Craft Real-World
Narratives with
Dogma Engine
The open-source framework for building visual novels that blend screen-based interactive stories with physical, location-based QR code exploration.
What is Dogma Engine?
A comprehensive ecosystem designed to connect physical spaces with digital interactive novels.
1. The Visual Editor
Dogma Engine is a visual web builder that lets authors write chapters, configure speakers with multiple expressions, write riddles, set soundtracks, and branch storylines visually, exporting production-ready JSON files.
2. The Mobile Player
Dogma Player is a responsive, web-based runner client. It processes exported stories, plays audio with beautiful cross-fading, presents branching choices, and prompts users to seek and scan QR codes in the physical world.
3. Real-World Projects
Projects like The Whispering Ruins use Dogma Engine to turn historical sites or fantasy parks into interactive outdoor adventure games, prompting players to search for hidden structures and solve environmental riddles.
Engine Capabilities
Everything you need to build next-generation narrative-driven games.
Location-Based QR Checkpoints
Bind story progression to actual locations. The player cannot proceed to the next chapter until they travel to the designated coordinate/checkpoint and scan its corresponding QR code. Great for tourism, museum tours, and city scavenger hunts.
- 📍 Location-locked event flows
- 📷 In-app QR code scanner verification
- 🚫 Anti-cheat and developer override mode
Interactive Riddles & Enigmas
Challenge players to find answers within the environment. Dialogue prompts can transition into riddle boxes, requiring players to observe plaque inscriptions, structural features, or solve logical puzzles to unlock paths.
- 🧩 Clean HTML5/React Enigma inputs
- ⌨️ Auto-capitalization and whitespace normalization
- 🔔 Dynamic sound effects feedback for correct/incorrect answers
"The more of them you take, the more you leave behind. What are they?"
Branching Choice Matrices
Design complex, non-linear stories. Create multiple paths at the end of each narrative chapter, leading to different dialogue chains, alternate riddles, or varying location sequences.
- 🌿 Branching step destination linkages
- 🗃️ Persistent localStorage player state saving
- 🔄 Easy visual graph mapping in the editor
Your Game, Your Style
Dogma Engine is built with absolute aesthetic freedom. You are never locked into a single look. Whether you're crafting a historical medieval mystery with elegant serif fonts, or a high-tech neon cyberpunk adventure with glowing borders, the player client adapts dynamically to your creative vision.
By leveraging CSS variables and theme configurations, you can change fonts, color schemes, card backdrops, and borders globally in seconds.
Test the Live Visual Transition
Click a style below to watch the entire showcase website and the live simulator morph in real-time:
Whispering Ruins
An ancient stone structure whispering secrets of centuries past.
NEO-CORE 01
Direct neural link active. Accessing terminal database modules.
Interactive Live Simulator
Experience how Dogma Engine parses and plays a narrative chapter in real-time. Interact with the screen below.
Getting Started
Launch your location-based narrative adventures in three simple steps.
1. Get Your Access Keys
Register your company, organization, or user account to receive your unique Organization ID and access the visual game builder dashboard.
2. Build Your Adventure
Use the visual builder to compose dialogue events, riddles, and checkpoints. Every game you build is automatically assigned a unique Game ID.
3. Share and Play
Provide your Organization ID and Game ID to your players (or encode them in a QR code link). The player immediately loads your custom adventure!
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to common questions about Dogma Engine for search engine queries and LLM lookups.
What is Dogma Engine used for?
Dogma Engine is used to create interactive visual novels, scavenger hunts, educational trails, and location-based games. It bridges digital storytelling with physical exploration by requiring users to visit real-world locations and scan QR codes to unlock the next chapters of a story.
How does location checking work in Dogma Engine?
Dogma Engine relies on QR code scans. Each physical location is equipped with a unique QR code corresponding to a specific Step ID inside the game story JSON. When a player scans the QR code at the site using the Dogma Player, the engine validates the step and unlocks the next narrative sequence.
Is the game player client optimized for mobile devices?
Yes, Dogma Player is specifically optimized for mobile devices. It features responsive touch controls, supports full-screen visual assets, embeds custom SFX and atmospheric background soundtracks, and handles mobile web camera views for seamless QR code scanning directly in the browser without requiring external apps.
Can I create branching stories with multiple endings?
Yes. Using the Dogma Engine story builder interface, you can add nextSteps branching choices to the end of any chapter. Players can choose between alternate narrative paths, which can lead them to different locations or completely different sets of riddles and storyline resolutions.