Fewer Clicks, More World: Rebuilding Our Editor from Mockups
Why we worked on our own tool today
Every area in Call Me Human is built in the Terra Engine, our own editor based on Godot. That is where we place trees, paint paths, build cliffs and stairs and decide what can happen in a corner of Veyl. We spend hours in it every day. Every click we save is time that goes into the details of the world. So today the focus was not a new game system, but usability.
What it looked like before
The Terra Engine grew over weeks. Every new tool got its button, every window its own look. In the end we had 26 windows in four different styles. The tools were small icons without labels, two rows of buttons lined up at the top, and so many name tags floated over the area that you could barely see the ground. Everything was there, but you had to know where.
Sketch first, then build
Our first attempt to clean this up missed the mark. We had rebuilt it feature by feature without a picture of the whole. It looked tidier, but the top third of the screen was still nothing but buttons. You couldn't really work like that.
So we took a step back and drew mockups first: for building areas, for ground and brushes, for walls and stairs and for segments. We went through every mockup one by one until it was right, and only then started building. After that, the target picture always sat next to the real editor, image by image. That was the most important lesson of the day for us: good usability starts on paper, not in code.
What is easier now
Three columns, one job. On the left is "Where?" with all areas, in the middle the area itself, on the right the library with everything you can place. The workspace is the biggest thing on screen, as it should be.
Switch areas with one click. We used to need four clicks through a selection window. Now the tree with all areas is always on the left, plus a small overview map: click a spot and the view jumps right there.
Tools right above the area. Like in an image or music program, all tools sit in a slim bar above the workspace, with names and shortcuts. On wide screens they are all visible at once, no "More" menu.
Options appear right away. Pick the stairs tool and you see stairs, rope and vine right next to it. Nothing folds away, nothing has to be hunted down.
Recently used and big cards. The library remembers what we placed last and shows everything as big picture cards. To place an object, you simply drag it into the area.
"What's here?" Below the area it says in plain words what it contains: objects, ground, walls and steps. If the editor finds a problem, like a cliff without a texture, one click jumps straight to it.
What this has to do with the game
You will never see the Terra Engine. But you will feel it. When we search less, we build more. When "Test here" is one click away, we try a corner ten times instead of twice. And when the editor points out mistakes by itself, fewer of them end up in the game. Every hour we save in the tool ends up in a world that feels more alive.
How would you build?
Have you worked with editors yourself, for games, music or images? What annoys you most? Tell us in the comments. And if you want to be there from the start, follow our Kickstarter page so Kickstarter lets you know the moment it launches.
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