from Hacker News

Show HN: World Engine – Build Worlds Like Brandon Sanderson

by thala on 9/10/23, 4:07 PM with 12 comments

Hey HN,

After hours of re-watching Brandon’s creative writing BYU lectures[1], we converted his ideas into a framework to rapidly iterate and build sci-fi fantasy worlds.

The app is divided into 3 sections: - World: To create a unique magic system intertwined with distinct physical and cultural phenomena - Characters: To create character arcs and give them unique traits that evolve over time - Plot: To weave a series of events in this world following the character arc

We are newbie devs, any suggestions on the app improvements and usability would be great!

The idea is to capture the essence of Brandon's approach. We can't help but wonder if other 'earned insights' can be converted into similar applications for different use cases outside of fiction.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cf-qdZ7GbA&list=PLSH_xM-KC3...

  • by dharan22 on 9/10/23, 5:48 PM

    The character image doesn't fit in consistently with the rest of the images. Also the character arc sometimes quotes the input verbatim. It would be better if the tool can express the idea better rather than just quoting the input literally

  • by arvindnatarajs on 9/10/23, 4:34 PM

    You might want to consider making the output text editable, that way I would not have to regenerate the entire response and lose what I already have

  • by cat-whisperer on 9/10/23, 5:20 PM

    Great stuff, interesting concept and good design, but I would be more fun if:

    - There was a bit more freedom in the selection menu

    - I agree with @arvindnatarajs on making the output editable and adapting the story-line accordingly

    - And the instruction popups could be a bit less annoying ;)

    Great stuff though!

  • by PeppaP007 on 9/10/23, 5:07 PM

    Might wanna play around with the slider to make more continuous. Some loud & clear segregation in the modules would also make it easy for the eyes.

  • by matthewtse on 9/10/23, 5:15 PM

    Might be just my preferences, but I find the retro-pixelated font to be visually painful.

  • by s_mohata on 9/10/23, 5:18 PM

    Pretty cool concept, the retro UX is on the edge for me but loved to play around.

  • by sg_2023 on 9/10/23, 6:00 PM

    This is a lovely concept!

  • by vids1206 on 9/10/23, 6:16 PM

    Interesting concept, great to experiment with