[Suggestion] Hook System Improvements

[MaximusRex]

While the hook system is pretty decent, it does have some pretty restrictive limitations, these are suggestions that I feel would make the hook system much better.

 

Additional Hook Layouts (Floor): Currently the Large Hook Layout has a 3x3 grid of Small Hooks overlayed on it. I would like to see additional Large Floor Hook layouts that have the Narrow and Small Cross, and Small & Narrow Cross layouts over a large hook. As many large hook items are no where near the size of the large hook, this would give us more opportunities to take better advantage of the space available, or to possibly make compound items. I would also like to see where you have 2 Medium Narrow hooks together that there be a second layout with them turned 90 degrees from the other layout.

 

Significantly Larger Offset Ranges: This is the one I'd think make the most difference. Carpets in particular can gain a lot from this, as often there are two hooks in a room, one on each side, but you want just one carpet centered in the middle. The range is so limited currently that some large hook items can't even be moved as far as the edge of the hook. I am finding so many instances where I can't center something on a wall, or in a room, because the hooks I have to use aren't centered. If the offsets were much larger (50? 100?) it would give me a lot more options and more ability to do what I want.

 

Less Slot Restrictions Pretty much anything that we can put in a Medium Slot we should be allowed to place in a Medium Narrow slot. Many of the items restricted to Medium Slots only are already rectangular in shape, you just are making Medium Narrow hooks to restrictive, especially since those are the hooks you really seem to like placing against walls and windows. It should also be looked at if some Wall/Floor/Ceiling items can be made interchangeable.

[DataBeaver]

Additional Hook Layouts (Floor): Currently the Large Hook Layout has a 3x3 grid of Small Hooks overlayed on it. I would like to see additional Large Floor Hook layouts that have the Narrow and Small Cross, and Small & Narrow Cross layouts over a large hook. As many large hook items are no where near the size of the large hook, this would give us more opportunities to take better advantage of the space available, or to possibly make compound items. I would also like to see where you have 2 Medium Narrow hooks together that there be a second layout with them turned 90 degrees from the other layout.

Large wall hooks could use a layout with a medium hook in the bottom half and four small hooks above it. Currently it's impossible to place a wall GTN terminal in a sensible position and have small lights or trophies above it.

Significantly Larger Offset Ranges: This is the one I'd think make the most difference. Carpets in particular can gain a lot from this, as often there are two hooks in a room, one on each side, but you want just one carpet centered in the middle. The range is so limited currently that some large hook items can't even be moved as far as the edge of the hook. I am finding so many instances where I can't center something on a wall, or in a room, because the hooks I have to use aren't centered. If the offsets were much larger (50? 100?) it would give me a lot more options and more ability to do what I want.

50 or 100 for all hooks would probably be a bit excessive. On a rough estimate, the small rooms in the Nar Shaddaa sky palace are about 200 units wide, so a movement range of 100 would allow any decoration from the hooks next to the wall to be moved to the middle. You'd quickly lose track of which hook has which item, since you have to click the hook and not the item to select it.

 

However, I agree that more flexibility is needed, particularly with the larger hooks. In a small hook the +/- 10 range allows moving the decoration almost completely out of the hook, so I think that's fine. It could be increased to 15 at most. Medium hook range should be 20-30, and large hooks should have 40-60. Medium narrow hooks should have a range equal to a medium hook along the long axis and equal to a small hook along the short axis.

[MaximusRex]

50 or 100 for all hooks would probably be a bit excessive. On a rough estimate, the small rooms in the Nar Shaddaa sky palace are about 200 units wide, so a movement range of 100 would allow any decoration from the hooks next to the wall to be moved to the middle. You'd quickly lose track of which hook has which item, since you have to click the hook and not the item to select it.

 

However, I agree that more flexibility is needed, particularly with the larger hooks. In a small hook the +/- 10 range allows moving the decoration almost completely out of the hook, so I think that's fine. It could be increased to 15 at most. Medium hook range should be 20-30, and large hooks should have 40-60. Medium narrow hooks should have a range equal to a medium hook along the long axis and equal to a small hook along the short axis.

 

That's why I put the ? behind them. It seems the offset scales some with the hook type as well. I have the large Imperial computer and at maximum offset I can't even get the long edge flush with the edge of the hook. So while on some things 20 might seem like a lot, something like a Rug or the Large Computer I could see 100 not even being that much of an offset. Maybe if they added more Rug and Medium hooks that might reduce the need for as large an offset. Some things are quite a bit smaller than their hooks, like the basic imperial chair.

 

I was setting up a line in my entry room like a waiting room, and I was thinking I could offset the front hooks with the rear set and make a line with less gaps, but while I could get them to line up, they were so far from the wall it looked funny. 15-20 would probably be enough to get around that.

 

I guess the point that I want to get across to a dev should they ever see this thread is that any change need to be fairly significant to be useful.

[Tune]

I'm glad i found your post, was thinking on making one my selfe, about sugestions to change/improve the hooks system.

We are very limited, the way things are now, for example, i just opened a new room in tatooine, and i wanted to get a round table in middle, with chairs around it, and not only we dont have a round table that size, there would be no hooks for the chairs even if we had the table.

And this is just one small example. I have decent imagination, and i look at my SH in tatooine, i see how i want things, but when i look at the hooks, things just dont work out.

 

Now, what i think we really need, is 3 things:

 

1 - We need to be able to remove hooks.

2 - We need to be able to create new hooks.

3 - We need to be able to move the hooks.

 

If BW want to use the hooks system in the SH, then at least give us this.

[SelvesteSand]

Now, what i think we really need, is 3 things:

1 - We need to be able to remove hooks.

2 - We need to be able to create new hooks.

3 - We need to be able to move the hooks.

If BW want to use the hooks system in the SH, then at least give us this.

 

This would solve everything.

[SplashNOR]

Another suggestion is to add rotation on the two other axis as well. This would allow pieces to be placed with more precision in terrain. The Yavin 4 SH would benefit from this.

 

And when we talk about precision, how about increment at 0.5 in placement and rotation?

 

Lastly, we need a Z-axis placement as well; the idea is that we might get NPC's that uses the Sit-emote, and we should be able to place this NPC in a couch. The up/down-placement would adjust so the NPC doesn't look like it's floating above the couch.