Hey folks!

This update took a little while longer to write, but I've been hard at work on several improvements to Storyfall. I've also been working on my own story, which I've made some decent progress on. I'm hoping to release chapter 1 in the coming months.

Random effects system

Writers can now add probability-based choice effects. So when a reader picks a choice, instead of a certain outcome always happening, it happens based on some formula. This could be a simple 50% probability, or a more complex function that adjusts the probability based on some variable. For instance, you could make it so that the stronger you get, the more likely you are to successfully deal damage to an enemy in combat.

The effect itself can also vary. You could specify a range of values. We also support dice rolls!

Random text variations

Another requested feature was random text variations. I've added three different ways to cycle between random text in scenes and choices so you have a lot of flexibility here:

random - changes each visit,
randomOnce - locked per character/playthrough,
and cycle - rotates through options on each visit

Sound effects!

In a previous update, I added background audio to scenes. Now, Storyfall also supports sound effects! You can upload snippets of audio and have them play in different parts of a scene. If the reader has the typewriter effect enabled (which it is by default), the scene text will pause as it reaches an effect, play the sound, and then continue. You can also override that behavior and have the text continue appearing without pausing for the sound effect to finish. I've even added individual volume controls if some effects need to be louder or quieter.

Guest Mode

Several people over on the intfiction.org forum requested guest mode so that they could try out the editor without committing to creating an account, so I obliged. You can now head on over to the workshop, even without being logged in, and start writing a story. If you do decide to create an account (which is free!), your progress is saved. Any stories you were writing or characters you had playing other stories will be transferred over to your new account.

Other new features

Here's a list of other new features, roughly in order of importance:

Events are in! In preparation for our first game jam, I added an entire event, voting, and badging system. Right now the events page is empty, but stay tuned for our first game jam, coming soon!
Added a spellcheck function to the editor - allowing story-wide global spellcheck to be ran across all scenes and choices. The spellcheck also has a custom dictionary so you can add words and these are remembered across all of your stories. If you'd prefer to use your browser spellcheck, you can just disable this.
Effects can now be conditional! You can make effects only happen if some other condition is met, e.g. if you try to open a locker but your lock picking skill is <20, you don't get the gold coins.
Added input type choices. Readers can now input text directly into a choice when picking a name or for any other reason. This allows writers to collect information from readers, such as the character name, during play through. In fact, a writer can now disable the initial character name input entirely.
Added a reusable interact type choice. Unlike the regular interact choice, the reusable one doesn’t go away and can be clicked an unlimited number of times.
Message blocks are a new editor feature that allow for more immersive in-game emails, text messages, letters, etc. so that something a character is reading looks different from the typical narration styling.
Keyboard shortcuts were added for readers so that on desktop they can quickly use their keyboard, e.g. numbers 1 through 9, to make choices.
Can now hide choices if they’re not available (i.e. if conditions aren’t met). This helps prevent spoilers with multiple play throughs of the same game.
Picking a character name that clashes with an NPC already in the story is not allowed anymore to prevent confusion.
I added a new version modal - you can now look at various versions of your story from the workshop. This can be helpful when you have published and draft versions and want to see what's out there.
Variable default values can now be changed after they've been created.
Tutorials have been added to the editor to help onboard new writers and make it easier to learn the Storyfall editor.
Improved speed at which some pages load.
Fixed block quotes not working when themes were applied.
Added a new notification type (both in-app and via email) for new comments on blog posts you write. When clicked they go straight to the new comment.
Fixed variable renaming in the editor. Renaming now properly updates all the variables across all scenes and choices.
Added a footer to blog posts with likes, views, and comments buttons.
Added an image viewing modal. You can now click on images in stories, forums, and posts, and zoom in on them.
Fixed various other bugs around chapters.
Many more bug fixes and quality of life improvements, but this list is getting too long!

As always, please let me know if you have any feedback!

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