new FI site

[ec2]

The site has been officially released:
http://www.conspiracygames.com/

[Brake]

This is supposed to be a content site right? This thing is horrible to navigate, its like a circus.

[big_k]

wow... as far as looks go... this is incredible...


i cant even begin to think how long this must have taken to make...
i definetly havnt seen a site this big and complete before, at least not in flash.

however, for usability, theres a lot that could be done better.

especially those "click and drag" menus on the sides... not a good idea in my opinion... and once i opened them i couldnt close them.


but anyways, i'm still in awe of the site, it looks amazing.


haha... click on the box thing in the upper right hand corner, its an interesting suprise!

[pixelranger]

Some of you people amaze me.

Complaints about Load time, complaints about a non unique layout, complaints about it having a metallic interface and screws. Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah.

You people must be the same people who go and watch a SciFi movie and complain about it having an unrealistic plot.

Would you people start being a little more positive. All I ever hear out of lots of people on this board is negativity. This sucks..that sucks...this is a hack..that is a joke. Look at the site for what it is. A website for a MULTIMEDIA GAME DEVELOPER, not Yahoo.com.

Load time...who cares....they tell you its a broadband site. Just because HTML pages do not flash "Loading" doesn't mean they are less bandwidth intensive than those interior pages on that site. Its about the Experience and the detail in this site.

And about an unoriginal layout kind of like starbreeze...I mean jeez people..how many ways are there to organize a TON of navigation in a clean fashion? I mean it either goes on the top..on the left..or on the right side of the interface. There aren't many choices. I for one like how all the navigation is there and in your face...not hidden and waiting for you to click this and click that.

Also..have you ever considered that the client asked for a layout like Starbreeze???? What are they to say? No? ahah.

Seriously..some of you people just like to hear yourselves complain about things and impress yourselves.

Sorry I'm coming across as harsh..but this site is really an incredible piece of work. For two months work...that site is incredible. I've seen corporate sites that were under development for over a year that launch and SUCK. Awesome job over at FI. Bottom line..as long as the client is happy with it. and it is what THE CLIENT wanted....then who cares what some of you negative yahoos think about the site.

Since you are designers you are not their target audience. Go Back and look at the site from the standpoint of an investor on a T3 connection...or some kid sitting in his bedroom surfing from a cable modem who is looking for games for his XBox.

Shane
http://www.pixelranger.com
[Edited by pixelranger on 07-12-2002 at 02:30 PM]

[mrpc]

Originally posted by pixelranger
Some of you people amaze me.

Since you are designers you are not their target audience. Go Back and look at the site from the standpoint of an investor on a T3 connection...or some kid sitting in his bedroom surfing from a cable modem who is looking for games for his XBox.

http://www.pixelranger.com
[Edited by pixelranger on 07-12-2002 at 02:30 PM]

This is a crucial point and I couldn't agree more. Yes it the client that really matters. Even more crucial, however, is - does it work? Does it really work for the client?

Further, I am the one who complained about the metal background/borders and screws. Like I've only seen that one about 1 million times, and counting. Believe me, so has the kid sitting at his desk with Broadband. What about the one where everyone puts the "old movie" projector screen in their intro with the numbers counting down...5,4,3,2,1?

My point was simply this:

As creative and talented as the team was that actually built the FI site, why even approach something trite like metal borders and screws? Yeah it was nice and yeah it was very complex - but the metal borders seemed unimaginative compared to the rest of their work.

One last issue, isn't the point of this particular forum to discuss, criticize and generally progress flash design through relevant and honest conversation? If one were to find such discussion offensive, then perhaps there are other forums more suited for that individual, like barney.com.

By the way, I've been to barney.com - Even Barney is totally flashin' it!

PC

[jsnstmc1287]

i couldn't get in.. it's like impossible AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH>>>>> HELP ME

[afovar]

Well, I must have been those first few thousands trying to push our way into the door of this site, because I was and am on a T3, and the site took forever. I'm talking, start loading, alt+tab back to work, check back and forth for the longest download time I've ever had for a site.

If you were standing in my shoes at the time, Pixelranger, you would have been thinking the same, because now it's a total different perspective with the hits considerably less, allowing the site to actually be functional. Because despite the glow, talent, and awe of this site, a kid isn't gonna sit there twiddling their thumbs, no matter what their connection speed and wait. Their attention spand lasts seconds, if even that.

Glad it's back on it's feet, 'cause the site downright rocks.

A N D R E W
[Edited by afovar on 07-12-2002 at 05:32 PM]

[jeff ratto]

Originally posted by mrpc

Why doesn't anyone come up with something different and totally new and creative?
Flash is cool and revolutionary...let's act like it - shall we?

PC

When I go to a site and accidently set off the emergency system and I have two minutes to deactivate it, then I accidently activate a robotic arm that breaks a hole in my monitor, then the two minutes ends and a UFO flies out of a portal and deactivates the site and some girl tells me that I have been kicked out for not deactivating the emergency system...............well, I consider that new and creative as well as revolutionary.....just my two cents (and it's free!) And lets not forget about the kick a** navigation. Yes the appearance is familiar, but that's about it.

[Brake]

>Would you people start being a little more positive. All I >ever hear out of lots of people on this board is >negativity. This sucks..that sucks...this is a hack..that >is a joke. Look at the site for what it is. A website for >a MULTIMEDIA GAME DEVELOPER, not Yahoo.com.


It's not a site for a MULTIMEDIA GAME DEVELOPER, it's a content site, like IGN. The point of the site is to go there to get information. The way that site is now, getting to your information is a drawn out tedious task, sure it is cool the first time, but for anyone that is going to repeatedly come back is just going to get annoyed with it.

