UI and feedback

UI, prompt, and notification behavior.

This chapter covers the presentation layer exposed by the plugin: focus prompt widgets, per-slot interaction rows, progress updates, notification widgets, distant indicators, and focused-target visual feedback.

Presentation layers

Focus prompt widget shows the currently focused target and its display slots.
Interaction rows represent individual slots, such as Tap, Hold, Mash, Multi-Hit, Damage, or Toggle actions.
Distant indicator exposes interactables outside prompt range but still relevant to the player.
Notification widget communicates result messages such as denied interaction, missing requirements, or custom gameplay feedback.
Outline and focus feedback reinforces which actor or foliage instance is currently selected.

Recommended widget architecture

For custom prompt UI, the recommended path is to derive the main prompt widget from InteractionFocusWidgetBase and each repeatable slot row from InteractionRowWidgetBase. This keeps Blueprint presentation flexible while letting the plugin handle stable interactor binding, focus payload delivery, slot refresh, and progress routing by SlotID.

Why rows matter: modern Interaction Engine targets can expose multiple display slots at once. A single prompt widget should usually rebuild a list of slot rows instead of assuming one fixed action text or one fixed progress bar.

`InteractionFocusWidgetBase`

InteractionFocusWidgetBase is the base class for the shared interaction prompt shown by the local interactor. It implements Interaction Focus Receiver, receives FInteractionFocusData, optionally resolves the owning pawn's InteractorComponent, refreshes the focused slots, and updates registered row widgets when interaction progress changes.

Function or property	Purpose
`ApplyFocusData`	Applies the focus payload pushed by the interactor and fires the Blueprint focus events.
`GetCurrentFocusData`	Returns the latest `FInteractionFocusData` received by the widget.
`HasValidFocusData`	Returns whether the current focus payload represents a valid actor or foliage target.
`InitializeForInteractor`	Explicitly assigns the interactor. Use this for custom-created widgets or world-space widget workflows.
`ResolveInteractorReference`	Resolves the interactor from the owning player pawn. It does not rely on `GetPlayerPawn(0)`.
`BindInteractorEvents` / `UnbindInteractorEvents`	Binds or removes the progress and lifecycle delegates used by the base widget.
`RefreshCurrentSlots`	Pulls display slots from the currently focused target through the interactor.
`GetCurrentSlots`	Returns the latest slot list used by the UI.
`FindCurrentSlotByID`	Finds a refreshed slot by gameplay `SlotID`.
`GetInitialProgressFromSlot`	Calculates normalized starting progress for Hold, Multi-Hit, Toggle, and Button Mash rows.
`DiscoverInteractionRows`	Scans the widget tree for child widgets derived from `InteractionRowWidgetBase`.
`RegisterInteractionRow` / `UnregisterInteractionRow`	Manually manages row widgets when your UI creates or recycles rows at runtime.
`SetInteractionRows` / `ClearInteractionRows`	Replaces or clears the complete registered row list.
`UpdateProgressForSlot`	Finds the row with a matching `SlotID` and updates its normalized progress.

Automation flags

The base widget is designed to work automatically for common Blueprint widgets, but the behavior can be disabled for advanced custom UI.

Flag	Default behavior
`bAutoDiscoverRows`	Scans the widget tree for `InteractionRowWidgetBase` children during initialization.
`bAutoResolveAndBindInteractor`	Automatically resolves the local interactor and binds progress/lifecycle events.
`bAutoRefreshSlotsOnFocusData`	Refreshes `CurrentSlots` before `On Focus Data Applied`.
`bAutoUpdateRegisteredRows`	Automatically routes progress updates into registered rows by `SlotID`.
`bResetProgressOnInteractionCompleted`	Resets the completed slot's row progress to zero when a confirmed completion arrives.
`bRefreshSlotsOnHitConfirmed`	Refreshes slots after confirmed hits, then recalculates Multi-Hit/Damage progress from the latest slot state.

Blueprint events on the focus widget

Event	Use it for
`On Focus Data Applied`	Rebuild or update the visible prompt after valid focus data is received.
`On Focus Data Cleared`	Hide the prompt, clear rows, or play an unfocus animation.
`On Display Slots Refreshed`	Create/update row widgets from the refreshed slot list.
`On Slot Progress Updated`	React when progress changes, even if no registered row matched the `SlotID`.
`On Widget Interaction Completed`	Play completion animation/sound after server-confirmed completion.
`On Widget Hit Confirmed`	React to confirmed Multi-Hit/Damage hits and update visual damage progress.
`On Widget Button Mash Failed`	Reset mash visuals or play a failure state.

`InteractionRowWidgetBase`

InteractionRowWidgetBase is an optional base class for individual slot rows. Use it for reusable row Blueprints so the focus widget can update the correct progress bar without knowing your project-specific widget class.

Function or event	Purpose
`SetInteractionSlotID`	Assigns the gameplay slot represented by this row. Call this when building the row from an `FInteractionSlot`.
`GetInteractionSlotID`	Returns the represented slot id.
`ClearInteractionSlotID`	Clears the row's represented slot. Useful when recycling rows.
`SetInteractionRowProgress`	Sets normalized progress, clamped to `0..1`, and fires the row Blueprint event.
`GetInteractionRowProgress`	Returns the latest clamped progress value.
`On Interaction Row Progress Updated`	Implement this in Blueprint to set the ProgressBar percent or update custom row visuals.

