Minimap for dungeons.

[Kite]

Would it be possible when/if dungeons are going to be released, that there would be a transparent minimap that shows your position in real time on the UI when we enter, this way players won't get lost? Or at least make the dungeons a bit linear so its easy to know where to go. 

[Munya]

I think, at least in my mind, what makes some of the dungeon mechanics work(for example ice-sliding puzzles) is that you cannot see everything that is coming next and kind of have to correct as you go.  Maybe if they could do it in a way that leaves the map blank until you actually uncover tiles.

[Kizhaz]

10 minutes ago, Munya said:

I think, at least in my mind, what makes some of the dungeon mechanics work(for example ice-sliding puzzles) is that you cannot see everything that is coming next and kind of have to correct as you go.  Maybe if they could do it in a way that leaves the map blank until you actually uncover tiles.

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon style

[fredrichnietze]

getting lost or being forced to make your own map as you go sounds like more fun imo. dont hold our hands too hard 

[Riesz]

1 hour ago, Kizhaz said:

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon style

meaning if it's a multiplayer dungeon, each of us can only bring one pokemon?

[Kite]

1 hour ago, Munya said:

I think, at least in my mind, what makes some of the dungeon mechanics work(for example ice-sliding puzzles) is that you cannot see everything that is coming next and kind of have to correct as you go.  Maybe if they could do it in a way that leaves the map blank until you actually uncover tiles.

I was thinking more of a general outline of a map so the player knows where the walls are, but I wouldn't mind a Mystery Dungeon style map either.

[Rache]

This is not an official response, just my own thoughts on the idea.

 

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The way I see it, the actual need for a highly detailed minimap or linear progression would indicate a failure in the dungeon's visual design and flow. Ideally each map would be distinct enough to stand out from each other, even while sharing the same tileset - it should be possible to navigate the dungeon by looking for landmarks etc, and any path not intended to be hidden should be easy to see. Seafloor Cavern is a good example to look at for navigation via landmarks - even if a player gets lost, the maps and puzzle arrangements look different enough that players should be able to figure out if they're somewhere new or not.

 

It's also debatable whether a minimap would actually work within the design of the series itself. For example, most caves use stairs or ladders as a means of switching from one map to another, meaning that displaying a minimap for an entire cave would result in a lot of overlap. If dungeons also use ladders/stairs, a minimap would need to be separated into floors, making it a lot less useful overall unless each floor is also extremely large. For the sake of preserving puzzle difficulty, a minimap would also have to be simplistic (think original Zelda), and unlocked as players explore instead of from the start of the dungeon.

 

With that being said though, a way for players to find each other if any dungeons are co-op based (like the last Christmas event) may be useful, depending on how/whether they're forced to split up at any point and how well the map design reunites them when they're expected to be together. I'm personally mixed on the idea - it would utlimately depend on how the dungeons are designed and how easy it is to get lost.

[notmudkip0]

5 hours ago, RacheLucario said:

a minimap would also have to be simplistic (think original Zelda),

I actually remember asking a developer about a mini map during a christmas event, said he wanted to do it I think