ink and Inky
6.5#12 in game narrative design softwareFree planFree planLinuxmacOSWindows
Visitink and Inky vs Yarn Spinner
Yarn Spinner
8.0#1 in game narrative design software$75 one-timeFree planWebAPIExtensionLinux
VisitWhat both publish
| Fact | ink and Inky | Yarn Spinner |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Cambridge, United Kingdom | Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
| License | The maker says ink, Inky, and the ink-Unity integration plugin are available under the MIT license. | The core of Yarn Spinner is provided under the MIT License. |
| Purpose | Ink is a narrative scripting language for writing branching game stories. | Yarn Spinner creates narrative game tools for writers, programmers and game designers to plan, write, integrate and test game dialogue. |
| Support | The site directs users to Discord and GitHub Discussions for questions about ink and its Unity integration. | Support is available by email, with replies usually within a few business days, and through a community Discord server. |
| Unity integration | The Unity plugin automatically recompiles ink files as they are edited and includes a previewer for playing stories in the Unity Editor. | Yarn Spinner for Unity includes a Dialogue Runner and components for loading and delivering dialogue to game UI. |
ink and Inky plans
- FreeFree
Yarn Spinner plans
- FreeFree
- Yarn Spinner+ for Unity$75, paid once
Pick ink and Inky if…
These tools suit professional game developers creating branching narratives, as well as people writing and sharing choice-based interactive fiction.
Pick Yarn Spinner if…
Yarn Spinner suits writers, programmers, and game designers building interactive dialogue for Unity, Godot, or Unreal Engine projects. It is also relevant to teams working with localization or voice-over.