10 Things You Didn’t Know About Video Game UI
5. Why Dead Space's "Menus" Were So Special
The chances are, if you’re picturing a HUD, you’re thinking about non-diegetic UI.
This is UI that exists "outside" the game universe, elements that are only visible in the player’s world, in the HUD, not the characters'.
The health bars in Street Fighter 2 Turbo, for example - you didn’t think Ryu and Dhalsim could look towards the screen and see two enormous hovering health cylinders, did you?
But what if the HUD exists in the game world, and the player characters are aware of it? Things like the pop-up display used in Dead Space (with that ultra-neat spine-centred health bar on Isaac’s suit), or all of Artyom’s vital information displayed on his watch/clipboard in Metro: Exodus. These elements are existent and present in their world, and so the information is shared between both worlds (game and player).
Depending on the context and genre of game, it’s the UI specialist’s job to determine which of these two is most suitable, as both have pros and cons.
For example, non-diegetic might be better for immersion, but not so good for immediacy (as UI displayed on a watch, for example, will not always be displayed to the player - not ideal if you need to watch your health like a hawk!).
What about you? Do you have a preference?