A good HUD might be the difference between a fun World and a confusing one! HUD elements are super important to the player experience and the identity of the World, so it was time that we revamped the HUD system. Score counters, start buttons, explanatory text, and more have become staples in all of the SuperCode Worlds. But, adding them used to be a total pain…

While text and buttons are amazing for players, we know it’s been a bit of a hassle for builders to get them implemented. We’re talking about that constant back-and-forth between your scripts and Test mode, just to see if your button was in the right place. It was the only way you could check! We also noticed how builders had some difficulty organizing their HUD, since there was no dedicated section for HUD-specific scripts. Thanks to the SuperCode team’s hard work, all those problems are a thing of the past.

Introducing the HUD Editor!

You can access this editor through the new hierarchy window in the World editor. In the hierarchy, you'll also find new sections for entities, terrain, and environment. The goal of the hierarchy is to make it easier for you to manage all the content that you have in your World. If you want to work on HUD, everything will be under the HUD category. If you want to tweak your decor, it'll all be under the entities category.

So here it is: the HUD Editor! It’s a dedicated space where you can place and position different HUD elements PLUS modify their parameters before even opening up a script. Everything you could do before through code, you can do now using the options in the windows. Of course, we have improvements to the HUD-hacking experience as well.

It’s not just Buttons and Text boxes anymore. We’ve added Rectangles, Timers, Progress Bars, and Sliders into the mix! Here's a quick look at the HUD editor. There will also be a new HUD guide in the in-app Learn tab with more information and videos that will go over the editor in greater detail.

Rectangle: A solid, customizable shape that builders can use to block off parts of the screen, highlight other HUD elements, or whatever else you can think of. Get creative! Round a square’s corners all the way to make a circle or play around with several to make new composite shapes! 

Timer: Another customizable, easy-to-use timer template so you don’t have to keep making them from scratch. It comes with its own module for easy manipulation. Check out the documentation to see what you can do with it.

Progress Bar: Customizable element that visualizes progress, health, time, or whatever you want it to do. Sometimes, you don’t just want numbers all over your screen. Our favourite thing is the variety of types available, like the radial progress bar! It also comes with its own module that you can explore in the documentation.

Slider: Customizable element that players can interact with like buttons. Players can slide the handle to modify any value that you set. This one also has a few unique types to try out. Head over to the documentation to see what else you can do with it. 

Now each HUD element is also hackable, meaning you can attach our new HUD scripts to them. HUD scripts appear in a separate category than the rest of your scripts in the code editor. If you go to create or edit a HUD script, you’ll also notice some new global events to make the HUD-hacking experience even more convenient.

New Social Features!

Guess we were on a bit of a HUD kick, because both the Dashboard and the in-game HUD got a few upgrades too.

For starters, we're working on a brand new Home page in the Dashboard tailored to each individual player. We also working on a new Welcome page with some starter Worlds to get newcomers onboarded before they tackle their first Event with the Senpai! In the navigation column, you can also see who’s online and what they’re doing. If you’re interested in hopping into their World, just click the button next to their name. We got new play, like, and comment counters on every World too, so you’ll always know how your Worlds and others are performing!

The in-World gameplay HUD saw a bit of rearranging to make room for the Chat window. Less clutter, more useful ways to interact! There’s a lot of co-op Worlds out there, and we want you to be able to communicate with other players, even without a microphone. Hit ENTER and start typing, then ENTER again to send the chat message. 

…A Dragon???

One last thing, we’re also adding dozens and dozens of new animals for you to use in your Worlds. From farm animals to mythical creatures, SuperCode’s got animals for every scenario! Combined with the new HUD overhaul and the finite state machines from the last update, there’s some exciting possibilities for Worlds here.

Hop into SuperCode and take some of these new features out for a test ride. You won’t be disappointed. If you have any further questions about the HUD overhaul, the animals, or anything else, don’t hesitate to use Senpai chat, bring it up in your Events, or connect with us on Discord.

Be back with more soon!