[Freeciv-Dev] Re: Tileset

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On Thu, Dec 14, 2000 at 11:41:25PM -0700, Nathan Lovell wrote:
> I've tried out freeciv a few times over the years, and but this time I've 
> decided to get involved.  
> 
> In my opinion, one thing that really limits playability is the tiny
> tile size and difficulty pickin out enough detail to distinguish
> terrain.  With my 19" monitor at 1280x1024 the icons are just too small to
> give a nice effect, and as average dpi of displays increases, this problem
> will just get worse.

I have played on a 17 inch monitor at 2000x1500 without any such problem.
(The problem was the 49 Hz refresh rate :)

  There are two options, as I see it (neither a
> trivial change, I think):
> 
> 1- Add one more size (90x90)? that will be useful for the foreseeable
> future.

This is actually quite doable: Freeciv doesn't depend on a hardcoded
tiles size!  The two main tilesets (Trident and Engels) actually have
different sizes.  Someone published a smaller tileset a few months
ago.  I have started work on a purely 'symbolic' tileset in which the
tiles would be completely non-pictorial, which should make them easier
to recognise, but I haven't had any good results yet.

> 2- Or more invasively, move to a scaled environment a la Alpha Centauri
> (if memory serves)

Work on an OpenGL client was started (it's on the ftp site)
but never finished.

> At some point, an optional elevation (SMAC again) will be useful for
> modpacks, and the 2nd method will make that easier (I think).  A zoom
> could also be implemented in that case for those wanting to get a little
> closer to the "action" ;)

I much prefer the 2D view and so do many others, but I have also
seen many voices for a 3D or quasi-3D 'isometric' view.

> How:  Use 128x128 (256x256) texture and scale/transform as needed
> 
> Just a thought.

You're not alone ...
 
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