Full keyboard support

[bagnacauda]

The keyboard support is good, but from time to time it happens to be forced to use the mouse. For example in two options popups you cannot choose an answer, you can only close the box. Also it would be very nice to select items in the inventary using arrows.

[00-Evan]

This is the sort of thing I will be able to do more properly with the unified codebase. I'm likely going to backport existing desktop features to this repo in the next update or two, and after that point I will look at expanding them.

[Sanphobia]

It'd be cool to use Terraria's smart cursor feature for aiming in a general direction.
Like using WASD for moving and arrow keys for aiming, or pressing a key (eg. "F") to toggle WASD to aim.

other than that, if the game could detect trackpoint nubs on keyboards then use it like an analog stick, that would be awesome.

[00-Evan]

An update on this, I'm making several keyboard improvement in v1.2.0, but full keyboard support for menus is not yet implemented. I do plan to add that in a future update sooner than later.

[pupitetris]

Hi. I have implemented a suggestion for a keyboard / gamepad selection mechanism, using a cursor. Check it out at https://github.com/pupitetris/shattered-pixel-dungeon/tree/keyboard-selector I planned to send a Pull Request, but just then realized that 00-Evan does not accept pull requests! @00-Evan are you accepting contributions? It was entertaining to implement this feature and all, but it would be a shame to see it go to waste.

[00-Evan]

@pupitetris I'm afraid I don't accept contributions, both because i want Shattered to remain a solo project for its core development, and due to copyright concerns.

It's worth noting that the game does already have a custom cursor for controller users. It didn't work too well when used with keyboard though, as the user can't control the speed. For now the game requires either a controller or keyboard and mouse.

[pupitetris]

OK, thanks. Check the feature, though. It is inspired on Nethack's interface.

Regarding copyright, open source foundations have dealt with this topic for years, so that they can defend the software's liberties even when the original authors of the code are not available in the future. The idea is for the central entity to hold control over the copyright of the contributions. Here an explanatory text: https://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/gnulib.git/plain/doc/Copyright/conditions.text

And an example of a Copyright Assignment document: https://www.dreamsongs.com/IHE/IHE-110.html

Of course, you still have to make contributors send you their assignments, probably through snail mail, but you can put pull requests on hold until they arrive. I'll leave the topic there: the issue has a solution, but of course it's a beureaucratic / legal thing that has to be done and it takes some time and effort. My point is that it is not impossible, specially for a small project like this one, where you won't get a huge volume of contributions.

Greetings, and thanks for SPD!

[00-Evan]

Unfortunately my concern isn't with the actual legal precedent, my concern is how platform holders (Apple, Valve, etc) would respond to a "this game uses my code without permission and I want it taken down!" message. I feel the best way to be safe there, especially given that it's a solo project anyway, is to not accept contributions.

[npetronio1]

Hello @bagnacauda, I would like to work on this issue. Could you please assign it to me?

[00-Evan]

Hello @bagnacauda, I would like to work on this issue. Could you please assign it to me?

Only I have the ability to assign issues. I am afraid that while Shattered is open source, I do not accept code contributions. You are welcome to make your own version based on Shattered Pixel DUngeon and implement things you want into that though.

[TadaCZE]

You mentioned that you plan to implement full keyboard support soon, and I think not a lot of things remain to be implemented. As of now, only inventory management and menu navigation is still inaccessible (and that is basically the same thing as an inventory is just a menu that looks different), so I have some suggestions.

If you decided to implement keyboard only functionality, a lot of keys could be reused:

• For example, the F1-F5 keys are used for switching between inventory tabs. They could be also used for switching between tabs in the settings (F6 would need to be used also), the changelog tabs (F6 and F7 would need to be used, possibly more in future updates) and in the player info screen.
• The tab key can be used not just to switch between targets while attacking but also menu buttons, where shift+tab is standard for going one button back.
• A nice way would also be to use a button that which when held displays which keys do what - currently only hovering with a mouse over a button can do that. Some programs take this further, and when holding a key (typically alt), they underline a letter in a button's label (typically the first if available or a unique one from another place if multiple buttons start with the same letter) which when pressed performs the action.
• I also support

I think this issue is larger then you might think, because it affects multiple groups. First of all, some users with motor disabilities use only a keyboard or even an assistance software emulating a keyboard and not a mouse or a trackpad, so this would make it more accessible to them. Other people, even healthy ones, typically Linux users or minimalists prefer to use just a keyboard, making use of a lot of shortcuts and things like tiling window managers, the terminal and text editors like vim to do their evil bidding.

Now the typical gamer does not include either of these groups, but any person simply gaming on a couch would be well-served by this, as using a mouse on a couch is much less comfortable than using it on a desk unlike a keyboard which is typically able to be supported with legs. This also applies to sitting on a bus with a laptop and a countless number of other situation where the setup is cramped.

I am mainly writing this to bring this issue back to your attention.