What do you think of the UI in your favorite MMO?  Does it cover up too much of the screen or does it not have enough features?

Here are a few examples for contrast:

Old school EQ

old school AO

Wow with a few addons

Just kidding, here's a nice WoW full custom frames with many extras UI

Another:

I'm in the customizable camp...

...but really I just wanted to say your first WoW screnshot was amazing. Bravo.

+1

Originally posted by heremypet

Wow with a few addons

 

Hahahahaha , *dies laughing*. That is one of the funniest pictures I've seen in a while.

I prefer a tidy UI.

One thing that always annoyed me about playing a healer in vanilla WoW; I'd have a hard time describing the visual elements of a raid fight to an outsider because my attention was always on the 40 green bars that covered half the screen.

I once spent a good couple of hours changing all my keybinds and hiding virtually everything that I could hide to make maximise the viewing window and that was so much better. Then, of course, my hard-drive crashed and I had to reinstall. I've been on the default UI since then. It's good enough.

 I prefer UO's UI as you can drag/drop/remove components from it as you wish

I prefer as little possible, often if the game has the option I try to limit my UI, using the screenshot mode, that makes hte UI and everything else anoying be removed, unfortunaly it doesn't work that good while playing as you can't loot, craft or do much except do some kills, but if I am in the explore mood, I tend to use the screenshot display (in some games F10/F11 in some Alt+some other key)
 

Anyone that played Dead Space?(pc version), well that's how I would like my UI to be totally integrated into the gameworld/character, instead all those icons all over the screen. All those icons/bars and what nots limit the immersion factor for me personaly, obviously I can handle them, but simply prefer as little as possible.

I don't really recall much from the times I tried EQ because the game didn't catch me much, but seeing that screenshot in OP it could be one of the things I disliked about the game.

I don't mind UI's to be used with lets say crafting, but even then it could be limited (Vanguard anyone).

The terminator one is awesome, it reminds me of 2 healer in my ex-wow guild, who had pretty much a UI like that, you couldn't see your PC at all ^^.

I love simple UI like in TCoS. My favorite all-time UIs are probably  EvE online and TCoS..

then I hate UIs in every korean grinder, they all looks same to me. DDO also has ugly as hell UI.

Originally posted by Yohanu

 I prefer UO's UI as you can drag/drop/remove components from it as you wish

I agree with you on UO's UI.  It was by far the best I've ever experienced.  I was fine with recent UI such as WAR and AoC though.  But with add-ons it can get to be a bit rediculous.  I think WoWs is the worst anymore with so many add-ons available and other UI junk.

I preffer the OLD school EQ ui, not the one pictured here, but when you hit f10 and got the transparent one, that was basically perfect../mourn

That old EQ screenshot was kind of unfair because I'm sure very few people played it with the..uh..full info screen open or whatever you would call it.  I know I didn't.

To answer the question I prefer as little clutter as possible. 

I am a minimalist when it comes to UI, all I need is a health bar and an energy bar or ammo counter if applicable other than that I memorize my keybindings so I don't need an action bar I don't want a target or a target of a target or an aggro bar or a menu bar.  The only time I really need more is when the game makes me by focusing on cooldowns a bunch.

I want a fully customizable UI where I can decide what information I want to see and where it  goes.  I couldn't care less about immersion, I just want to be able to play the game effectively and depending on the particular character I'm playing, that may change.

Simple simple simple. Although I do love EVE, my ideal game would have depth and fun without screen clutter. Getting into that gameworld is important for me and one thing I agree with Gariott is that "playing the UI" is not my idea of fun.

Also... that first WOW picture is indeed hilarious. :)

I think the customization option may be a bit redundant as i hardly think anyone would want less of it. I voted simple as personally i prefer my UI as sleek, streamlined and  minimal as possible. This also goes some way into design philosophy as good, complex gameplay does not necesitate invasive or cluttered UIs.

I prefer a tidy UI. Or at least one that breaks the screen (kinda like old EQ, first screenshot), so you don't get the feeling that you are having to look through a bunch of icons and UI boxes to see portions of the game world. That drives me nuts. I'd rather have smaller viewing area with sectioned areas for buttons etc.

A certain amount of business is fine.

I care more about the efficiency of an interface.

Although as a designer, I do prefer to keep things simple.  So when I'm designing things I like to minimize the amount of information spammed at the player (while ensuring there's options for more detailed views where appropriate.)

I lol'd at the first WOW UI pic-- I would prefer the EQ pic but with transparency enabled (i think they added that feature after Ruins of Kunark)

That first WoW add pic seriously need to be made gold. I damn near died when I saw that.

Originally posted by Predator160

I lol'd at the first WOW UI pic-- I would prefer the EQ pic but with transparency enabled (i think they added that feature after Ruins of Kunark)

No, no, no.  Damnit you senile old farts why can't you remember?  From day one in EQ you could switch betweeen that ui view and the full screen mode whenever you wanted.

edit: but yeah the transparency thing was added later.

Both of my favourite MMOs, Dofus and GalaXseeds have very simple UI. Yet all the buttons needed to all access controls panels are all on the screen at once and in a non-clustering way too. E.g. on GalaXseeds:

(That's the full size of the game window when it opens in a browser.)