Minimap

[MonsterMutt]

It would be nice to have the option to enable a semi-transparent (round) minimap in the corner of the screen.

The mini-map would not be detailed (topography, buildings, etc), but would only show the relative positions of ships

The main map (pressing 'M') is great for traveling over long distances.  But it becomes impractical during fierce battles because: 1) blocks your vision! 2) you need all your fingers to maneuver during a battle!

The main purpose of the mini-map would be for short distance battles.  For example if your friend is fighting off an enemy ship behind a cloud you could glance at the mini-map and pop through cloud cover so that the enemy ship is sandwiched between you and your friend.  If an enemy is bearing down on you simply glance at the mini-map to know which friendly ship is closest and seek help.

I'm sure you guys could think of other scenarios 

[GrimWinter]

It may sound odd but I prefer just having the one big map. There isn't a ton going on with the UI during matches and it looks very clean that way. Also I feel not having a mini map to glance at encourages everyone to keep their eyes looking around the ship and communicating whats going on around you. It just feels more immersive that way.

[Shinkurex]

I've mapped my map key to the "q" ... that way I don't have to worry about using all fingers...

[RearAdmiralZill]

I think that the one large map is plenty for us. Giving us a mini map would take a lot away from skillful maneuvering that can be life/death for many boats.

The large map lets you make those "first-contact" tactics, and that's all it should really do. Spots and mental notes should dictate the actual fight.

I offer my disagreement in the nicest way possible.

[Captain Smollett]

I don't know if I've just been playing this game too long...

But I agree with Zill.  It seems more immersive and challenging the way it currently stands.

[Moo]

Magical minimaps showing enemies etc. are one of those features that are becoming annoyingly ubiquitous. In a "low-tech" game such as this, it'd be even more out of place than usual.

[Enjix]

I know this game isn't about realism at all, but...

What's caused you to be looking at your map in the middle of a firefight? We don't have time for that! Shoot the ship! Fire the cannons! They're right there in front of you gunner! Bombs away!

In seriousness though, some of the finesse of piloting is keeping track of where ships are in respect to yours, and sneaking into a blind spot can be a great advantage during an engagement.

Is the map clunky? Yes. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily. Though this is coming from someone who feels spyglass spotting is a bit cheap too, as it let's you see through walls at times.

[dragonmere]

It's important to note that a good captain spends a LOT of his time checking the map. Even if an enemy is directly in front of your ship, getting them spotted and on the map is a huge priority. Being able to have a simple arrow graphic showing the facings of every ship is incredibly important. Knowing when to look at that, and when to focus on the action, is part of being a good captain. Throwing a mini-map into the mix completely removes that level of skill from the equation.

[-Muse- Cullen]

It seems more immersive and challenging the way it currently stands.

This makes you rely on actually looking for enemy ships and using the spyglass and such.

[Redorio diVario]

So maybe if you don't want to lose on realism and don't want a minimap then maybe a farcry 2 approach?

You get the idea. When pressing M (really, who uses M for map?! x.X)  the character would take an in-game map in the left hand. Of course this would work only in 1st person view mode.