Questions tagged [branching-narrative]

This tag should be used for questions that deal with problems you as a writer encounter while working on a branching narrative, such as writing for a visual novel, gamebooks ("Choose Your Own Adventure") and games (for example videogames or RPG campaigns). These topics have in common that the reader is interacting with the game, for example by turning to certain pages or making choices. Contrast this with [storyline], which is about a continuous storyline.

This tag should be used for questions that deal with problems you as a writer encounter while working on a branching narrative, such as writing for a visual novel, gamebooks ("Choose Your Own Adventure"-style books) and games (for example videogames or RPG campaigns).

These topics have in common that the reader is interacting with the game, for example through a conscious choice, such as turning the book to a certain page, a quest-item in the characters inventory, the amount of interactions with certain other characters, ...

Contrast this with , which is about a single continuous storyline. Please note that can encompass multiple timelines.

Your question should focus on the narrative elements. If you are searching for help with mechanical elements, for example of your gamebook or game, you should visit our sister site GameDev.SE.

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Is it a bad idea to have multiple bad endings and only one good ending?

Background: I'm working on a game that has multiple paths for players to choose from. The choices the players make can lead them to very different endings. There are many bad endings but only one true canon ending. Only one good ending,…
user23083
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4 answers

Are there tools that can aid an author in writing a branching storyline?

I would like to know whether there are any tools that would help an author write a branching storyline. Usecases may for example be: campaigns for Pen and Paper games visual novels Choose Your Own Adventure-style books The common thing is that…
Secespitus
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Where can I find resources about writing "Choose your own adventure"-style books?

I have read/played a couple of "Choose your own adventure"-style book and am interested in the process of creating one. Where can I find (preferrably free) online resources, such as How-To-Write or styleguide articles and blogs, about writing a…
12
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5 answers

I want to write a Choose Your Own Adventure styled e-book, what's a good approach?

If you don't remember, Choose Your Own Adventure books had bits of a story, then options for the reader to give them more of a feeling of control in their adventure: "If you want to walk through the dark tunnel, turn to page 16. If you want to take…
jbnunn
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What sites are available for hosting Choose Your Own Adventure stories?

I'm working on a story that is like a Choose Your Own Adventure, but different. Instead of being "you" and deciding what to do next, the reader must choose which characters participate at what time. By choosing the characters, you then get to follow…
12
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6 answers

Any software for video game non-linear story design?

Is there any software for making non-linear story or dialogues? I tried MS Word/Google Docs but that's not good for dialogues. In one complicated dialogue I wrote in Google Drawings, it looks like this (Ignore those ticks; I think it's not final…
Chilli
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How much can I trust my players to remember previous states of the story and not get confused?

In my game, the player may run into deadends in the story, which causes the game to end prematurely. This can range from the player simply getting killed, another important character in the story getting killed or an important event happening or not…
user23083
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3 answers

How can I convert a linear narrative into a branching narrative?

Suppose I would like to create a text adventure game, but my imagination is not sufficient for creating a whole game. But there are fiction books (in the public domain) that are very imaginative and could potentially make a great game. The main…
7
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2 answers

In a branching mystery, should branches be "self-correcting" or follow the impulse of the reader?

A mystery with 3 subplots I'm writing a branching mystery novel. It's more Raymond Chandler than Agatha Christie: the mystery is a driver-of-plot rather than a puzzle for the reader to solve. Following modern cop-show/detective tropes, the various…
wetcircuit
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Where can I find online resources about writing a visual novel?

I have read/played quite a few visual novels and am interested in the process of creating one. Where can I find (preferrably free) online resources, such as How-To-Write or styleguide articles and blogs, about writing a visual novel? The main…
Secespitus
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How to turn a single narrative into a branching one?

I'm currently writing a story which started out as a short story but kept growing, until I discovered it would work well as a visual novel. I have all of the possible endings in mind, but for now I'm focusing on what I think of as the "main" path -…
5
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How many words do visual novels contain on average per hour of gameplay?

I've seen a few visual novels on Steam and Kickstarter that mentioned how many words they already contain and what they are planning for the final amount. The problem is: I have no idea how those numbers compare to other games. As I am currently…
Secespitus
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How do I structure branching-narrative choice prompts for limited 3rd-person?

Character POV My interactive novel has Old Cop, Young Cop protagonists with different skillsets, backgrounds, observation of details, etc. The POV switches between them using 3rd-person limited. Branching choices are intended to be in character – in…
wetcircuit
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Is it possible to write an emotional narrative in a game with player-made character?

I'm in the process of drafting a story for a single player game where the player controls their own made character. I'm planning for the game to have an emotional narrative but I cannot wrap my head around how to execute it story-wise when dealing…
4
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How does one go about first drafting a linear visual novel?

I’m making a linear visual novel with partial interactivity that allows the player to influence small portions of the story, but I just want to know how one goes about drafting something like that. The interactivity feature allows you to build a…
VNlover
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