Shell Options: replace the compact Home menu with a large universal activity surface #168

Context distinction — 9 October 2026: Game experience packages (#174–#178) may dynamically change Companions/Trainer primary tab labels and their Select/actions in the underlying shell, but shell Home/Guide → Options remains the same universal activity/notifications/communication panel regardless of selected game or page. Do not introduce adapter-specific Options menu items as a shortcut around contextual Select. When a game is actually running, Game Options (#170) may host package-specific additions tied to that live process.

Parent: #167. Revises the shell presentation portion of #112; does not move device/system settings out of Start.

Owner-approved behavior

Inside TrainerOS, pressing the physical Home/Guide opens a large overlay called Options (working name), covering roughly 85–95% of the safe viewport. Dim, retain and restore the underlying screen. This is a universal OS surface, not a different set of page actions depending on whether the user is in Home, Worlds, Companions, Trainer or Social.

What belongs here

Use compact, expressive sections/panels for actual system-wide functionality:

• notifications/unread requests and their destinations;
• people/messages quick access; current call and its real mute/leave state;
• active Game Party / incoming invitations and shared activity;
• Return to game and real live-session status only when a minimized game exists;
• other verified global utilities only if distinct from Start.

Items are capability/presence-driven, not a long list of disabled placeholders. Do not implement another Social conversation backend or duplicate GameParty. Keep the original Social conversation and history, call state and notification identity.

Do not add: per-game Properties, focused-card operations, local filters/companion actions (these belong to Select); device radios, system mode, Settings, brightness, volume, power or Switch Trainer (these belong to Start).

UI and input contract

• Design a coherent large surface, not the current 430 px vertical HomeMenuCard enlarged to fill 90%. Real content and focusable areas use the available space; do not turn this into an unnecessary second Home dashboard.
• Reuse TrainerOS's warm chassis/material palette, legible gold focus and restrained visual hierarchy; game/profile artwork may appear only when it adds real information.
• Same content/meaning from any shell primary/face. The currently opened page is retained as a backdrop and is not navigated away just to open Options.
• Home again or B closes and restores exact page, face, route, selected item and focus. B inside a nested activity panel first backs out.
• A/Confirm activates the focused action; controller and touch remain parallel. Opening/closing must respect neutral/release gates and protected writes/modals.
• Notifications update live but do not steal or reassign focus to an unrelated/destructive action. Persist identity-based selection as the underlying list changes.
• Fit handheld UI and recompose for true TV/safe-area profiles (TV UI foundation: introduce a real ten-foot responsive layout system, not 960x540 stretching #156–Acceptance: independent image/software updates and true handheld/TV parity across install modes #160), not one giant fixed-size 960×540 scaled list.

Existing code to reconcile

src/qml/Main.qml currently mounts a compact HomeMenuCard, while ShellController::homeMenuActions() builds the shell Home/Friends/Chats/Notifications list. Replace/reuse these surfaces within one shared Options model; preserve working service hooks and modal order. See current Home menu docs and #112.

Acceptance

• Same universal Options contents on Home, Worlds, Companions, Trainer and Social, modulo global live state (call/party/notification/minimized game).
• Large 85–95% safe-area overlay with useful panel layout, not a new primary page or extra tab.
• No page-specific actions hidden in Options; Start remains solely responsible for system controls.
• Home/B from each shell section returns to the exact preserved focus/route; nested Back behaves correctly.
• Incoming notifications/calls/party changes update without accidental activation or losing focus.
• Empty/offline/muted/DND/blocked/busy states are informative and privacy-respecting.
• Controller + touch, Flip/Odin, handheld + reflowed TV tests/screenshots exercise overlay, nested actions and accessibility.

Related: #111, #112, #127–#135, #156–#160 and #167.