Hello and welcome to Lesson 18 of the articy:draft First Steps tutorial series.

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Review:

In the previous lesson we learned how we can use the “Conflict Search” to find issues within our project.

Bullet point list of topics from previous lesson of the articy:draft 1st Steps Tutorial Series

This Lesson:

With this Lesson we have arrived at the end of the First Steps series. We will take another look at the Presentation Mode to see how we can edit variable values to simulate specific situations. Then we will conclude with some advice on how you can continue your articy:draft journey.

Bullet point list of topics to be explained in the current lesson of the articy:draft 1st Steps Tutorial Series

We use variables in our project to store various game states. If we want to simulate only parts of the project or maybe include things for which values have not been set yet, we have the option to edit the initial variable values for the presentation.

Go to the “Final confrontation” dialogue node in the tutorial folder and submerge into it.

articy flow screenshot with arrow pointing to final confrontation dialogue

You remember that at the very beginning we have a reaction point in which we check for the “name revealed” variable. A change to the variable value can only happen in the first dialogue, so if we just do a simulation of the second dialogue, naturally this variable will always have its default starting value.

Articy flow screenshot of a reaction point

Another thing we might want to test in this “final confrontation” dialogue is the option at the choice point that is only available if the player has the Stake item with them.

articy flow screenshot of choice point information

Currently there is no way implemented in the project to get the item, so this option would never be a valid one for the player to choose in the simulation. How can we change that?

Change variable state for presentation mode:

1. Start a simulation from the first dialogue fragment.

articy flow screenshot with arrow pointing to presentation mode icon

2. Now click on the journey entry in the Navigator or the “Settings” button in the tool bar.

articy presentation mode screenshot with arrows pointing to the journey entry and the settings button

3. Go to the “Initial variable values” tab.

articy presentation mode screenshot with arrows pointing to initial values tab

4. Here we see a list of all variables. I will change the values for the “name revealed” and the “stake” variables to true.

articy presentation mode screenshot with arrow pointing to the initial values we want to change

👉It is important to know that changing values here only affects the current simulation, you do not change the variable values permanently.

5. Now we can go back to the simulation by clicking the “Play” icon in the tool bar.

articy presentaton mode with arrow to play mode

6. Go through the simulation in “Player mode”

articy presentation mode with arrow pointing to player mode

We will see that thanks to our value change the reaction point follows the branch with Dracula knowing and using Mina’s name.

articy presentation mode screenshot of branch where Dracula knows and uses Mina's name

When we arrive at the choice point the option tied to the item is available now too.

articy presentation mode screenshot of valid choice in player mode

Being able to edit variable values allows for widely varied testing scenarios when running simulations of your project.

If you are looking for any kind of information regarding articy:draft, the Support page on articy.com should be your starting point. Downloads, FAQ, and means to contact the support team – everything can be found here.

articy website screenshot with arrow pointing to the support page

If you want to review any information or dive deeper into a topic, visit the Help Center for an extensive documentation.

articy website screenshot with arrow pointing to the help center

Now that you have taken your first steps in articy and are able find your way around the software, you might want to take a look at our more advanced demo projects. If you installed the entire package back when starting this series, you can open the other projects right from the project list.

articy draft screenshot of available demo projects

If not, you can download them from our website for articy:draft 3 and articy:draft X.

articy draft website screenshot with arrow pointing to download demo projects

If you are a Unity or Unreal user, the Maniac Manfred project might be worth a closer look. In addition to the Maniac Manfred demo project, you can also download the engine projects for articy 3 Unity, articy X Unity, articy 3 Unreal, and articy X Unreal to see in detail how articy data gets integrated.

articy draft website screenshot of engine project download

If you are interested to see a selection of games made with articy, visit our Showcase page. Our customers range from indie to big studios, who use articy:draft for a wide variety of games spanning all platforms and some of them were kind enough to share cool articy tips that helped them in their workflow.

For interviews with interesting people in and around the games industry visit our YouTube channel.

You have done your first steps, now it is time for the next part of your journey with your very own project.

articy draft screenshot with arrow pointing to create new project

All the best and see you around!

Useful Links:

Support Page
Help Center
Download articy:draft 3 demo projects
Download articy:draft X demo projects
articy 3 Maniac Manfred Unity project
articy X Maniac Manfred Unity project
articy 3 Maniac Manfred Unreal project
articy X Maniac Manfred Unreal project
Showcase page
YouTube

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