Widget helper library

InteractionWidgetLibrary provides generic Blueprint helpers for row-based UI. Use Find Interaction Row By Slot ID to locate a row, or Update Interaction Row Progress By Slot ID to locate and update a row in one call.

Typical multi-slot prompt workflow

1. Create a main prompt widget Make the widget inherit from InteractionFocusWidgetBase. Use this widget class on your interactable or foliage widget settings.

2. Create a row widget Make each row inherit from InteractionRowWidgetBase. The row should expose your text, glyph, hint, and progress bar visuals.

3. Rebuild rows from refreshed slots In On Display Slots Refreshed, loop through the received slots, create or reuse one row per slot, then call SetInteractionSlotID on each row using the slot's SlotID.

4. Initialize row values Set prompt text from Display.Prompt, hint text from Display.Hint, and glyph/icon from the slot's InputAction or the focus data's InputAction.

5. Set initial progress Call GetInitialProgressFromSlot for Hold, Mash, Toggle, Multi-Hit, or Damage rows, then call SetInteractionRowProgress on the row.

6. Let the base widget update progress During gameplay, the base widget receives hold/mash/hit/completion events from the interactor and calls UpdateProgressForSlot automatically.

Prompt data sources

Field area	Source	Notes
Target metadata	`InteractionTitle` and `InteractionDescription` on the interactable, or foliage entry widget data	Use for actor-level or foliage-instance identity/context.
Action prompt	`Display.Prompt` inside the slot	Represents the actionable operation for the current slot.
Secondary hint	`Display.Hint` inside the slot	Optional supplemental text such as requirements or outcome notes.
Input action	`Display.InputAction` inside the slot, or `InputAction` on `FInteractionFocusData`	Preferred source for glyph resolution through the input glyph system.
Fallback input label	`Display.KeyLabel` inside the slot	Use as explicit text fallback when no input action or glyph is available.

Focus data payload

FInteractionFocusData is the unified payload pushed into widgets for both actor and foliage focus. It includes display text, InputAction, slot identity, interaction type, focus location, distance, and target-specific references.

FocusType identifies actor focus, foliage focus, or no focus.
Title, Description, Prompt, Hint, and KeyLabel provide ready-to-display text.
InputAction can be sent directly to the glyph subsystem to resolve the current icon/text.
SlotID and InteractionType identify which action the focus payload represents.
Interactable and InteractableActor are valid for actor focus.
FoliageComponent, FoliageInstanceIndex, FoliageInstanceId, and FoliageMesh are valid for foliage focus.

Input glyph integration

Widgets should prefer the input glyph system over hard-coded key names. Use the slot or focus InputAction to resolve a visual through the glyph subsystem, then fall back to KeyLabel or text when no glyph exists. See Input Device Glyphs for the complete glyph workflow.

Main prompt widget placement

The interactable controls prompt widget behavior through WidgetDisplayMode, WidgetClass, WidgetDrawSize, WidgetRelativeOffset, and the placement fields for the selected display mode.

Anchor resolution: if the actor contains an Interaction Widget Anchor Component, projected widgets and distant indicators resolve from that component instead of the actor origin.

On-focus widget placement

Projected near target The prompt is positioned in world space relative to the interactable anchor and uses WidgetRelativeOffset.

Fixed on screen The prompt is locked to a normalized viewport position using FixedScreenPosition plus the pixel offset stored in FixedScreenWidgetOffset.

Placement note: FixedScreenPosition defines the normalized screen anchor and FixedScreenWidgetOffset applies the final pixel-space adjustment.

Interaction notifications

Notifications are runtime payloads sent from the interaction flow to the player's UI when the result needs a dedicated explanation, such as access denial, missing requirements, inventory errors, or other custom outcomes.

Widget class requirement: notification widgets should inherit from InteractionNotificationWidgetBase so the payload can be applied through the plugin's base notification path.

1. Emit from the interaction source Configure NotificationWidgetClass on the interactable when needed, then call NotifyInteractor or NotifyInteractorMessage.

2. Receive on the interactor side Bind the player UI to OnInteractionNotificationReceived on the interactor component.

3. Handle target-side denial events if required Use OnInteractionDenied on the interactable when the target actor should react locally to a denied attempt.

4. Present inside the widget layer The widget Blueprint controls animation, stacking, auto-close, and any other project-specific notification behavior.

World indicators and outlines

DistantIndicator on the interactable defines the icon shown before the main prompt widget takes over.
IconDisplayRadius, MaxIconTargets, and bIconRequiresLineOfSight on the interactor define how nearby indicators are gathered and filtered.
OutlineSettings on the interactable controls per-target outline behavior through per-component CustomDepth/Stencil state.
Legacy Material Parameter Collection outline fields on the interactor are deprecated and should not be used for new setups.

Debug checklist

Rows do not update progress Confirm that each row inherits from InteractionRowWidgetBase, has a valid SlotID, and is registered or discoverable by the focus widget.

Progress updates fire but no row changes Check the bUpdatedRow value from On Slot Progress Updated. If it is false, the registered row list does not contain the matching slot id.

Widget cannot find the interactor Make sure the widget has the correct owning player or call InitializeForInteractor manually.

Glyph is missing Prefer InputAction glyph resolution and keep KeyLabel as a fallback text path.

Related configuration points

Interactable reference Use Interactable Reference for prompt widget, notification widget, outline, and distant indicator fields.

Interactor reference Use Interactor Reference for focus data, icon gathering, line-of-sight, and debug settings.

Slot reference Use Slot and Settings Reference for prompt, hint, input action, key label, feedback, and progress-related fields stored inside each slot.