I'm getting more and more to the point where I think that a real graphical user interface becomes essential before continuing to work on anything else. This is especially important for creating any advanced gameplay related features. I do not know if biNAry_giRL has started to work on the GUI already? If not, I would start out by implementing a framework that allows the minimalistic and lightweight creation of more or less complex user interfaces.
This might be a good starting point for contributors to work on single display components instead of writing a large part of the engine if they are just starting to work on the project. :ugeek:
My goals for this framework will be...
This might be a good starting point for contributors to work on single display components instead of writing a large part of the engine if they are just starting to work on the project. :ugeek:
My goals for this framework will be...
- Easy creation of complex menu structures making excessive use of object oriented design patterns and well-known best practices
- Easy creation of stylized GUI elements like a life bar, tool bar, inventory and so on
- Rendering will be internally done solely using OpenGL and LWJGL (display elements will be rendered via textures and quads)
- Works without additional frameworks (I had a look at some available GUI frameworks for Java and LWJGL... but I really don't like them)