DendryNexus: a StoryNexus-like IF engine

Technical Development Development Systems
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DendryNexus is a prototype IF system based on StoryNexus, a choice-based system with decks and cards, but implemented in Dendry. The goal is to be able to replicate most of the features of StoryNexus (ideally so that its games can be ported to DendryNexus - which, given that StoryNexus is mostly dead, might be useful in recovering or backing up some projects). DendryNexus also has some capabilities that StoryNexus lacks; it is a superset of Dendry and has all of its features.

Unlike StoryNexus, DendryNexus is entirely browser-based and doesn’t have a server component, and by default does not have a way to limit actions.

Here is what the default UI looks like right now:

A screenshot of the dendrynexus UI. On the left is the status bar, with text "Status. This is displayed in the sidebar, and can be used to show various things. Magic: weak (2)". In the center is the main content display. "Here, the main deck will be displayed. Clicking on the deck draws a card into your hand. Clicking on a card activates that card." "Decks - click a deck to draw a card." Deck 1 is a blank image. "Hand - click a card to play." Card 1, with spaces for two more cards. "Pinned cards - click a card to play."
A screenshot of the dendrynexus UI. On the left is the status bar, with text "Status. This is displayed in the sidebar, and can be used to show various things. Magic: weak (2)". In the center is the main content display. "Here, the main deck will be displayed. Clicking on the deck draws a card into your hand. Clicking on a card activates that card." "Decks - click a deck to draw a card." Deck 1 is a blank image. "Hand - click a card to play." Card 1, with spaces for two more cards. "Pinned cards - click a card to play."1907Ă—1317 163 KB

Existing features:

  • Decks and cards are implemented as dendry scenes with additional properties, and can display card images.
  • StoryNexus-style challenges using “broad” and “narrow” difficulty.
  • Sidebar that can display any stats/qualities.

Here is what the stat check/challenge display looks like:

(text for Card 1 goes here). Challenge 1 - magic. Check: magic. Difficulty: high-risk (24%).
(text for Card 1 goes here). Challenge 1 - magic. Check: magic. Difficulty: high-risk (24%).745Ă—298 15.9 KB

Right now there isn’t much in the way of documentation, examples, or tests, but I’m going to be working on a DendryNexus game for Spring Thing and probably some other game jams, so in a few months there will hopefully be a nonzero number of DendryNexus games.

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YES IT’S OUT

:partying_face:

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woohoo! Happy to help with documentation, if that’s useful.

Very excited and eager to use this tool.

Thank you!!!

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Thanks for the reminder! Dendry is a rather underrated choice-based medium, and DendryNexus makes things more interesting.

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I wonder why that is. For me it was relatively easy to use (although I did get some help from Autumn Chen on some small challenges). I would like to see more Dendry games (so Dendry can have its own category for the IFDB awards next year :smiley: )

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Dendry got a guide/tutorial for use only fairly recently. Before that it was there and you just could learn how to use it from looking through other games’ code.

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Good point. I remember playtesting parts of the tutorial when it came out. Well I guess I can also release the source code for my dendry game on April 1st if that helps other authors taking the plunge :smiley:

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I missed this in January, so I’m glad it got bumped! Bookmarking, and hoping it works as simply as Varytale(Dendry)/Storynexus did!

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