Hey, I'm kinda new here. I'm working on a big project. I'm trying to make a Dating Simulator based off a certain show called Gravity Falls. The text-based version is to get my thoughts together on what the player will be able to do, basic elements, and the over-all flow of the paths the player will be able to choose. I know what I generally want each path to be like, but I need help on how to make it work with this program. One major problem is character selection. How do I work that into a text-adventure game? I want the player to be able to choose what character to play as at the start (considering that they would be able to choose from main protagonists and antagonists). Also, I want to make the score the progress that the player has made with whomever they pursue. Is there a way to make a "progress score" for each individual character? Or, if not that, is there a way I could make it impossible to pursue a character and then pursue another? If anyone could help out that would be great and I thank you in advance. Also, if there are spelling and/or grammar errors, please excuse that my laptop doesn't have the best spellcheck.

if you could provide a bit more information, it'd be more helpful for us in helping you, hehe:

Are you going to use the 'Text Adventure' or 'Game Book' version? Do you want your dating sim to be mostly a pure CYOA (choose your own adventure: you get a selection of choices, which branch into various combinations of paths) or do you want it to be a CYOA but have more RPG aspects to it or do you want it to be a RPG (I'm not quite familiar with what types of games are dating sims, I don't know much about dating sim games, lol)? Etc etc etc information/questions that I can't think of at the moment.

The reason, is that the Game Book version is a very stripped-down / limited in functionality, whereas the (offline/desktop) quest text adventure is the full program/functionality. So, if you're going to have your game use a good amount of RPG stuff, you would probably want to use the Text Adventure, even if you're making a CYOA. Also, Pixie created a hybrid library of a Text Adventure (thus having the full functionality of it) that looks like a Game Book.

I'll try to answer your questions as I can, but in regards to a making 'Text Adventure' versioned game (if you want to use a Game Book, I'll just make another post later for it):

I'd highly recommand trying to go through as much of the entire tutorial as you can, if you've never used quest before, as it helps teaches you the basics of using the quest (GUI/Editor) program/software/engine and introduces you to some game-making/code concepts that you'll need to understand.:

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/tutorial/

here's a section with lots of guides (it's not easy to find on the quest doc site):

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/guides/

also look at the posts/threads in the 'library and code sample' forum too, as well as this forum, of course:

http://textadventures.co.uk/forum/samples
http://textadventures.co.uk/forum/quest

take a look at this guide on character creation (as it has some parts/concepts that we'll be using, even if we're not doing RPG character creation):

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/guides/character_creation.html

Elements: these are quest's 'physical things' (in code: they're the 'creation' tag blocks):

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/elements/

// the 'creation' tag blocks:

<asl version="550">
  // game content ----- (see below)
</asl>

// everything seen below must be inside of the 'asl' creation tag block (where my '// game content -----' is) shown above:

<game name="xxx">
  // Attributes:
  <gameid>xxx</gameid>
  <version>1.0</version>
  <firstpublished>2016</firstpublished>
  // etc etc etc Attirbutes
</game>

<object name="xxx">
  // Attributes and/or other Objects, and also scripting: add new script
</object>

<function name="xxx">
  // scripting: (add new script)
</function>

<verb>
  // Attributes
</verb>

<command name="xxx">
  // Attributes and scripting: add new script
</command>

<turnscript name="xxx">
  // Attributes and scripting: add new script
</turnscript>

<exit name="xxx">
  // Attributes (and maybe scripting: add new script) --- I haven't been working much with exits for quite a while, forgot their content/syntax/format in them, lol
</exit>

// etc etc etc Elements

// also, Attributes are a weird hybrid (hard to describe/explain Attributes), so they too are as 'creation' tag blocks (but they HAVE TO BE INSIDE OF AN ELEMENT!), an example:

<object name="orc_1">
  <attr name="alias" type="string">orc</attr>
  <attr name="current_life" type="int">500</attr>
  <attr name="dead" type="boolean">false</attr>
  <attr name="right_hand" type="object">club</attr>
</object>

<object name="club">
  <attr name="damage" type="int">10</attr>
</object>

the basic idea with choosing a 'pre-set' Character is this, in a simple design, is:

1. create/add/setup your ('pre-set') Player Objects (these are the Objects that you can control; your 'playable characters: pcs')

make sure you set your 'preset' Objects as Player Objects! (lol):

'whatever pre-set' Object -> 'Features' Tab -> CHECK-IN the box: 'Player: player can become this object', now the 'Player' Tag is revealed/unhidden for you (see below)

'whatever pre-set' Object -> 'Player' Tab -> Player: [CAN BE A PLAYER] -> (set it up)

the control (who you're currently controlling) over your Player Objects is determined by the built-in 'pov' Object Attribute of your 'game' Game Object:

the 'ChangePov()' Function is the scripting that changes your pov (currently controlled Player Character):

in code:

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/functions/corelibrary/changepov.html

ChangePov (NAME_OF_YOUR_PLAYER_OBJECT_YOU_WANT_TO_CONTROL)

in GUI~Editor:

