Star Trek Online - LCARS and UI @ StarTrek-Online.net

Steve Mason, the Lead UI Designer for Star Trek Online, has posted at the StarTrek-Online.net forums regarding the game's interface.

My name is Steve Mason and I'm the lead UI designer & engineer for STO. I come to this site every now and then to read the threads about UI issues and it's always really inspiring to see. Star Trek is unique in that it's one of the few science fiction universes that has a distinct look and feel for its computer UI, so it's not surprising that so many people are concerned with the interface in our game. I'm a huge fan of Star Trek and Mike Okuda's work, so it's been a dream-come-true to be able to work on this project. In fact, one of the reasons why I came to work on this game was because I was scared they would get someone who didn't have a deep affinity for LCARS and all the cool graphics in the shows! As a fan, I was already looking forward to being able to use a Star Trek computer interface in an MMORPG.

So, for the last 18 months or so, I've been working on a new LCARS design style that will not only look cool, but also *work* well. Remember, LCARS was made twenty years ago, before modern computer GUI standards had been established yet. You know, things like movable windows, scrollbars, drop down menus simply didn't exist back then, at least not in the mainstream (mac doesn't count, sorry). Heck, LCARS was intended to be used by touching it with your fingers, or speaking --- not using a mouse and keyboard. Not only that, but really it was intended to replace the TOS bridge control surfaces which were covered in pentiometers, sliders and blinking lights! So it's been a really interesting challenge to take the graphic design and interface style of LCARS, and apply it to the needs of a sophisticated, modern application like an MMO.

There's been a lot of speculation on here about what the UI might be like, or how LCARS will work on terminals a la Doom 3. And I can't talk about anything that might provide clues about gameplay, but I can say this:

Be prepared for a new LCARS style. Think modern, slick, clean, and elegant. Think shiny, black, and serious. Think iPhone. It's going to feel good. The design of the UI has been driven directly by the needs of gameplay. The last thing we want is the for the UI to get in the way of actually playing the game.