The heads-up-display is a process in which information is visually translated to the player as part of a game’s user interface. The Forza 6’s Heads up display is unique in design neatly placing the UI against the game’s race, which provides technical information for the intermediate to advanced player such as, tire pressure, tire PSI (pounds per square inch) supporting 2/4 wheel drive the UI displays what speed each wheel is rotating at. The HUD is frequently used to simultaneously present multiple pieces of information; in this instance with Forza 6 the HUD is used as a personal assistant to easily and most efficiently display the driver’s interface effectively without sacrificing play-ability, it is also used to indicate game progression within Forza 6 seen in Figure 1 the HUD consists of:
1 -Tire pressure (Indicated by on screen miniature tire)/Grip Level/Tire Heat Level
Forza 6 tire mechanics provides the user with realistic grip to the tires and as made, the more the tire is used the less grip the tire will present.Tire pressure (PSI) shows the user an on-screen preview of their tires Tire pressure (PSI) which is measured by the total amount of Pounds of air per inch within the car’s tires:
(SCALED BETWEEN – FULL PSI = GOOD GRIP / LOW PSI = VERY BAD GRIP)
Tire pressure is an effective feature of the user’s interface system as it allows the user to know exactly; through a small number on-screen which details Pressure in tires and thus grip levels which are unique and caters to the real driving simulator a user would expect. Lower traction indicates less grip the user’s vehicle has along the course’s surface and thus causes a more difficult drive, indicating to the player to change the tires inside the pit stop. Higher traction indicates that the user’s vehicle will have sufficient grip on the surface. Forza 6’s Tire pressure is very simple based on a medium four corner centered design based on four thin stroked rectangles and small text around these rectangles. Since the four stroked rectangles are thin it doesn’t get in the way of the drivers field of view which is important as this would otherwise cause lack of functionality. The tire heat level is also an important feature as cool tire’s are bad with gripping the courses’ surface and therefore, provides harder control of the car for the user whereas a warmed up tire is better as it grips the road thoroughly, however a hot tire begins to wear down and cause lack of grip which is also shown on screen as detailed previously, a cool tire doesn’t provide the best grip but it takes longer to wear away.
I think this feature is very technical, I really do appreciate it as it tells the very small details off the car preparing the player for the upcoming status of the car. I will have this feature tweak-able (ON/OFF).
seen in figure 2:
1 – Place
‘Place’ is a mean of communicating the position to the user, in which the user is within the race, it is a useful and smart concept for the user interface, simply because in order to win the race or to receive the greatest prize, (Cash, Respect) you need to be either 1st in a race or be within the 2nd 3rd place, and therefore without it, the player could not know where he is within the race, and thus cause the user to lose out on the greatest prize receivable or simply a loss. Forza 6’s ‘Current Position’ UI design is very simple based on a small sans serif minimalistic white font located in the top left-hand corner away from the centre of the screen in which the user’s field of vision is located, it’s colour contrasts the driving world since it is a flat white and thus stands out from the rest of the video game, but not too much that it will distract the player’s functionality. I will be using the feature within my UI design, I will be adding the ability to turn it off and on, as some players may want an authentic driving simulator screen without a UI.
2 – Laps
Laps is a mean of communicating the current amount of times the user has been around the course and the Total amount of times the user needs to manoeuvre around the track till the finish, The player could not know where he is within the race, and thus cause the user to lose out on the greatest prize receivable or simply a loss.Forza 6 ‘Laps’ is very simple, based on a small white font located near the maps user interface feature, there is also a half opaque black rectangle behind the ‘Laps’ text. the black rectangle behind the ‘Laps’ text contrasts the game background, if there was no black background there would be a lack of readability by the user as flat white will blend in with the video game’s course scenario I will also be using the feature within my UI design, however, I wont put a small black rectangle behind the text, I will put a small drop shadow behind the text and this in turn, will separate the user interface from the game.
3 – Map
The ‘map’ is a minimalistic top down perspective of the course’s route, it is used to help the user maneuver the course without firstly: getting lost, turning the wrong way, other opponents position and finally to direct the player where there is a corner or a straight. Forza 6’s ‘Map’ is designed in a very simple design, based on a chopped down version of the map (seen in figure 2) as the player moves across the map the player will be able to see the specific area they are in (seen in figure 2) rather than seeing the whole map (seen in figure 1) which can take up unnecessary space from the map and therefore, increases the chance of reduced visibility.
There is a thin stroke Flat white line, representing the surface, on the white line there are small amber circles which represent the opponent driver’s location and a flat white arrow which represent the user’s location, behind the white line is a low transparent circle which has a colour contrasts the driving world since it is a flat white flat blue and flat red and thus stands out from the rest of the video game, but not too much that it will distract the player’s functionality. This UI feature is very effective as It helps the player to plan their next move in advance without making a collision with other NPC’S and the course’s boundaries. This feature will be togglable within my UI design as it is not necessary for the advanced user and can take away from the realistic simulator theme.
