Is the future no floating combat text?

I’ve that for one, the floating combat text is really outdated. Two, the information isn’t helpful or useful in combat, unless comparing gear/dmg/testing. Three, crits are probably the only number you are likely to really care about.

So why in an age of progressive gameplay/UI improvements are we still looking at these little numbers floating off enemies during combat? It kind of breaks immersion and reminds you that you’re playing a game, and also feels outdated. Like an old scribble of an caveman fighting a wooly mammoth in some random ancient cave.

I feel like there has got to be a better way to clean up the information you’re seeing on screen instead of having numbers floating al around, like relevant buffs/debuffs that you can hardly notice without a addon helping you out.

Why not just have a visual representation of the damage of the spell, along with a color or icon indicator showing whether it was a powerful hit, or big crit? I feel like simple visuals would be much easier to see, rather than an avalanche of random numbers flying off multiple mobs while doing AOE.

Of course, this could be optional, as old timers often have a hard time with change and will always prefer the way things used to be done. But I feel like for the gameplay experience itself to appeal to a broader audience and make the game screen less cluttered to be make it easier to understand and process the important information you need to know could be a much wiser and more intuitive use of the space rather than numbers bouncing around.

Yes, floating combat text can be disabled currently, but there’s no other system in place to let you know what’s doing damage, so for example, an animation on the character itself that you’re doing damage to, like a floating ghost skull floating up above a mobs head each time it takes damage for Curse of Agony would suffice.

You’d still be able to view combat logs after the fight or what not for comparison, but how useful are those numbers at the end of the day to know in real time? especially on DOTS and having multiple mobs on the screen, while trying to avoid mechanics or fight in PvP. I’d much rather know what cooldown the enemy is currently using or if they or I are taking serious damage that I need to react to.

2 Likes

Turn it off?

Back when I started playing, it was the floating combat text that gave off if what I equipped was an upgrade or not, as the numbers obviously changed based on what I had equipped. I have not paid attention to that in years, but I can imagine it still can be used this way? (as well as seeing the numbers go up or down during certail procs, which I guess we kinda got a million of now…)

Main point though… I think ou can turn it off, or filter it? Pretty sure you used to be able to do this.

1 Like

The LOG chat window apparently doesn’t exist for you?

1 Like

There is a macro script that you can use that turns it on and off. If you don’t want it on just use that.

Personally, I turned it off, and then just turned it back on again.

I like my floating numbers, if you dont like them, just turn them off and use the combat log in the chat window, or a addon. If you dont like addons, Blizzard is integrating a damage meter in the game next expansion.

1 Like

I had to turn off floating combat text after playing some specs like totemic enhancement. I’d literally freeze up when using cd’s because of the excess of numbers going about.

If YOU don’t like it just turn it off?

What’s with this nonsense of people not liking a feature, THAT CAN BE DISABLED, wanting its removal…? Just want to make others as miserable as them?

1 Like

I think this is a sign Blizzard actually listen so much to the playerbase(despite popular belief) that they decide to ask for everything…

I’m not joking.

I am guilty too.

I like the floating combat text.

You can just enable or disable the various floating text with a CVAR command

I disable all that rubbish. Numbers mean nothing to me, I have percentage health at best.

They’re going to introduce an in-game DPS meter, so there’s your info if you want it. Personally I just go off how fast I kill something.

The purpose of a system, like the floating combat text above enemies heads is to be useful. Example, It gives you a metric for comparison to understand how much damage you are doing with one item relative to another, so you can swap out and see what is better.

It gives you a sense of relative power/effectiveness in combat. That’s why you see floating combat text/damage in RPG’s and not in others, yet you don’t even really notice or think about it.

You play a game like Battlefield versus Borderlands, one has combat text, the other doesn’t, but it’s very similar gameplay. You wouldn’t say Battlefield players are more miserable than Borderlands players because of missing combat text.

When the damage is in the 1000’s, or even millions, it’s just unintelligible clutter at that point and serving little to no purpose to the player, especially when there’s a lot of other information that would be useful knowing/improve your gameplay.

This means the UI is not working as intended, as it’s not serving the player for the better, it’s actually distracting and taking away, but people are just used to it/comfortable with it at this point. It’s not holding up to the shift in gameplay and huge amounts of damage being dished out though anymore.

I think you can also see the numbers on the small portrait of enemy on your screen. So you could turn off the big floating ones and just check the numbers on the enemy frames.

Does me just fine, thanks. I use MSBT.

Again, if you don’t like it turn it off. I want it as it provides immediate feedback, and with MSBT you can customise what and how you want to see them, and a whole bunch of other handy features…

I haven’t had it on for years. If I need something to show, I just make a WA.

I have floating combat text for everyone except myself. I used to have it enabled for myself when numbers would pop up at 1 or 2 per second, which was enough time for my brain to process it. Now that it’s 10+ numbers per second while also simultaneously having lots of mechanics going around, it’s screen noise.

That’s my favorite as well, but there have been times it wasn’t updated and I don’t like to load outdated mods.

Much better visuals, colors, can change the text size. I still think seeing numbers in the millions is overkill, but it makes the experience a lot more enjoyable.

Why? Personally details is enough

Its just a asthetic thing, satisfying eyecandy. If i need actual data, ill use dps meters and logs like everyone else.
Its a personal preference, nothing more.

turn it off if you dont want it lol

See, this is what irritates me.

I’m not trying to be disrespectful to you personally; I’m speaking about a broader trend we see in the world today. One individual doesn’t like something simply because it doesn’t visually appeal to them. So, they immediately appeal to the companies to have it removed/changed.

They never stop to consider that the vast majority of players across all regions might not have a problem with it. Many of us use add-ons to customize the UI and create a more visually appealing experience—floating combat text included. The solution already exists without needing to remove the option for everyone else.

But if you don’t want the floating combat text and still want to see your damage, you already have the perfect solution: damage meters like Details! .

You can just place a damage meter in the corner of your screen, and it will show you exactly how much damage you’re doing over any period of time. The tools to customize your experience are already there.