'whatever' Element -> (run as script) -> add new script -> 'Objects' section/category -> 'Change Player Object' Script

more about pov:

http://docs.textadventures.co.uk/quest/tutorial/changing_the_player_object.html

in the GUI~Editor:

// this is just to assign the initial 'game.pov' (controlled Player Character) at game start:
'game' Game Object -> 'Player' Tab -> (if you don't set it in the small rectangle drop down box, it defaults to your default 'player' Player object)

in scripting:

// GUI~Editor: 'whatever' Element -> (run as script) -> add new script -> 'variables' section/category -> 'set a variable or attribute' Script -> (see below):

set variable game.pov = [EXPRESSION] NAME_OF_YOUR_PLAYER_OBJECT

// or, in code (notice how it below is almost the same as above):

game.pov = NAME_OF_YOUR_PLAYER_OBJECT

in code, as 'creation' tag block:

<game name="whatever">
  <attr name="pov" type="object">NAME_OF_YOUR_PLAYER_OBJECT_YOU_WANT_TO_INITIALLY_CONTROL_AT_START_OF_GAME</attr>
</game>

2. create a menu at game start to select your pre-set character:

'game' Game Object -> 'Script' Tab -> 'Start' Script -> (see below)

add new script -> 'output' section/category -> 'show a menu' Script -> (set it up, see below example)

Show menu wth caption [TEXT] Character?

Options from list/dictionary (see below):

split ("NAME_OF_PLAYER_OBJECT_1;NAME_OF_PLAYER_OBJECT_2;etc etc etc", ";")

Allow player to ignore the menu: [NO]

After choosing, run script: (see below)

add new script -> 'Objects' section/category -> 'Change Player object' Script -> (see below)

Change player object to [EXPRESSION] result
// if the above doesn't work, then try this:
// Change player object to [EXPRESSION] GetObject (result)

as for your progress score, a big thing that noobs need to learn as quickly as possible is Attribute and 'If' Script usage, as these two things, let you do 90% of everything you want to do in your game:

http://textadventures.co.uk/forum/samples/topic/5559/attributes-and-if-script-guide-by-hk

ask if you got any questions and/or need any help!

Thank you very much. I did read through the tutorial, but I haven't gotten very accustomed to the site, so I'll be sure to check out more of the guides. :)

P.S.

totally forgot, there's also XanMag's 'Templates and etc' game, which is 'tutorial 2', as the transition from the tutorial to making your own game, is quite steep, so XanMag has made a game to try to be the bridge, with starting to get used to applying and getting practice with doing things, that the tutorial doesn't help with easing you into it. Here's XanMag's (tutorial 2) game:

http://textadventures.co.uk/forum/games/topic/5940/quest-tutorials-and-templates-published

his game is really helpful! I highly recommend you play/study it.

Hey, I'm kinda new here. I'm working on a big project. I'm trying to make a Dating Simulator based off a certain show called Gravity Falls. The text-based version is to get my thoughts together on what the player will be able to do, basic elements, and the over-all flow of the paths the player will be able to choose. I know what I generally want each path to be like, but I need help on how to make it work with this program. One major problem is character selection. How do I work that into a text-adventure game?

I would suggest as a starting point writing out an example transcript of how the game would play out. Iyt would help us understand what you want to achieve, and would probably help you get a better idea of what commands you want to incorporate.

With regards to character selection, a ShowMenu in the start script of the game object would be easiest. Select the "game" object, go to the scripts tab, click the "Code view" icon, and paste this in:

options = Split("Dipper;Mabel;Soos;Stan", ";")
ShowMenu("Select who you want to be", options, false) {
  player.character = result
  msg("Well, hello, " + player.character)
}

If you play as Mabel will you get points for successfully setting up one of your friends with a date?

Pixie is a Gravity Falls fan?? =)

Why is that a surprise?

I don't know. I enjoy it too. lol

(offtopic)

is gravity falls a dating sim game?

the only reference I knew of was some horror movie, some/many years back/old now, called 'Darkness Falls' (which isn't 'gravity falls'), lol.

It's a cartoon. I watch it with my kid.

oh, some cartoon. I don't watch cartoons anymore... besides the media literature (non-book: tv/movies/games) nowadays is trash compared to the 80s and 90s.

No, not some cartoon; one of the best things that has been on TV.

err, my 'some' just meant it's a cartoon (as opposed to being something else: movie, live actor tv show, book, game, etc), I guess I should've used 'a cartoon' instead of 'some cartoon' lol.

Though, however good it might be (which I doubt, because ---> ), it's not good compared to the 80s/90s cartoons. Those golden years of U.S. media-literature are long gone, all we get/have now is trash. There have been a few good live-actor tv shows recently, but that's a FEW, which isn't much, lol.

HK edit:

confirmed, total trash (for me). As I just looked at some the pictures of it.

confirmed even more (for me), even more garbage, as I just read up about it.

the more I look into it, the worse it is getting, laughs. U.S. Media literature is near extinction. Only less then 1% remains alive in the few here and far between there, is there a good live-actor tv show or movie (there's no good cartoon tv shows).

needless to say, I'm one tough literature critic to impress, laughs. Good U.S. media literature is like having a single needle in a universe of hay.