Improving Photon UI
eveonline.comPhoton is a massive undertaking to overhaul the EVE User Interface. The current UI is functional, so many players have asked why we chose to embark on a large project like this.
During its twenty year development, EVE has seen many features, all with specific user interface needs. Some of these features have pushed the UI into new territory, exploring new ways to improve the interface, but not always with an established design language in mind. This has made parts of the UI less than cohesive, even confusing, and difficult to master. In addition, maintaining many UI styles is ineffective, leading to increased development time.
Last year saw the formation of a dedicated User Experience team, whose primary responsibility would be the in-space experience of EVE Online. As EVE’s user interface allows access to nearly every feature while in space, there was a lot to consider. Efficiency and sustainability need to be considered, not only from a development and technology point of view, but also on a user experience level. This is all a part of EVE Evolved and setting EVE Online up for the third decade.
At this point, all the different UI styles needed to be realigned so the actual UI improvements would build on a solid foundation. This was particularly important given that we would be touching up the interfaces of many more features in the future and tackling one of the most complex aspects of EVE Online's interface: The HUD (which would include the Overview). The different UI styles implemented in certain features over the years were all pulling in different directions, not only complicating design decisions but also causing confusion and frustration for players.
The goal is to make the UI more intuitive, accessible, and coherent
