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User:NadaAfterwards/Menu Icon Resource

A Menu Icon, also known as Label, Menu Button or even Banner, is an image file that can be clicked to access a new page. Menu Icons can be seen in the homepage of Yume Wiki as well as the front page of each individual game's wiki (known as a namespace). The purpose of Menu Icons is to facilitate navigation through a thematic graphic interface.

The visual contents of Menu Icons are comprised of a rectangular box and a textual label sitting below the box. Furthermore, the box is sub-divided into two sub-parts:

  • The frame: A border surrounding the entire box. Uses the game's System Sprites which also make up the borders for its menus.
  • The picture: A collage or composite image using either multiple screenshots or sprites.
The Menu Icon used to access Yume Nikki Wiki, showcasing multiple locations in the game.
The Menu Icon used to access the effects page in the aforementioned wiki. It uses the sprites of the effects in their egg form.

Rundown

[This section is to preface things for the style specs, to let editors know there should never be a case where they make labels from scratch and as such, must conform to the choices used in the pre-existing labels. Question is: Should this be part of the the style specs section or kept as is but renamed?]

Whenever a game gets added, the Yume Wiki administrators [citation literally needed, is this correct or am I using the wrong role name?] will create its namespace, alongside some Menu Icons to start things off. Editors are expected to replicate the same choices used on these starting Menu Icons.

Menu Icons that will always be present from the start include: "Dream Worlds, "Locations", "Soundtracks", "Effects", "Minor Characters", "Downloads", the protagonist and "Events". The naming conventions might be different based on what terminology the game uses. For example: Collective Unconscious uses "spirit worlds" instead of "dream worlds" and "eidola" in place of "effects".

It's possible for a namespace to be created and be missing some of the previously mentioned Menu Icons, this is typically the case when the game does not contain a certain element, such as events, or if the administrators [citation needed] have not discovered any examples of it. If there is no soundtrack page it is advised to ask if this is a deliberate decision, as some game developers might not want their songs hosted in Yume Wiki. [is this true?]

Style Specifications

Menu Icons must be 310x140 in pixel size and use PNG format. The dimensions of the box must be 310 in width and 110 in height, this includes the frame.

The frame must consistently be the same sprite for the namespace where it is being used. For example, do not use the frame seen in the Yume Nikki namespace for any of the other namespaces.

Using different sprites from different menu themes in the game is allowed, an example of this can be seen in the Unaccomplished Wiki. It is okay if the frame has rounded borders or parts that extend into the picture, so long as this is how it looks inside the game.

The 310x30 space below the box is designated for the textual label, which must be aligned at the center. Ideally have some vertical spacing with the box as to not have the text touch the frame though this is not required. Text legibility is more important. [this wouldnt matter when following the admins example]

The typeface of the text can be the same used in the game though this isn't always the case. Fonts must be distinct enough across each namespace. [same here]

The text can have the following styling choices:

  • A solid color or a gradient
  • A border or a shadow [what do we call the black stuff in UD's labels?]

Whichever choice you pick, make sure it is consistent for all Menu Icons that are to be used in that namespace. [again here, feels like there's not much need to go into detail]

Be as creative as you want with the pictures, so long as it belongs to the game you are making Menu Icons for and what you want to showcase is clear. For example, do not showcase multiple effects for a Menu Icon intended to represent events as this could cause the user to misinterpret at a first glance. If there are effect requirements for an event it is best to pick a different one.

[no mention about transparency so far]

Filename Standardization

As of right now, no properly adopted standardization exists for Menu Icons. However, Menu Icons used in Yume Wiki's front page normally follow the following filename structure:

[namespace abbreviation]_Wiki_Link.png

For example:

Yn_Wiki_Link.png

This file corresponds to the Menu Icon used to access Yume Nikki Wiki. For a list of namespace abbreviations refer to the Wiki Namespaces list.

For Menu Icons used inside a namespace the most common structure is the following:

[namespace abbreviation][text from menu icon]label.png

For example:

Dfdreamworldslabel.png

This filename structure is very hard to parse so ideally, a different one should be agreed upon.

[Okay so "namespace" isn't a proper synonym for a game wiki as this includes technical pages as well, "wiki namespace" is the proper choice but then the synonym falls redundant. Will the distinction matter?]

Record of Existing Labels

[collapsibles might be ideal for mobile ux]

Yume Wiki


YNOproject Wiki

This namespace also includes all "Wiki Link" Menu Icons for games present in YNO.


