Pixel Crushers Forum

I'm really interested in using Dialogue System for a project I'm about to start working on. It's a text based version of old school FPS dungeon crawlers. Looking over the manual and watching the tutorials on youtube has me slightly concerned. I'm new to unity and since my project will be mostly text based (with the exception of interactive buttons on the HUD and inventory screen), I'm not sure if Dialogue System will work (since I'm not sure how colliders come into play with my expected setup).

I appreciate any input on the matter.

Hi,

The Dialogue System works great for text-based games. It's even been used for a vision-impaired project that basically didn't use any visual output (text or graphics) at all. The CYOA Framework is an example of a primarily text-based project. The version on the website uses the Unity webplayer, so you'll have to use a browser other than Chrome. I haven't uploaded a WebGL version of that demo yet, but the Dialogue System is fully WebGL-compatible.

The Dialogue System is modular and keeps a clean separation between data, game world objects, and user interface. It provides general-purpose components for game world interaction and user interfaces, but you don't have to use them. You can swap in your own functionality instead, and the data module will work happily with them. Template scripts are included to help you get started quicker.

The Dialogue System is designed around traditional branching conversations where it's assumed characters pull lines from prewritten conversation trees. It runs Lua under the hood, so it has a very powerful variable system that you can use to vary content. But if you're looking for a freeform text parser like the old Infocom text games (e.g., Zork), the Dialogue System isn't a good fit. You can prompt the player for text input such as getting his/her name or verifying an in-game password, but I wouldn't recommend it for full-blown natural language parsing.

If I can provide any other details, just let me know!

Thanks for the reply. I'm definitely more interested in an advanced CYOA kind of format over a parser. My intended game flow would be something like:

User clicks a button to "Explore the City" -> The game pulls from a table of random events that could occur and presents one to the player -> Based on the players skills and/or stats they interact with the scene and decide an outcome -> The appropriate flags are set and information saved in case this scene is presented again so that they can progress to the next option.

This way if they explore the city they might find a sewer entrance with a guard and using their persuasiveness they get information about strange happenings down there. The next time they come across the sewer they are able to enter it and explore a bit, progressively getting further each time and running into new challenges.

I'm not sure if I'll have actual combat yet or just randomized dice rolls + skill checks. But I don't envision this setup being very graphic intensive. But I do think it will be very text heavy. I'd like to be able to track skills, inventory, and quest flags. My hope is an software like DS can lessen the coding burden of all that.

That'll be no problem in the Dialogue System. The CYOA Framework, available on the Extras page, may be a handy example to follow. And of course you can always post here with any questions or email me directly at tony (at) pixelcrushers.com!