CS:GO should have a modern buying wizard

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 09:08 AM

(Brought this up on the 45sec thread but someone suggested it should get its own thread.)

CS:GO should have a buying wizard similar to other games, to streamline the buying process.

When a round starts you start out on a buying screen. On this screen you see an avatar of your current equipment and you see how much cash you have. You are presented with five or six predefined "roles", like deagle+scout+helmet+armor, or ak+armor. Only the choices you can actually afford are highlighted, the ones you can't afford are greyed out.

You select your choice, either by 1 click on it, or by a key press (e.g., press 3 to select kit-out 3).

Now you are looking at an accessories screen where you can add things like grenades, flashbangs, night vision, and other accessories. Again, only what you can afford is highlighted, everything else is greyed out.

You click the ones you want and then click "done". If you are using a keyboard, you hit keys representing what you want, and then enter or escape to complete buying. Total number of clicks/presses to complete buying: two or three.

At any point you decide you are done buying you can hit enter/esc or click done to short-circuit out of the buying screen. When you exit the buying wizard your view then switches to your starting spawn point. That could always have been present on your screen, with the buying UI superimposed over top of it.

The server should KNOW when all players have finished buying. As soon as everyone is done buying the freeze ends and everyone can move. Alternately there's a timeout, if people don't buy quickly enough everyone else starts, while they remain frozen until they complete buying. On casual servers this buy-time can be longer, on competitive shorter. Say, 10 seconds in casual, and 3 seconds in competitive.

Here are some advantages of this buying system:

1. It is quicker than the current system, you can buy a whole kit-out with one or two keypresses.

2. It would work just as well for console or keyboard

3. It makes it easier to know what you can afford

4. Since you only have limited choices it becomes part of the game to try and set up sensible/strategic pre-defiened choices. That's all you get to choose from!

5. You could attach a uniform and other cosmetic aspects to each kit-out. On a clan/team you could assign different uniforms to different roles, so someone can tell by looking at you that you are a sniper, or a striker, or whatever.

The predefined choices would default to some sensible alternatives that n00bs could pick from. You would be able to edit the predefined choices from the main game menu, or while you are dead. You could not edit it during round start.

Krovvy · 09-01-2011, 09:10 AM

I'm for it if as long as they give me the option to play with old style buy menus.

The absolute worst thing about being a new player is sitting in spawn for half the round figuring out what items you can buy. It needs more fluidity, this may work.

solid_snake911 · 09-01-2011, 09:12 AM

This is a great idea for noobs but annoying for more experienced players....esspecially on an eco round when all i want is a defuse kit and an HE.

I would like to see this implemented as long as you can toggle it off and go back to normal menu. That or this type of buying only takes place during casual game types.

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Krovvy

I'm for it if as long as they give me the option to play with old style buy menus.

The absolute worst thing about being a new player is sitting in spawn for half the round figuring out what items you can buy. It needs more fluidity, this may work.

I guess you could have it time out and drop them into the round with the default (cheapest) kit-out if they do not buy within a time limit. Time limit could be super short in competitive, and a little more relaxed in casual. Say 3 seconds and 10 seconds.

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by solid_snake911

This is a great idea for noobs but annoying for more experienced players....esspecially on an eco round when all i want is a defuse kit and an HE.

Defuse kit plus an HE would be something like SPACE + 1 + 3 + ENTER/ESC.

Three key presses. (Space to skip the screen doing nothing, 1 for grenade, 3 for defuse.)

Faster than you can buy it now, unless you are using key binds, in which case it's equivalent to what you have now in terms of speed.

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 09:19 AM

Alternately the UI could require that choice 1 always be your "eco" choice, meaning, it be limited to only things you can afford when you have the minimum possible cash. This would be your default kit-out if you do nothing and time out of the UI, and would be choice 1.

In that case if you predefined it to just have a defuse and an HE then all you have to do is press 1-ESC to select profile 1 and then quit without adding anything other accessories.

It can be made faster than whatever you do today.

deadlymass · 09-01-2011, 11:30 AM

I'd like it if they implemented a system where I can push "B" and do my buy in about 1.5seconds based on what my team and I need that round.
You wouldn't even need to look at the keyboard and you could concentrate on calling or seeing where everyone spawned to figure out a rush.
Kidding aside, as long as they retain an option to use old style 1.6 type menu buy I don't care what others use.

arkivezero · 09-01-2011, 12:07 PM

this already exists in CSS, you can create buy presets and bind them to B S/D/F/G. not to mention F1 will buy you a ak/m4, kev+helm and defuse by default.

advantages 1-3 would only be good for casual mode. after playing the game enough people will be able to learn the buy menu to where they wouldn't need this at all. through time you'll memorize what the weapon costs are and you'll be able to do the simple calculations easily in the beginning of the round.

your "advantage" 4 would only restrict strategies. what if one of your team mates didnt have money to buy a gun but you had enough money to drop for him? if you were restricted to only certain load outs he'd be going into a round with a disadvantage and you'd have excess money that you wouldnt be able to use for no reason.

advantage 5 is also un-needed. if you were in a clan or on a team you wouldn't need to know what load out your team mate is using based on their appearance because you would already know through communication. not to mention their character model clearly states what weapon they are holding already. having different character models would just help out the other team. they would be able to pick off the ppl on your team that were holding awps or disregard ppl that didn't buy that round just because they were tipped off by obvious character appearances.

counter-strike as a whole is a hard game. the learning curve is there for a reason.

