So many changes in a few years!

[dai]

I've returned to ADOM after an absence of a few years, and have been playing 1.2.0 pr 20 for a couple of weeks. So much has changed!

While I've been happily stumbling across lots of the changes (lumps of clay! unexpected reward from 1st dwarf quest!), I've kind of ignored one major change - the possibility of non-ascii graphics. I played one game with the new graphics, and didn't really get along with it (I'm happy to bore you with the reasons if you're curious), and I'm now playing with the good old ascii graphics.

I was wondering, do people generally play with the new graphics? Is this the way ADOM is heading - are future (commercial?) versions likely to use sprites rather than ascii?

[Ravenmore]

You will always be able to play in ASCII mode in all future ADOM versions, graphical mode is just an addon.

We're always glad to hear comments on which mode you prefer to play and why is it ASCII

[dai]

You will always be able to play in ASCII mode in all future ADOM versions, graphical mode is just an addon.

We're always glad to hear comments on which mode you prefer to play and why is it ASCII

I prefer the clarity that you get with the ASCII graphics - it is always clear where you are standing in relation to other monsters and walls, and I like having the entire level visible on one screen. When I tried the version with the sprites, I found navigating around Terinyo particularly difficult - with the isometric view I walked into walls quite a few times, and I couldn't find the tiny girl at all - I found exploring the whole level more difficult scrolling around it, rather than being able to see the whole thing.

Although I'm sure it's also partly because it's new and unfamiliar to me!

Anyway, after a quite a few early deaths, I've got a good character on the go - a high elven assassin, pre-crowned with the shirt of the saints and found the scorched spear guarded by a shadow centipede. Time to get crowned then go to the pyramid I think...

[Harwin]

I had the same problem with graphics at the default window size, but if you can afford to full-screen it it works fairly well. It's still smaller than the text window, and I still use that if I really need to be careful about positioning, but it's big enough for me at that point. (In previous versions resizing the window would mess with your dungeon size, but it doesn't do that now). Have you tried that?

Edit:
At the very least you need to look at certain iconic enemies/NPCs in graphical mode at least once

[anon123]

I prefer ASCII because:

• The colors, default font size and dungeon design ADOM uses makes it look beautifully rendered, as opposed to a terminal window with some color thrown in like in NetHack.
• The entire map of the current level is visible at all times.
• Tiles are a relatively recent addition, whereas ASCII was the only choice for years, and thus the one I'm already used to.
• (A subproduct of the above) Because monsters and items are just a combination of a symbol plus a color, I can recognize most of them instantly.
• It lets my imagination decide how everything looks and sounds like

[JellySlayer]

I prefer ASCII except that:

-Monsters have health bars in tiled mode, giving you a bit more information about their HP.
-Herb status can be identified in ASCII without herbalism.
-Certain monsters of similar types are clearly distinguishable (eg. blink dog vs hyena).

I'd like to switch back and forth, but that requires you to play in NotEye mode all the time, even if you aren't using tiles, which I find quite sluggish (esp., say, missile/spell animations).

[Yinghei]

The tiles are quite beautifully done, but I like the ascii the more. Suspension of disbelief is also easier when an r is between you and a W than when you can actually see the rat blocking off the path of an ancient wyrm.

[Ravenmore]

I prefer ASCII because:

• The colors, default font size and dungeon design ADOM uses makes it look beautifully rendered, as opposed to a terminal window with some color thrown in like in NetHack.
• The entire map of the current level is visible at all times.
• Tiles are a relatively recent addition, whereas ASCII was the only choice for years, and thus the one I'm already used to.
• (A subproduct of the above) Because monsters and items are just a combination of a symbol plus a color, I can recognize most of them instantly.
• It lets my imagination decide how everything looks and sounds like

This list just about sums up why ASCII will always be there Maybe except #4 - as that requires some learning, just that most people here already know all the monsters by heart!

I prefer ASCII except that:

-Monsters have health bars in tiled mode, giving you a bit more information about their HP.
-Herb status can be identified in ASCII without herbalism.
-Certain monsters of similar types are clearly distinguishable (eg. blink dog vs hyena).
I'd like to switch back and forth, but that requires you to play in NotEye mode all the time, even if you aren't using tiles, which I find quite sluggish (esp., say, missile/spell animations).

#1 You can have that with ASCII+NOTEye, the sluggishness may have gone away in p.21 - I know Zeno managed a pretty noticeable performance boost. If not I'm sure there's more optimization work coming.
#2 I'm not sure I like that, sounds like an unfair graphical advantage. Will re-evaluate that part with the team.
#3 Yay!

The tiles are quite beautifully done, but I like the ascii the more. Suspension of disbelief is also easier when an r is between you and a W than when you can actually see the rat blocking off the path of an ancient wyrm.

Absolutely cannot beat the most powerful graphical rig out there, that each of us happens to carry around

[Dogbreath]

I can confirm that the sluggishness is gone in p21 - NotEye runs pretty seamlessly now.

[dai]

Once my current pc dies (or wins!?), I'll give NotEye another go in a larger window, particularly if I can switch easily between that and ascii ( I wasn't aware you could do that).

Sounds like there are more big changes on the way with pr21...