Ever since we've learned that we no longer have to mod the interface in Notepad, I've been asking myself how much freedom we will have in modding SH5. Here's why... SH3 was blocked at one resolution and aspect ratio, making modding a bit easier. The position was given as relative to a parent. SH4 made things much harder due to 2 main reasons:
1: multiple resolutions which were brilliantly controlled using just 2 variables, allowing a LOT of flexibility in positioning and scaling items, but a nightmare to plan ahead.
2: German AND American interfaces: which were only possible by making the interfaces as simple as possible and loading items through an external index file. All identical items (like the backgrounds) were rewired through the image address by hardcode). Not a major pain in the ass, but still...
All in all:
1. Making new items:
____1.1: Static images: easy to do
____1.2: New buttons: impossible to do, as only the items in the Layout Page could accept commands. The only way was to make DIALS and hide the needle. Dials could indeed process commands but it was then impossible to show "pushed" status.
____1.3: Making new circular dials: extremely easy to do, but we were prevented from adding dials in all the screens.
____1.4: Making new linear dials: not so easy. The only one I know of is OLC's linear compass.
____1.5: Creating new variables: impossible
2. Rewiring hardcoded items:
____2.1: Moving a hard-coded item from one screen to another: impossible (at least in SH4)
____2.2: Changing the type of an object: impossible to do but it could be emulated
____2.3: All other changes were possible and easy: position, image
3. Hard-coded items:
____3.1: the periscopes bearing line (dial)
____3.3: the periscope depth (impossible to scale up with resolution to do the formula it used
____3.3: torpedo buttons
____3.4: stadimeter button: there was no command visible
____3.5: in SH4, the retractable panels: quite moddable as you could move them to either side and make them as big as you wanted. But there were only 2 of them for the Uboats and 3 for the Fleet boats.
____3.6: most labels (understandable because of the need for 2 languages in the interface)
____3.7: those zoomed order dials which increased by a fixed ratio
____3.8: the order bar in SH4. A bit easier to add items but I wish we had the old type of integrated orders.
The major problems in modding the interface were due to these facts:
1. most hard-coded items don't obey normal rules (that includes the hiding panels) AND those rules are never accessible because they are buried deep inside unaccessible code.
2. not all commands are visible (the stadimeter for example)
3. impossible to create new dial viariables
4. impossible to mod the key/mouse commands
5. impossible to change some camera behavior
6. impossible to create scripts.
Until we actually have a look at the SH5 interface files, and by interface I also mean the 3D one, we can't know if a clean interface is even possible. You see, just cleaning up the periscope is not enough, you need to do a LOT of changes to integrate everything nicely.
As for voice commands, a long time ago, in the SH5 page I asked about making commands compatible with voice applications.
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=156171
Such parametric commands would also have a MAJOR impact on the interface itself and the way we send data to the game engine.
As a default interface, I think SH5 sports a very slick interface. I quite like it the way it is now. It already hints to a lot of possibilities and it also seems very easy to clean up fast
. But I doubt that it will be possible to make a full immersive 3d interface. It all depends on mouse/keyboard and camera controls and how far we're allowed to scripts things.