Artfight: Save Drafts & WIPs With Local Storage

Hey everyone, let's talk about Artfight and a super useful feature that could make the whole experience a lot smoother: saving drafts and Works in Progress (WIPs) using local storage. Currently, a big pain point for a lot of us is the hassle of switching between tabs while working on attacks – especially when you're grabbing character IDs for those epic mass attacks! So, the goal is to improve the Artfight user experience. The 'Attack!' button helps a bit, but collecting multiple character IDs is still a bit of a drag, am I right? What if we could save our progress and come back to it later, just like how some other platforms work? Let's dive in and see how we could make this happen.

The Problem: The Artfight Workflow Hurdle

As it stands, the Artfight workflow can be a bit clunky, especially when you're deep in the trenches of an art battle. You're probably familiar with the struggle: you're in the middle of crafting an attack, you need to collect character IDs, and you're constantly tabbing back and forth. It's a real disruption to the creative flow, and it's easy to lose your momentum. This is something that gets even more cumbersome when you're planning mass attacks, where you might have to juggle a bunch of different character IDs at once. This constant switching between tabs and the need to copy and paste information is not only time-consuming but also increases the chances of errors and, frankly, it’s just plain annoying. If you're anything like me, you've probably lost track of a few IDs or had to start an attack all over again because of a tab-related mishap. It breaks your concentration and can kill your motivation. So, we're aiming to find a solution that helps us get back to the fun stuff: creating awesome art and participating in the Artfight community without the tech hiccups. So, this feature is the hero of all art fighters because this will allow for better Artfight user experience and can also speed up the attack process!

This workflow issue affects everyone, whether you're a seasoned Artfight veteran or a newbie. The more attacks you create, the more frustrating this process becomes. It is an opportunity to streamline the process, enhance user satisfaction, and encourage more participation. By making it easier to save and manage drafts, we can provide a smoother, more enjoyable experience for everyone involved. To have the best experience on Artfight, the users must have a good and easy experience!

The Solution: Leveraging Local Storage for Drafts

So, here's the cool idea: let's use local storage to save our attack drafts and WIPs. For those of you who aren't familiar, local storage is basically a way for websites to save information directly on your computer. Think of it like a personal notepad that the website can use to remember things even after you close your browser. Platforms like Pokemon Showdown already use this for their teambuilders, and it works like a charm. Implementing something similar on Artfight would allow us to save our attack drafts as we go, which means you could close your browser, come back later, and pick up right where you left off. Awesome, right? This will alleviate a huge pain point by allowing users to save their progress without constantly copying and pasting information or starting from scratch every time they need to step away. This would be a game-changer for those of us who participate actively in Artfight and create multiple attacks, especially during the hectic battle seasons. Local storage is ideal because it is fast, readily available, and doesn't require any server-side interaction. All the heavy lifting is done directly on your device. This approach is perfect for storing quick attack drafts, and if we're feeling extra fancy, we can even let users organize these drafts directly from the character's page. This way, users can easily select which WIP they want to add to, making the whole process super intuitive and efficient. This will ultimately improve the user experience for everyone involved in Artfight.

Implementing local storage also opens up possibilities for improved organization. For instance, the ability to store multiple drafts simultaneously would allow users to manage different attack ideas or variations. This is great for users who like to experiment with different styles or ideas before committing to a final version. This helps people make better art and will increase engagement with the platform, by offering a more user-friendly environment. We are enhancing the whole Artfight workflow, which is a win-win for everyone involved!

Drafts in Action: A Visual Example

Let's paint a picture of how this could look. Imagine you're on the character's page and about to create an attack. Instead of just jumping straight into the creation process, you'd see a list of your existing WIP drafts. You could select one to continue working on or start a new one. This is very similar to how Itaku's screen works, showing what you've created so far and the WIP drafts at the top. The image illustrates what the creation interface might look like, showing what's been created so far and the WIP drafts at the top.

This approach not only saves your progress but also gives you a centralized hub for managing all your attack ideas. It keeps your creative flow uninterrupted and reduces the frustration of constantly switching between tabs and copying and pasting information. So it's simple: by providing a place to save WIPs, users will have more incentive to create more attacks. So, this enhancement would make the entire process more enjoyable and efficient, boosting overall user satisfaction, and encouraging more activity on Artfight. This allows for increased participation and makes the platform a better place.

Server-Side Considerations and the Desktop/Mobile Dilemma

While local storage is a fantastic solution for many, it does have one limitation: it's specific to the device you're using. So, what if you're like me, and you switch between your desktop and mobile devices? In that case, saving drafts on the server might be beneficial. This would allow you to access your WIPs from any device, no matter where you are. Server-side storage ensures that your data is accessible regardless of the device you are using, which provides a seamless experience for users who move between desktop and mobile devices. This would require more development effort and infrastructure, but the added flexibility could be well worth it for some users. However, for the majority of users, local storage should be perfectly adequate. For a lot of Artfight users, the primary method of using the platform is through a single device, so local storage is often the best solution. The convenience and speed offered by local storage are unmatched.

Ultimately, the choice depends on the specific needs of the users and the development resources available. The best approach might even be a hybrid solution, where local storage is the default, and there's an option to save to the server for users who want cross-device access. This is an enhancement that we can add to Artfight to make it more accessible and user friendly.

Conclusion: A Better Artfight Experience

Implementing draft saving using local storage would be a fantastic enhancement to Artfight. It addresses a real pain point, streamlines the workflow, and enhances the overall user experience. This feature will make creating attacks a lot easier and more enjoyable. Imagine the benefits: less frustration, more creative time, and a more user-friendly platform. It's a win-win for everyone! We could provide a smoother, more efficient, and more enjoyable experience for everyone involved. What do you guys think? Let's make Artfight even better, one draft at a time. The goal is to make Artfight even better, one draft at a time and we can do it!