For Christmas I would like these bugs fixed

*COMPASS ROSE: players without magnetometers still have no rotation of their compass Rose in Prime, even though there is no such problem with pokemon Go.

The compass rose issue has been constantly misrepresented as being part of the 'direction of travel' issue. It is not, and must be treated as a separate issue. When the map is drawn, the game know which roads run N-S, and which roads run E-W. the compass rose needs to point to North on the map, which is already coded into the map, and has no relation to magnetic north.

Some genius tied the compass rose to the avatar arrow, and tied the avatar arrow to the magnetometer so that all three fail without a magnetometer. But the compass rose is supposed to point to north on the map, which has no connection to north in the real world, and therefore should be tied to the map, not the avatar or magnetometer.


*PARTIAL LINES OF TEXT IN COMM: comm messages are being cut vertically. Perhaps some phones render them in a different font size? This is really interfering with in-game communications.


*BIGGER NEUTRAL PORTALS: for real, we've been complaining about this since prime first came out. Almost nobody can see neutral portals when the map is zoomed all the way out.

*TEXTURE THE CONTROL FIELDS: People can't see XM, or neutral portals under control fields. Under a big field, in poor conditions, it is hard to realize there is any color on the screen. Apply a texture si we can tell.


*MOVING XM: one reason neutral portals were easy to spot in classic ingress was the moving environmental XM, and the stationary XM around the portals. We need these two kinds of XM in Prime .


*BUILD A PLATFORM FOR CLASDIC INGRESS:

You told us we would get used to prime, and learn to love it like we did with classic ingress.

I can't wait forever for that to happen. I'm still here. I still love playing ingress. I'm getting used to prime, I know how to make it work, but I can't PLAY prime. I'm just working prime. I have a job for working, and unless you plan to pay me $25/Hr or more, you'll never see me use prime as much as I used ingress. Because there is no joy for me in 'playing' prime. I dont enjoy it, and I want to enjoy Ingress again. I want to enjoy playing CLASSSIC ingress again. Prime still gives me no sense of happiness, and never will.

Prime should not be the future of ingress.

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Comments

  • The sizes for portals could be set using a 'config bar' with 2 sliders, one for unclaimed and one for p8.

    Players could then select min and max sizes to suit themselves.

  • edited December 2019

    The issue with scaling up the neutral portal is that it scales up the rest of them. The 'spread' of a portal is it's level, and it's far more discernable now than it ever was under the 1.0 client. If you increased the Neutral portal size, by extension, the P8 would be significantly larger.

    Realistically, the high top-down view, should not be a standard play mode. In 1.0 you could never get to a complete 2D view, and because of that, the plume from a portal was always usable to provide more hit area for a neutral. Niantic made the mistake of allowing the 2D view as part of the normal zoom.

    The view itself is nice but it should only occur as a *selected mode*. e.g. you cap at 60 degrees off horizontal, but can press a button or make a gesture, to switch to the 2D top down view, then switch back. If you take the time to not be at the 2D view, neutral portals are perfectly fine the way they are.

    Niantic should never have made the final view of the zoom out, be the 2D view. That's the problem.

    If you've seen it at all, think of the "Rocket Radar" from PoGo as the switch to 2D view.

    You could also have the selected 2D view be able to pan around wider than the normal 60 degree view for additional benefits.

    Aside from that, and ignoring the last item because it won't happen, I've got no disagreement with the list.

  • GersterwindGersterwind ✭✭✭
    edited December 2019

    I think the problem is not the 2d map at all. I also think the problem is not that higher portals would scale up either.

    The problem is that the portals hould all be the same size (L8 size), and they should contain both vertical and horizontal elements.

    Classic ingress already had a method for indicating the level of a portal, and it wasn't size. Portals of different levels are discernible based on the number and color of resonators around their base., a feature which prime also already shows. Making portals of higher levels larger wasn't necessary, and was implemented not by making L8 larger, but by making L1 smaller, thus leading to the wholly justified complaint that neutral portals are now harder to see.

    Classic ingress had no actual 3D rendering, and the map never tilted. 2d in prime is not a problem. Forced varying angles of view are a problem. I will literally never need to view portals in street view, especially not while close up. Having to see them this way interferes with my ability to specifically interact with multiple portals very close to me.

    The only reason zoom and angle change exists like this is because Unity is a bad platform for ingress, and it's probably not possible to zoom without changing angle of view in Unity, because Unity is a bad platform for any game to use, especially a game like ingress.

