Hi everyone!
Only 2 days left until the very first Scriptorium playtest begins! We’ve prepared all the key info in one place so you know exactly what to expect.
The playtest starts on June 26 around noon GMT and will run until July 10 (late afternoon GMT).
Important: after July 10 you will lose access to this version of the game, so plan your Scriptorium time accordingly!
What is exactly this Playtest version of the game?
This is indeed a playtest version and the reason we are running this is so we can get important community feedback to help us get the game ready for full launch. With your input it’ll help us know if we are heading in the right direction with the finished version of Scriptorium. Please don’t treat this as a demo - it’s a test build, and we’d love to hear what you think!
This playtest in particular is here for us to test specific systems. In this case it'll mainly be the commission system (so a vital part of the Story mode) and to hear from the community about what you care about when it comes to the full release.
As this is an early look at the game you may run into bugs, rough edges, and weirdness. That’s expected and another one of the main goals of this playtest is to give you access to help us spot these. The more bugs we squash now, the better and more polished the final version of Scriptorium at launch.
What we need most: honest feedback
What would you change? What would you add? What do you love, what don’t you? Have fun, but don’t be afraid to be critical - so please fill out the feedback survey! You’ll find it in the main menu and when exiting the game. It helps us a lot in shaping the future of the game.
For bug reporting please let us know and send us the .log file! You’ll find details how to submit bug report in our Steam forums on Thursday or on the #playtest-bugs channel on our Discord.
And one final thing! You can join the playtest at any time while it’s live, right up until July 10. So either sign-up now or jump in anytime until July 10.
What does this playtest include?
This version of the game includes two main game modes:
Story Mode - You’ll be creating illuminated works based on orders from various clients. Expect some unusual characters that will really challenge your creativity!
To progress in this mode, you’ll need to fulfill each client’s requirements.
There are 6 different clients and 17 commissions included in the current version.
Sandbox Mode - Just you, blank parchment, and your imagination. You’ll have access to the full collection of medieval assets included in the playtest build and complete creative freedom on more than a dozen different parchments. We cannot wait to see what you create!
Please note: the assets you’ll see in the game are not final and many things will change before launch, including more characters, decorations, borders and other visual goodies.
⚠️ One important technical note: each manuscript can currently hold up to 450 individual elements at a time.
Sharing your work
✅ Yes, you can export your creations (in PNG format), and we highly encourage you to do so! You’ll find the export button after completing a design. Please share these with us on our social media channels and tag us:
Twitter | X - https://x.com/YazaGames
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/scriptoriumgame
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/yazagames/
Blue Sky - https://bsky.app/profile/yazagames.com
YouTube - View game page
✅ Yes, you can stream the game (and honestly, we’d love it if you did!).
We’ll try to be present wherever we can during the playtest period, especially in the Steam Forums to talk with you about the game.But since we’re a small team, we kindly ask: please share your feedback on Discord whenever possible!
You’ll also find the whole team hanging out there, and it makes managing this playtest much easier for us.
Community Challenges!
Throughout the two weeks of the playtest, we’ll be running community challenges every few days!
We’ll ask you to create a piece around a specific concept and share it with the community on Discord and we’ll let the community vote (we also may pick a few of our favourites too)
Expect a wide range of prompts from poetic to bizarre! Psst - the most popular entries may receive special prizes, so it’s definitely worth jumping in!
What’s missing in the current build?
This is important to know before you dive in, as we know many of you will ask!
You can’t write text like in traditional editors. Instead, you’ll place letters individually by dragging and dropping them next to one another. Believe it or not, adding a full in-game text editor is a complex task! But it's high on our priority list for the full release.
There’s no save system in Story Mode - this means your progress in this mode resets every time you close the game. We recommend completing the story mode available in one sitting.
Sandbox Mode has save support, but it's limited to a single ongoing project. You’re free to exit and return to your sandbox piece at any time.
Beholder Boss Battle - timelapse!
We prepared this little timelapse of one of our recent designs to inspire you - watch how you can create a DnD boss battle poster!
If this indeed has inspired you, let us know what you will create first!
If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out, either here on Steam or on Discord.
We absolutely can’t wait to welcome you into Scriptorium!
Until next time,
Your Yaza Games and Mythwright teams