And your right, the designers aren't the target audience, so that fine and dandy that you're all excited about it, but thats all the traffic they are going to get, a bunch of flash kids that are just interested in the interface, not the content. And even if they are interested in it, they're gonna get it from somewhere like IGN where it doesn't take them 6 clicks to get the info they're looking for.

[antne]

nobody can deny this site is awesome

[KevinD]

Go Pixelranger!

Mrpc critisizing sites the way you do aint offensive but plain boring...

It's the same like people saying -->
"aarrgh, a blueish site with arrows! yuk!"
Totally neglecting their target audience... and what they might like...

Think I'll have to disagree with you on the 'kid has also seen it a million times' perspective...
The average kid lookin for games to play on his console would not be a frequent visitor of forums like these...
Guess that's mostly something designers do...

In this perspective building upon the metal borders/screw concept aint a bad idea at all... Cause you, as a designer has seen it a million times, it prolly means its a concept proven to be succesfull in the past...

I believe loading time wouldnt also be that much of a problem for the 'gamer kid' as it would come to their site with a purpose, having patience to pursue that purpose is logical imo...

In short -->
I think we're just having a difference of opinion on the target audience thoughts...

From a designer's point of view -->
Breaking ground one time, is one thing... doin it again and again and again is another... even for the highly imaginative people over at FI...

@ Brake, good point about the 'kid' returning and prolly getting annoyed by all these gadgets over and over again...
The first couple of times it's 'WOW!' after a couple of more times you'd just like to get through to the info your looking for as fast as possible...

[mrpc]

Originally posted by KevinD
Go Pixelranger!

Mrpc critisizing sites the way you do aint offensive but plain boring...

Perhaps...I'm just insane and apparently boring as well. I suppose the proof will be in the pudding. Instant pudding is O.K., but if you make it from scratch - it is all the better.

I do appreciate everyone's opinions and I've seen some excellent talent here. It is not my intention to hurt feelings or bore you to death. Suppose I'll keep my nose to the grind stone and keep my opinions to myself. Once my bowl of pudding is completed, I'll let you know!

PC

[perozo]

sorry but that doesnt sell
the work is great but i was specting an big freaking intro and nothing hapenned
-the design is great
-the navigation great
but all that wait is not fair
nice and hard work thou

[nevil]

the site is great but it does have some problems, if people don't point these problems out then designers will get lazy, critisizm is the key to improvement...

[aversion]

Originally posted by nevil
the site is great but it does have some problems, if people don't point these problems out then designers will get lazy, critisizm is the key to improvement...

constructive criticism, agreed.

[subkamran]

Whoa.

5 Stars, A++

[KevinD]

Soz mrpc, it might have been the way you formulated it...
Critisizing in general aint a bad thing at all

[asun2art]

The problem is not the site, but the overwhelming expectation we put on FI to impress, wow and dazzle the flash world. They have indeed accomplished this again with their new launch and I think have stepped up the level of complexity and interaction yet again. Hence their name - Fanatsy Interfaces. It's not "Traditional Interfaces"

To remain "bleeding edge" you must look ahead. Current broadband may not be up to speed yet but soon many flash sites will be a couple of megs.



(Of course that's just my opinion, I could be wrong)

[mrpc]

Originally posted by KevinD
Soz mrpc, it might have been the way you formulated it...
Critisizing in general aint a bad thing at all

No worries. Thanks too!

PC

[pixelranger]

Originally posted by Brake
It's not a site for a MULTIMEDIA GAME DEVELOPER, it's a content site, like IGN. The point of the site is to go there to get information. The way that site is now, getting to your information is a drawn out tedious task, sure it is cool the first time, but for anyone that is going to repeatedly come back is just going to get annoyed with it.

I'm sorry...when they said in their overview section that they are "publisher's, marketers and developers of entertainment software" I guess I thought that is what they do. I guess you are saying they are not Game developers. My bad. What is so wrong with the way you get the information on that site? Just because it loads and then animates onto the screen rather than a regular HTML page loads you dont like it? Is it also your opinion that when you buy for example the X-Men DVD that the movie should simply just start playing instead of having some cool interface and design to it? Afterall the DVD player has play, stop, pause, fast foward, etc... buttons right? So why all the extra stuff? Its just a waste of time so why even include it.

And your right, the designers aren't the target audience, so that fine and dandy that you're all excited about it, but thats all the traffic they are going to get, a bunch of flash kids that are just interested in the interface, not the content. And even if they are interested in it, they're gonna get it from somewhere like IGN where it doesn't take them 6 clicks to get the info they're looking for.

Sites serve many purposes. Some sites are content orientedsites, some sites are more marketing oriented...etc...etc. Wanna guess what this site does? It serves BOTH. This site is a great marketing site. It sells the company and shows that it is a big player in its industry. The more people who visit the site {no matter what target audience) the better because it is one more person who has seen this company's name. It's just one big advertisment so I doubt they care if a lot of the visitors are just flasher kids.

Here read what David the leader designer on the site had to say over on Ultrashock.

http://forums.ultrashock.com/forums/...threadid=16047

Finally how man clicks did it take you to get to this page of the message board if you came in from the front of flashkit? How many clicks for me to get to a game page on your favorite IGN site? Ask me how many advertisements were forced on me when moving to different sections of the IGN site. Sorry but there was too much info on the IGN site for me to find a thing.

Shane
http://www.pixelranger.com
[Edited by pixelranger on 07-13-2002 at 07:07 PM]