    Another problem with seeing portals is that in prime, there is no way to see neutral portals with their vertical "3D" forms on a 2D map, because they are rendered as mere points the same size as the XM particles. Earlier versions of prime gave portals some base flare, or made the "shield ring" part of the design for all portals so that they might be visible.

    In classic ingress, XM formed a static "tree skirt" around portals, and XM not associated with a portal drifted along. But our superior graphics in prime can't seem to render moving XM for some reason, so it all looks the same.

    And I want my hoddamnd compass already.


    Regarding my last request, prime absolutely is killing ingress. Classic ingress, with a real platform, and reliable game play, and visible visuals, and a working compass, and railroad tracks on the base map is what we need. If Niantic can't provide that, then they should give the codes for Redacted to someone who can.

  • The problem is that the portals hould all be the same size (L8 size)

    Classic ingress already had a method for indicating the level of a portal, and it wasn't size. 

    Actually it did. P8 portals were larger and their plume was taller. You could tell because as you watched the update for a final R8 going on it, it would grow slightly.

    The difference is actually the 2D you dismissed. If you keep your camera at a sub 60 degree angle, there is zero issue seeing or selecting neutral portals because they present plenty of face.

    Classic ingress had no actual 3D rendering, and the map never tilted.

    I really think you're failing to remember Redacted. The game was only in an isometric plane and never 2D.

  • I usually select 'just off vertical' so that portals have a bit of height. At that angle there is a big difference between even P6 and P7, P0 are moderately visible, much better than the first version of 'prime' I remember trying.

    What are almost invisible are keys, I think they have a reasonable (maybe to much) height but almost no width - so are invisible from above.

  • Classic ingress did not have 3D. Neither does prime. None of these games run with hologram projectors.

    More to the point though, classic ingress did not attempt to simulate 3D to the same degree that Prime does.

    Classic ingress had an approximation of 3D, in which the map DID NOT TILT from the 60 degree angle. This did not make a thing in ingress three dimensional. Because it was always rendered at 60 degrees, the avatar, portals, resonators, keys, and any other dropped item could be rendered as a 2D image representing something viewed from a 60 degree angle, rather than requiring the items on the map to be rendered as fully 3 dimensional objects on a screen which could change its view at any time. This system allowed for a remarkable reduction in game storage space, CPU usage, and/or server messages.

    Unlike prime, classic ingress did not tilt from 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, 40. 30, 20, 10, or 0 when zooming in or out. Such a tilt is entirely unnecessary to play ingress, and in fact, is a detriment to the game play. Any time two portals are lined up with the avatar, zooming i to touch the farther one is impossible, because the nearer portal will get in the way. Any tim a portal is behind you, zooming in to tap the portal is impossible because as you zoom, the view switches to 0 degrees, and the portals behind you fall out of view.

    Unlike classic ingress. Portals in prime fail to be visible at the map's widest zoom, not because the game is 3D, but because the portals are rendered as 1D items, with only the dimension of height.

    You're certainly right that if the map did not shift angle-of-view all the way to 90 degrees, the portals would still be visible, but that is because the portals are not three dimensional on a 3D rendering... of a 2D map, with one or two dimensional objects.

    And Prime is rendered in three dimensions because of Unity, which stupidly forces angle-of-view to rotate as one zooms in or out, a feature which is of the most dubious utility in any game. It is a total gimmick, no better in terms of play than the 60 degree 2D rendering which classic ingress used... indeed, in terms of play, it is far worse, because it puts unnecessary CPU demands on the phones, causing more chances for lag, or glitches.

  • edited January 2020

    Classic ingress did not have 3D. Neither does prime. None of these games run with hologram projectors.

    I don't think you understand what an isometric projection is. Generating a 3D visual rendering on a 2D plane. Please get over your pedantry you're not helping.

    You're certainly right that if the map did not shift angle-of-view all the way to 90 degrees, the portals would still be visible, but that is because the portals are not three dimensional on a 3D rendering... of a 2D map, with one or two dimensional objects

    No, they're an isometric projection of a 3D space on a 2D plane.

    Unity is happening whether you like it or not. Instead of telling us all how we're wrong, maybe you should focus on commenting on the possible solutions, instead of explaining how a video works.

    Capping the isometric angle at 60 degrees will ensure all portals are rendered in a form that allows for a viable hit area. Providing an alternate "birds eye" view mode will allow people to still have that 90 degree plane view without having to change all the portals.

    Ingress is now an isometric projection of a 3D environment on a 2D plane with relative perspective changes, and you really need to accept that so you can move forward.

