HotS UI Update - Page 11

On October 19 2012 23:11 paralleluniverse wrote:

LoL, DotA2, WC3 and WoW don't seem to have any problems with designing good online systems.

What did SC2 get?

A massive devolution, B.net 0.2, with absolutely nothing new (other than Facebook integration). NOT ONE SINGLE new idea, except Facebook.

The most basic features gutted, which have only slowly been re-added back in.

Blizzard's track record on the new B.net is abysmal. It's only recently that B.net and B.net changes in HotS are finally moving in the right direction. Is it because Greg Canessa finally got fired?

On October 20 2012 02:57 Lysenko wrote:



A couple things:

1) Greg Canessa did not get fired. He's now the head of mobile platform development for Activision.

2) Everything that [F_]aths said is exactly right. However, Battle.net 2.0 definitely had some significant project management problems.

The decision to design and implement what we ended up getting for Battle.net 2.0 for SC2 probably came later than it should have. The original software team for the unannounced MMO project got pulled off that around the end of 2009 to go into immediate crunch time to implement the first version of Battle.net 2.0. They threw what released with the game together in a very short period of time, starting from basically zero. Because of this accelerated schedule, a lot of desired features got cut or delayed to be able to arrive at a stable UI that allowed people to play the game.

Then, of course, while work on the UI has certainly proceeded, since the game was released, the Battle.net 2.0 team was drawn down again, since maintaining a full-size team is something they prefer to do with a new project. Because of this, the bigger changes (including under-the-hood changes that we really don't see much of, some of which have been patched into WoL by now) have had to wait until HOTS development ramped up.

There are obviously some disconnects with the community about the desirability of certain specific features, but many of the things people have suggested or asked for have probably just not been possible due to the staffing of the team.

None of my comments are excuses for them making choices that aren't best for the UI or the community feel of the game, but a little understanding of how things came to be the way they are can help put it in perspective, I think.

3) LoL and DOTA2 are certainly driving Blizzard's feature choices as much as anything. WC3's UI is really nothing to be particularly proud of -- it has some nice features but some things people remember warmly may not have been as actually successful at the time. WoW has a much, much larger UI team than any other Blizzard project.

On October 19 2012 10:36 Ethoex wrote:
I hope when Bliz meets with the players like they said on SOTG even better changes happen!

On October 20 2012 02:57 Lysenko wrote:



A couple things:

1) Greg Canessa did not get fired. He's now the head of mobile platform development for Activision.

2) Everything that [F_]aths said is exactly right. However, Battle.net 2.0 definitely had some significant project management problems.

The decision to design and implement what we ended up getting for Battle.net 2.0 for SC2 probably came later than it should have. The original software team for the unannounced MMO project got pulled off that around the end of 2009 to go into immediate crunch time to implement the first version of Battle.net 2.0. They threw what released with the game together in a very short period of time, starting from basically zero. Because of this accelerated schedule, a lot of desired features got cut or delayed to be able to arrive at a stable UI that allowed people to play the game.

Then, of course, while work on the UI has certainly proceeded, since the game was released, the Battle.net 2.0 team was drawn down again, since maintaining a full-size team is something they prefer to do with a new project. Because of this, the bigger changes (including under-the-hood changes that we really don't see much of, some of which have been patched into WoL by now) have had to wait until HOTS development ramped up.

There are obviously some disconnects with the community about the desirability of certain specific features, but many of the things people have suggested or asked for have probably just not been possible due to the staffing of the team.

None of my comments are excuses for them making choices that aren't best for the UI or the community feel of the game, but a little understanding of how things came to be the way they are can help put it in perspective, I think.

3) LoL and DOTA2 are certainly driving Blizzard's feature choices as much as anything. WC3's UI is really nothing to be particularly proud of -- it has some nice features but some things people remember warmly may not have been as actually successful at the time. WoW has a much, much larger UI team than any other Blizzard project.

On October 20 2012 03:57 SarcasmMonster wrote:
Point 2 is very interesting. Do you have the source(s)?

On October 20 2012 03:34 Kazeyonoma wrote:
O_o, do you work for blizzard, sure sounds like it.... did you interview me! lol

On October 20 2012 05:05 Lysenko wrote:


No sir, if I worked for Blizzard there's no way in hell I would be posting on the internet about it. That's one rule they take very, very, very seriously.

On October 20 2012 11:37 MadProbe wrote:


wow thank you for sharing this info. i wish blizz was more open about the whole process. then i wouldnt have spent 2+ years thinking their devs are complete idiots. its just the managers :p.