I’m starting to find that HUDs in games clutter the screen and take away from being fully immersed in the game. I like games that force you to pay attention to what’s going on in the game and not numbers/markers on the edges of the display. What are some of your favorite games to play with no HUD? Here are a few of mine:
Astroneer - this game has tool tips on screen but that’s about it. There isn’t even an inventory, all objects are interactive and you can physically place them on your backpack.
Battlefield 1 - super gritty and immersive, but playing without a HUD really puts you at a disadvantage online.
Red Dead Redemption 2 - I liked that you could hide the HUD, but the mini-map was a tap on the d-pad away if you get lost. It was a super immersive experience!
Grand Theft Auto 5 - maybe not designed to be played without the HUD, once you get used to the layout of the city this becomes a lot easier, and you focus more on landmarks to navigate and again this really increased immersion. Sometimes finding things in missions wasn’t obvious and required consulting the map but otherwise this was enjoyable.
The Metro series is incredible for this. You have to press a button to check how many bullets are left, or how much oxygen is in your current canister. All kinds of awesome stuff in a bleak, rich world.
I think deadspace 1 and 2 were really immersive and world building. The UI didn’t feel like one. Your HP? It’s on your spine. Literally! It made sense too if you work with others, as it let’s them know if you feel like poo underneath the suit without needing to do anything risky.
Ammo? Literally on the side of the gun.
Playing the Deadspace remake was a joy because of this. More game designers should rethink how information is presented.
Even further in this direction is Escape from Tarkov. I don’t care for the multilayer, but there is a single player mod called SPT-AKI which I highly recommend