Test your story

Play, and where to start

The Play button in the top bar opens the player — the same one readers get, plus author tools. First it asks where to start: a “Play chapter” window shows up with the current chapter’s name.

“From the start” begins the chapter at its start point. “From the current node” begins at the node selected on the graph. “Continue” shows up once you’ve played before: the player returns to where you closed it — your browser remembers that spot. With several chapters there’s a list of them below, and picking a chapter starts it over.

Esc closes the player — or, if a panel or window is open over the frame, closes that first.

1. Click the node you want to start from on the graph.
2. Click Play in the top bar.
3. In the window pick “From the current node” — or “From the start” to play the whole chapter.

From a node, a line or a block

To check the middle of a scene you don’t have to play everything before it: the player can start right at the spot you need, with no start window.

The frame at the start point is built the way a reader would see it: the backdrop, characters and music set earlier in the timeline are already in place. Variables, though, begin at their start values — set the ones you need in Debug variables (more on that below).

1. On the graph: right-click a node → “Play from this node”.
2. In Dialogs: right-click a line → “Play from this line”, or an Actions block → “Play from this block”. On an expanded line card the “⋯” button opens the same menu; on a phone, press and hold.
3. Fastest of all is Alt+P in Dialogs: the player starts from the card that is selected right now.

↻ Replay and your own save points

Click the top edge of the frame, where the thin line is, and a row of buttons slides out: exit, ↻ Replay and Settings. ↻ opens a window where everything works right away, with no confirmation.

“From this line” and “From this node” replay what you just saw with the variable values you had at that moment. “From the chapter start” takes you back to the start of the current chapter. “Find a line or node” searches every chapter from two letters up, and clicking a result starts the player there.

“Save this point” remembers the moment along with its variables, and clicking the save brings you back exactly here. These saves sit under “Saves in this browser”, up to 20 of them, and neither co-authors nor readers see them. If you later delete the node, the save stays marked “This node is gone” — the bin removes it.

1. Play up to the spot you want.
2. Click the top edge of the frame, then ↻.
3. Under “Saves in this browser”, click “Save this point”.

Debug variables

To check a “trust at least 5” branch you don’t have to earn that trust for real. Open the player panel: click the top edge of the frame and then Settings (or click the edge once more). Below Advanced settings there’s a collapsed Debug variables section.

It lists every variable in the novella with its current value. A number gets −/+ buttons and a field, and the field’s suggestions are the thresholds from your conditions: for “≥ 5” you get 4 and 5, one value for each branch. A flag gets yes and no, an emotion or an outfit gets a list. Changed values are marked with a dot, and once there are more than eight variables a “Find a variable” search appears.

The edits live in this run only: nothing is written into the novella, and progress made while debugging isn’t saved — “Continue” later picks up from the last normal spot. Start values are changed only in the Vars tab.

1. Set the values you need in Debug variables.
2. Click “Restart with these values”. The run starts again — from the same node or line if you launched it with “Play from…”, otherwise from the start of the chapter.
3. “Reset to start values” puts everything back.

Value presets

If you check the same branch often, save the values as a preset and apply them with one pick in the Preset list. A preset keeps only what differs from the start values.

Presets are stored in the novella itself: co-authors see them, and they never go into a release. Anyone who can edit the novella can save and delete presets — with read-only access you can only pick them.

1. Set the values in Debug variables.
2. In the Preset list choose “+ Save current…”.
3. Type a preset name and press Enter or the tick. A preset with the same name is replaced.

Draft versions and rolling back

The draft saves itself after every edit. Saved versions are restore points you set yourself, without publishing: the version number doesn’t go up and readers see nothing. A version captures the whole draft — every chapter and everything in the library.

To go back, click Restore on the version you want. There’s no confirmation and nothing to fear: the current draft is first saved by itself as “Before restoring …” marked auto, and you can return to it the same way. The change reaches everyone who has the editor open right away.

The latest 30 versions are kept and older ones are removed automatically — at 30 of 30 History tells you in advance which one goes next. Only the owner can delete a version with the bin (two clicks). Below, the owner sees Releases: Restore there rolls the draft back to a released version, and readers get it only with the next publish.

1. Click History in the top bar.
2. Click “Save version” and, if you like, note what changed.
3. Click Save — the version lands in the Saved versions list.

FAQ

Why are my variables different with “Play from this node” than in a normal playthrough? Starting from a node or a line uses the start values. Set the ones you need in Debug variables and click “Restart with these values” — or save a point during a normal playthrough and come back to it through ↻.

A line is hidden by a condition — will it play with “Play from this line”? Yes: the line you start from always plays. A line in a quick-choice answer branch starts together with its answer.

How do I check a translation? Open that language’s tab in Dialogs, say EN, and click Play — the player runs in that language.

Are coins charged for a paid choice in Play? No: in the editor paid options open for free, and a note in the player shows what a reader would pay.

How is Play different from Preview above the stage? Preview replays how the selected node’s frame appears right on the canvas — the backdrop animation, characters entering, text typing — and starts the music. Play runs the story for real: transitions, choices and variables included.