Yume Nikki Wiki


Yume 2kki Wiki


Dotflow Wiki


Someday Wiki


Deep Dreams Wiki


Answered Prayers Wiki


Amillusion Wiki


Uneven Dream Wiki


Braingirl Wiki


Collective Unconscious Wiki


Muma Rope Wiki


Dream Genie Wiki


Mikan Muzou Wiki


Ultra Violet Wiki


She Awaits Wiki


Oversomnia Wiki


Yume Tsushin Wiki


NostAlgic Wiki


If Wiki


Unaccomplished Wiki


Cerasus Wiki


Yume Tagai Wiki

Needed Labels

Last updated: 2025-04-24

The following is a list of Menu Icons that need to be created:

  1. Yume Nikki - Ending
  2. Yume Nikki - Versions
  3. Someday - Versions
  4. Answered Prayers - World Maps
  5. Uneven Dream - Authors
  6. Braingirl - Events
  7. She Awaits - Events
  8. NostAlgic - Events
  9. If - Endings
  10. Cerasus - World Maps
  11. Yume Tagai - World Maps

Game Online Labels

Last updated: 2025-04-24

A few namespaces contain a Menu Icon with a link to play the game in YNOproject, these being: Yume 2kki, Braingirl and Mikan Muzou. While these Menu Icons are not deemed to be important, having one for each namespace relating to YNOproject would be ideal for consistency sake. Below is a list of namespaces that do not have this type of Menu Icon:

  1. Yume Nikki
  2. Dotflow
  3. Someday
  4. Deep Dreams
  5. Answered Prayers
  6. Amillusion
  7. Uneven Dream
  8. Collective Unconscious
  9. Muma Rope
  10. Dream Genie
  11. Ultra Violet
  12. She Awaits
  13. Oversomnia
  14. Yume Tsushin
  15. NostAlgic
  16. If
  17. Unaccomplished

Additional Labels

Aside from all the Menu Icons listed thus far, some namespaces might contain additional links under an "external links" section which could be converted to Menu Icons. These external links are usually links to the game's respective article in Yume Nikki Fangames Wiki -of which Mikan Muzou and Cerasus already have Menu Icons for- as well as official websites, development blogs, social accounts, or wikis in different languages (such as Japanese).

These all could be turned to Menu Icons, although no decision has been made on the matter.

Resources

The following is a collection of image files meant to be used as resources to create new Menu Icons using an image manipulation program such as GIMP and Medibang. The resources are split into the following types:

  • Frame resource
  • Text resource
  • Splits resource

The frame resource is as the name implies, the frame used for the box part of a Menu Icon. Whenever a namespace makes use of more than one frame, all these additional frames are provided.

The text resource contains all characters from the Latin alphabet, both in lower and upper case, as well as every numerical symbol. All characters are at the correct height in relation to the baseline, however letter spacing is actually arbitrary. Editors should take care to respect the baseline of each character and to adequately find the correct kerning, using existing Menu Icons as reference is recommended.

The splits resource represents templates most commonly used by editors when creating collages for the picture part of a Menu Icon which is most commonly seen in the Wiki Links, Dream Worlds, Locations and Events types. These templates should be used at the discretion of the user as they are not obligatory, they are also not exhaustive as editors can come up with new ways to make composite images.

Additionally, an external link to download the font used for the textual label is provided whenever one is available. Usage of the text resource or the font file is at the discretion of the user. Our preferred method is the former, as we find it's easier to position individual characters into place without having to manually edit text to the right size and stylization. Whenever possible, additional information will be provided to aid users into getting their manual text to match.

Files

Splits Templates

Yume Nikki

Text specifications:

Font: RPG Maker 2K [this text would be a hyperlink]
Anti-aliasing: OFF
Size: 36px
Pixel scale: 1:3 [N/A if not a pixel-style typeface]
Letter spacing: Unverified
Text color(s): [all hex values used]
Shadow offset: 3 units right, 3 units down
Shadow color(s): [all hex values used]

Yume 2kki

Text specifications:

Font: 
Anti-aliasing: 
Size: 
Pixel scale: 
Letter spacing: 
Text color(s): 
Stroke weight: [in pixels?]
Stroke color(s):

&&&

Text specifications:

Font: 
Anti-aliasing: 
Size: 
Pixel scale: 
Letter spacing: 
Text color(s): 
Shadow offset/stroke weight: 
Shadow/stroke color(s):