4 – Total Time
‘Total Time’ is a method of informing the user the amount of time in which the user has been racing on the track starting from the start point. Forza 6’s ‘Total Time’ UI design Is relatively large located in the top right-hand corner of the screen, based on a small sans serif minimalistic white font the time is the biggest UI feature in the user interface, suggesting a method of displaying hierarchy of importance within the heads-up display, I will be using the feature within my UI design and most likely make my ‘time’ user interface feature, design highly visible.
5 – Current Lap Time 
‘Current Lap Time’ is a useful feature for the user interface as for this player who would like to know how fast they are speeding around the track, in order to win some competitive races such as a few auto class races such as racing highly tuned vehicles around tracks such as Daytona; primarily focusing on setting the fastest time in a set number of laps or time limit trails. The finishing order is determined by race time not who has come in first place. Forza 6’s ‘Current Lap Time’ is a very simple design, based on a small sans serif regular flat white font located in the right-top just beneath the ‘Total Time’ which is convenient as the ‘Total Time’ and ‘Current Lap Time’ are similar in portraying information to the user. behind the flat white coloured typeface there is a very light drop shadow which draws out the text on the game screen, although it takes away from the user’s realism experience, it helps the user as without the very thin drop shadow the player would have problems viewing the information as the flat white would blend in with the game’s scenario’s which would reduce the game’s functionality. I will be using the feature within my UI design, however, it will also be tweakable as some may want the full simulator to feel with fewer icons on the screen.
6 – Team/Player identification 
‘The team player ID’ is a method of informing the user who is driving in the opponents car. This feature is not as important for offline play however it does add a higher effect of realism to the racing game, if there was no ‘ID’ the user would be lead to believe that there is artificial intelligence or an NPC robot behind the wheel, which can definitely take away realism from the game, merely adding a name and icons above each vehicle allows the player to believe or at least, imagine that there is a real driver inside.The ‘Team/Player identification’ is located above the opponent’s vehicle. The ‘Team/Player identification’ UI feature’s design is based around flat sans serif white text in front of a lightly transparent rectangle the text details the opponents name and their position which can assist the user in knowing their position also and what position they are moving into. I will be using the feature within my UI design, however, it will be my team emblem design instead. This feature will be tweakable as some may want the full simulator to feel with fewer icons on the screen.
7 – Fuel Gauge/Speedometer/tachometer Counter
A fuel gauge (or gas gauge) is a feature used to indicate the level of fuel contained in the user’s vehicle’s tank, this feature is far better used when the race is longer and demand petrol changes, in conclusion for my UI, I will have this feature tweak-able (ON/OFF) as it is not necessary for all races. A speedometer or a gauge, measures and notifies the user the current speed of the vehicle, this is very important as it helps the player know whether their speed is good enough, say to, slow down as a corner may be present or speed up to simply take over other drivers. A tachometer (revolution-counter, RPM gauge) is an instrument which measures the speed in which a shaft or disk is rotating, within the user’s vehicle. The gauge usually displays the revolutions per minute (RPM) on a calibrated analogue dial, but digital displays are also used, I prefer a digital Dial as I find for the most part it is more easier to read for both beginners and for advanced drivers, I will be definitely be including all these features in my UI as without these features the game would be very difficult if the viewpoint isn’t changed to the in-game dashboard where the driver’s hands are seen including the actual cars gauge’s and dial’s, however, this UI feature draws the player out of the realistic simulator feel and thus it will be designed togglable, on and off. The Guage design will also be exactly the same no matter what the user’s vehicle, each car company designs gauges in their cars, this may be confusing to some users as the user might find the multiple changes of the gauges possibly complicated therefore the User Interface’s gauge design will be uniform within all cars.
8 – Tire Temperature/Grip Level(Indicated by Color)
Forza 6 tire mechanics provides the user with realistic grip to the tires, the more the tire is used the less grip the tire will present. Tire Temperature/Grip Level shows the user an on-screen preview of their tires Temperature/Grip Level which is Indicated by Color:
(SCALED BETWEEN – RED = BAD GRIP/VERY HOT BLUE = GOOD GRIP/VERY COOL)
Surface traction is very important as it affects the way in which the vehicle is able to maneuver the course. Lower traction = red Wheels indicates less grip the user’s vehicle has along the course’s surface and thus causes a more difficult drive, indicating to the player to change the tires inside the pit stop. Higher traction = blue Wheels indicates that the user’s vehicle will have sufficient grip on the surface. Gran Turismo’s ‘Tire Temperature (Indicated by Color)/Grip Level’ is very simple based on four small rectangles placed vertically, equally apart representing the car’s tires. located in the bottom left-hand corner. I don’t think this feature is totally necessary, a beginner may not know why their car is drifting, as ‘Tire Temperature/Grip Level’ may not occur to the user as a manipulative factor to their car unless the manual is read. For the advanced player that is well known to cars, still, general judgment by simply feeling the car’s grip feedback whilst driving to decide whether to change wheels and not need to look at this UI feature to decide this. in conclusion for my UI, I will have this feature tweakable (ON/OFF). A speedometer or a speed meter is a gauge that measures and displays the instantaneous speed of a vehicle.
LIAM GALLACHER 