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arkivezero

your "advantage" 4 would only restrict strategies. what if one of your team mates didnt have money to buy a gun but you had enough money to drop for him? if you were restricted to only certain load outs he'd be going into a round with a disadvantage and you'd have excess money that you wouldnt be able to use for no reason.

Yeah I overlooked that you need to drop guns for your team-mates and that is very plainly important in CS, you have a good point there. I guess the UI should include key/buttons to drop your current primary or secondary weapon.

You would still be able to buy something for a team-mate, but you would be restricted to choosing from the stuff you predefined. That is not MUCH of a restriction since presumably everybody is going to have a couple of basic profiles so at least you would be able to throw off a good basic gun.

If people don't like the idea of the restiction on only buying from the predefined profiles then you could have an ability to pull up a full buy menu as some have asked for. You'd start out in the wizard and do your own buys, then if you had to team buy you could do that the current way.

Thormier^ · 09-01-2011, 06:16 PM

"Buying Wizard" LOL

Xiao Xiong · 09-01-2011, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thormier^

"Buying Wizard" LOL

Yup! Welcome to this century, we're 11 years into it already but you're always welcome to join.

Doni · 09-01-2011, 07:57 PM

Making people start the round with the buy menu automatically open is going to be really annoying. Not everyone has to buy something every round.

Forcing freeze time to last as long as people are buying is an even worse idea. I don't want to have to wait for Captain Indecisive to choose between two of his favourite guns. I also don't want to have to wait because a troll/griefer wants to abuse the system by making everyone wait it out.

I don't think players need a wizard to do everything for them. I believe the current buy system should be implemented as is, with improvements such as:
-What you suggested, greying out items that the player can't afford.
-An OPTIONAL setting to make it so the buy screen doesn't disappear after you buy each or any item.
-6 presets with better functionality and options, such as defining other guns in the preset to buy instead, provided certain conditions are met. Example: buy x gun instead of y if on CT, or buy z gun instead of x if money is below a certain amount.

*TRiGGa* · 09-03-2011, 09:32 PM

Good news: The current buy menus are for console only

suicidesurvival · 09-04-2011, 02:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by *TRiGGa*

Good news: The current buy menus are for console only

Oh, I actually like it

fpsbrian · 09-04-2011, 11:16 AM

I would like to sell my weapons back, to buy bigger guns when I'm low on cash!

09-01-2011, 09:08 AM	#1
Xiao Xiong Join Date: May 2010 Reputation: 72 Posts: 627	CS:GO should have a modern buying wizard (Brought this up on the 45sec thread but someone suggested it should get its own thread.) CS:GO should have a buying wizard similar to other games, to streamline the buying process. When a round starts you start out on a buying screen. On this screen you see an avatar of your current equipment and you see how much cash you have. You are presented with five or six predefined "roles", like deagle+scout+helmet+armor, or ak+armor. Only the choices you can actually afford are highlighted, the ones you can't afford are greyed out. You select your choice, either by 1 click on it, or by a key press (e.g., press 3 to select kit-out 3). Now you are looking at an accessories screen where you can add things like grenades, flashbangs, night vision, and other accessories. Again, only what you can afford is highlighted, everything else is greyed out. You click the ones you want and then click "done". If you are using a keyboard, you hit keys representing what you want, and then enter or escape to complete buying. Total number of clicks/presses to complete buying: two or three. At any point you decide you are done buying you can hit enter/esc or click done to short-circuit out of the buying screen. When you exit the buying wizard your view then switches to your starting spawn point. That could always have been present on your screen, with the buying UI superimposed over top of it. The server should KNOW when all players have finished buying. As soon as everyone is done buying the freeze ends and everyone can move. Alternately there's a timeout, if people don't buy quickly enough everyone else starts, while they remain frozen until they complete buying. On casual servers this buy-time can be longer, on competitive shorter. Say, 10 seconds in casual, and 3 seconds in competitive. Here are some advantages of this buying system: 1. It is quicker than the current system, you can buy a whole kit-out with one or two keypresses. 2. It would work just as well for console or keyboard 3. It makes it easier to know what you can afford 4. Since you only have limited choices it becomes part of the game to try and set up sensible/strategic pre-defiened choices. That's all you get to choose from! 5. You could attach a uniform and other cosmetic aspects to each kit-out. On a clan/team you could assign different uniforms to different roles, so someone can tell by looking at you that you are a sniper, or a striker, or whatever. The predefined choices would default to some sensible alternatives that n00bs could pick from. You would be able to edit the predefined choices from the main game menu, or while you are dead. You could not edit it during round start. Last edited by Xiao Xiong: 09-01-2011 at 09:12 AM.

