a slight transparency applied to it
• An issue has been fixed that kept the list open after interacting with it

Fixes:

A number of hardcoded statistics strings in the starmap tooltips have been replaced with properly localized strings.

The indicator overlay on overview icons that you have targeted is no longer overlapped by the icon itself.

Fixed the anchoring position of the tooltips in the map browser (opened with F11).


This is not an exhaustive list of incoming fixes, nor the end of the tuning work. Moreover, we plan to expand and iterate on tooltips going forward.

1. If an on/off switch is not on the table, then revert everything but the mouse prediction changes back and start over. Seriously. The gameplay of enough people has been so negatively affected that there is no other reasonable option.

2. The tweaks are fine, but, again, do not address the real problems with the bracket system. The real problem is that the new tooltip / bracket system has pushed players toward interacting with lists and taken away some of their ability to interact with space. (Here is an example: “The list background has a slight transparency applied to it.” That's nice, except that the problem with the list background is not just that it blocks my view, but that it is a giant box I am forced to interact with. When the list is up I cannot select or interact with objects behind it—what I have to do is either spend time making it go away, or scroll down this cumbersome list of stuff I can plainly see in space. No one had a problem like this before the changes, but now PVPers, missioners, explorers, all types of players who interact with objects in space are negatively affected.

3. Also, nothing was said about redundant tooltips, but many of the examples have been pointed out of tooltips that are downright stupid. Here is my suggestion: assume your players know how to use a computer (they did, after all manage to get themselves logged in to eve, for instance). Next, for every tooltip, ask yourself: does this convey essential information which players would, at some point, search to find? I can assure you that 90% of your tooltips do not meet this qualification, and therefore should be removed or given an on/off switch or relegated to the tutorial or made highly discrete. Here is a concrete example for you: the tooltips that pop up when I mouse over a module, like a set of turrets, and show me the DPS and other statistics—essential information. Tooltips which pop up telling me I am mousing over a station, a star, a star gate, my cargo hold, etc., especially when that information is already displayed—not essential or even helpful.

Finally, I've raised concerns about how these changes are going to help new players. I've argued that they will harm many new players, by overloading them with yet more information which demands their attention--a huge problem in eve which I thought CCP Rise addressed in his fanfest presentation where he said the plan was to move away from ~words everywhere~? Yet here we are, literally spreadsheets in space now.

.....
1. If an on/off switch is not on the table, then revert everything but the mouse prediction changes back and start over. Seriously. The gameplay of enough people has been so negatively affected that there is no other reasonable option.

2. The tweaks are fine, but, again, do not address the real problems with the bracket system. The real problem is that the new tooltip / bracket system has pushed players toward interacting with lists and taken away some of their ability to interact with space. ...... No one had a problem like this before the changes, but now PVPers, missioners, explorers, all types of players who interact with objects in space are negatively affected.

...... we are, literally spreadsheets in space now.

Well, thanks for the update.

As per usual you're not listening to your player base, or only with half an ear determined to push this through for the only sake of a better understanding for new players.

It makes me wonder if the devs behind this have ever played any game that starts with a tutorial level to make the player largely aware of what is what and what does what and how 'A' interconnects with 'B'.

It's sometimes annoying because by now I know in most FPS games the 'W' button is to move forward, 'S' for backward and control for jump or crouch etc.
The good thing is that once the tutorial level/phase has past you're (usually) no longer bothered with in your face tips that you know by now.

Why is it so hard to understand that most of your player base loathes being treated as if they are still in the tutorial phase?

Why can you not understand that all these tool tips popping up *everywhere* is immersion breaking?

You know what the best UI is? One that isn't in your face. You just made it worse and persist on keeping it here.

Why do you insist on pushing this through, no matter what, with slight alterations for the entire player base while this is by and large aimed at a better NPE?

Why can you not make this optional with options what tooltips a user likes to see where and when.
I'm certain you can make this happen but you just won't, like the annoying scan when you pop-in a new system as it serves absofrigginglutly no purpose when you're (for example) moving stuff in a freighter from Amarr to Jita.

Why does CCP insist on implementing mandatory game chances that should be by any good design have options to be tweaked on a personal user based level?

Why is it so frikking hard for CCP to understand that choice is good?

While it may well be that people who call for the firing of others, fling abusive tosh around, or indeed issue various flavours of threat themselves, merit a threat or two in return, this wasn't a threat.

More of a promise.

While it may well be that people who call for the firing of others, fling abusive tosh around, or indeed issue various flavours of threat themselves, merit a threat or two in return, this wasn't a threat.

More of a promise.