  • NineBerryNineBerry ✭✭✭✭✭

    I really like the new interface. Zoom in and you get an immersive feeling like you are actually at street level. Zoom out and you get a very useful 2D map for navigation. I also don't have any problems seeing neutral portals at any zoom level. Fully zoomed out, they are a bit smaller compared to max zoom out on redacted, but that's to be expected because you can see further when fully zoomed out on Prime compared to Redacted.

  • The real problems arise when you really want to zoom in but still be reasonably abive your location.

    This is necessary to get 'right on top of' a portal (or resonator) to get maximum effect from an ultrastrike.

    Also useful when you are trying to microfield (and layer) very dense groups of portals - eg when there are 5+ inside the 40m circle.

  • Unity is happening whether you like it or not. Instead of telling us all how we're wrong, maybe you should focus on commenting on the possible solutions, instead of explaining how a video works.

    Thanks. But I'm explaining how the video process used for REDACTED was better than the process used for PRIME.

    Telling me to get over redacted is no help when my entire point is that prime is worse than redacted in several ways.

    The easiest solution, would be to develop a new platform that redacted worked on. Then, if needed, the few good innovations that prime brought in could be brought over to the classic game which had success a higher rating, and maintained such a loyal fan base that we have a ghost town now that it is gone for good.

    Oh, right. Classic ingress is a dead end. Prime is the future. The harder way is to have me cry forever for every single feature that I want back, and have you tell me prime is the game now, and I need to get over it, instead of changing any thing at all.

    Either way, the fact remains that there are way in which classic ingress was better than prime. The only way to see those features return is to talk about them.

    Were redacted and prime both 3d isometric projections on a 2d screen? Sure. But since the angle of view for redacted never changed, the programmers got away with rendering every feature in it as a single polygon.

    Since angle of view changes for Prime, each item must be rendered with several polygons to make them look solid, at a cost to CPU, at a cost of increased lag and latency in game play.

    And because the zoom and angle are linked in UNITY, it also comes at a cost of not being able to see portals up close from above, at a cost of missed microfielding opportunities.

    What is the benefit? Some players get to feel like they're right in the action... even though they can't perform as many actions. Gee, this forced combination of pan and zoom is great.

    Not to mention how using UNITY means every spoofer from Pogo or HPWU automatically has all the tools they need to crush prime without crawling out of bed.

    Not to mention how switching to unity throws out seven years of troubleshooting skills.

    Not to mention I still think having a texture applied to fields would be a good idea, and shouldn't be harder with any particular platform.

    Not to mention I still can't see neutral portals because they're scaling down too much, and dont have enough horizontal dimension.

    Not to mention it would still be great if railroad tracks were visible on the base map.

    Not to mention that a compass rose should be able to indicate north on the map without having to first determine where north is in the real world.

  • @Gersterwind no matter how much you want it, Niantic is not going to bring Redacted back. Their chosen platform is Unity, and that's where all the dev is now happening.

    Regarding my last request, prime absolutely is killing ingress. Classic ingress, with a real platform, and reliable game play, and visible visuals, and a working compass, and railroad tracks on the base map is what we need. If Niantic can't provide that, then they should give the codes for Redacted to someone who can.

    This is also not going to happen. It's their property. Niantic is not an open-source software house.

  • Interestingly, zoom on the remote pirtal view behaves differently to the main map zoom.

    As you rotate toward vertical it stops rotating and expands the map instead.

    This would probably be better than the 2D view, although expanding the map further would be better.

  • While locking rotation to something below full 90 degree view might help, the design of the portals themselves can still make viewing neutral portals a serious challenge. Take a look at some of the screen captures in this thread.

    I showed a set of three images for the same place, where the portal at my feet wasnt visible until angle of view was almost 40 degrees.

    I also showed that due to a lack of anti-aliasing, portals a certain distance away can disappear at some angles, even at max zoom, because they are rendered as less than one pixel wide.

    By all means. Please do limit the shift in angle of view, or give us a way to do so. I'd be quite pleased if i could permanently lock it at 60 degrees.

    But there's still going to be problems with portal visibility, and the compass rose, and the untextured fields, and the stationary XM, and the railroad tracks, and I want them all fixed.

  • NineBerryNineBerry ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2020

    If that is how the game looks on your phone, then get a new phone.

  • GersterwindGersterwind ✭✭✭
    edited January 2020

    If you think a new phone will do the trick, maybe you can buy it for me.

    Maybe you can buy a new phone for everyone who thinks the visuals are bad.

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