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09-01-2011, 09:10 AM	#2
Krovvy Join Date: Jul 2006 Reputation: 52 Posts: 868	I'm for it if as long as they give me the option to play with old style buy menus. The absolute worst thing about being a new player is sitting in spawn for half the round figuring out what items you can buy. It needs more fluidity, this may work.

09-01-2011, 09:12 AM	#3
solid_snake911 Join Date: Jul 2004 Reputation: 18 Posts: 234	This is a great idea for noobs but annoying for more experienced players....esspecially on an eco round when all i want is a defuse kit and an HE. I would like to see this implemented as long as you can toggle it off and go back to normal menu. That or this type of buying only takes place during casual game types.

09-01-2011, 09:19 AM	#6
Xiao Xiong Join Date: May 2010 Reputation: 72 Posts: 627	Alternately the UI could require that choice 1 always be your "eco" choice, meaning, it be limited to only things you can afford when you have the minimum possible cash. This would be your default kit-out if you do nothing and time out of the UI, and would be choice 1. In that case if you predefined it to just have a defuse and an HE then all you have to do is press 1-ESC to select profile 1 and then quit without adding anything other accessories. It can be made faster than whatever you do today.

09-01-2011, 11:30 AM	#7
deadlymass Join Date: Apr 2004 Reputation: 123 Posts: 1,610	I'd like it if they implemented a system where I can push "B" and do my buy in about 1.5seconds based on what my team and I need that round. You wouldn't even need to look at the keyboard and you could concentrate on calling or seeing where everyone spawned to figure out a rush. Kidding aside, as long as they retain an option to use old style 1.6 type menu buy I don't care what others use.

09-01-2011, 12:07 PM	#8
arkivezero Join Date: Oct 2010 Reputation: 0 Posts: 24	this already exists in CSS, you can create buy presets and bind them to B S/D/F/G. not to mention F1 will buy you a ak/m4, kev+helm and defuse by default. advantages 1-3 would only be good for casual mode. after playing the game enough people will be able to learn the buy menu to where they wouldn't need this at all. through time you'll memorize what the weapon costs are and you'll be able to do the simple calculations easily in the beginning of the round. your "advantage" 4 would only restrict strategies. what if one of your team mates didnt have money to buy a gun but you had enough money to drop for him? if you were restricted to only certain load outs he'd be going into a round with a disadvantage and you'd have excess money that you wouldnt be able to use for no reason. advantage 5 is also un-needed. if you were in a clan or on a team you wouldn't need to know what load out your team mate is using based on their appearance because you would already know through communication. not to mention their character model clearly states what weapon they are holding already. having different character models would just help out the other team. they would be able to pick off the ppl on your team that were holding awps or disregard ppl that didn't buy that round just because they were tipped off by obvious character appearances. counter-strike as a whole is a hard game. the learning curve is there for a reason.

09-01-2011, 06:16 PM	#10
Thormier^ Join Date: Oct 2007 Reputation: 2 Posts: 67	"Buying Wizard" LOL

09-01-2011, 07:57 PM	#12
Doni Join Date: Apr 2010 Reputation: 117 Posts: 1,285	Making people start the round with the buy menu automatically open is going to be really annoying. Not everyone has to buy something every round. Forcing freeze time to last as long as people are buying is an even worse idea. I don't want to have to wait for Captain Indecisive to choose between two of his favourite guns. I also don't want to have to wait because a troll/griefer wants to abuse the system by making everyone wait it out. I don't think players need a wizard to do everything for them. I believe the current buy system should be implemented as is, with improvements such as: -What you suggested, greying out items that the player can't afford. -An OPTIONAL setting to make it so the buy screen doesn't disappear after you buy each or any item. -6 presets with better functionality and options, such as defining other guns in the preset to buy instead, provided certain conditions are met. Example: buy x gun instead of y if on CT, or buy z gun instead of x if money is below a certain amount.

09-03-2011, 09:32 PM	#13
TRiGGa Join Date: Aug 2011 Reputation: 41 Posts: 613	Good news: The current buy menus are for console only

09-04-2011, 11:16 AM	#15
fpsbrian Join Date: Aug 2008 Reputation: 84 Posts: 557	I would like to sell my weapons back, to buy bigger guns when I'm low on cash!