An unoffical Visual Studio Code Extension offering advanced language support for Inkle's Ink interactive fiction scripting language.
Features
This extension currently offers the following features:
Syntax Highlighting
Comprehensive syntax highlighting for all Ink language constructs, including knots, stitches, choices, variables, lists, functions, and more.
Document Outline Integration
Quickly navigate your Ink story structure with Visual Studio Code's Outline view, showing knots, stitches, functions, and other key elements.
Inline Compilation and Error Presentation
Automatic, real-time compilation of Ink files with error and warning diagnostics presented directly in the editor and the Problems panel.
Coming Soon
This extension is under active development with the following planned features:
Story Preview / Test Mode
Play through your Ink stories interactively within Visual Studio Code.
Mocking External Functions
Simulate external function calls for testing and previewing stories without a full game engine.
IntelliSense
Context-aware code completion and suggestions for Ink syntax, variables, and functions.
Documentation
Getting Started
- Install the extension from the Visual Studio Code Marketplace
- Open or create a file with the
.ink extension
- Begin writing your interactive story
[!NOTE]
There is no need to install the Ink compiler separately as this extension leverages inkjs, the JavaScript implementation of Ink, to compile Ink stories in a platform-agnostic manner.
Compiling Ink Stories
The extension provides robust, real-time compilation of your Ink stories directly within VSCode, streamlining your development workflow.
Automatic Compilation
Files with the .ink extension are real-time compiled whenever they are saved or their content is updated. This ensures that you always have the most up-to-date feedback on your story's validity.
You can also manually trigger a compilation for the currently active Ink story file by using the keyboard shortcut Shift+Alt+K (Shift+Option+K on macOS). Alternatively, you can open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P) and select Ink: Compile File.
Compilation Behavior
The extension provides the following settings to control the real-time compilation behavior:
- Debounce Wait: The "Ink > Compile > Behavior: Debounce Wait" (
ink.compile.behavior.debounceWait, default: 0) setting controls the debounce wait time in milliseconds after an Ink Story is changed before triggering compilation.
Error Reporting
When compilation encounters issues, such as syntax errors or logic problems, these are reported in two ways:
Problems Panel: A comprehensive list of all errors and warnings will appear in Visual Studio Code's Problems panel, allowing you to quickly navigate to the source of each issue.
In-Editor Highlighting: The specific lines in your .ink files that contain errors or warnings will be highlighted, providing immediate visual feedback.
Document Outline
As your story is compiled, the extension generates a detailed outline, which is displayed in Visual Studio Code's Outline view. This outline provides a structured overview of your story, with direct links to the definitions of:
- Knots, Stitches, and Labels
- Included Files
- Variables, Lists, and Constants
- Functions and External Functions
Managing Compiled Output
By default, the extension compiles your story for analysis and error checking without creating any output files. However, you can configure it to emit the compiled Ink JSON story file.
Enable JSON Output: To enable writing the compiled JSON file, set the "Ink > Compile > Output: Enable Emit Story JSON" (ink.compile.output.enableEmitStoryJSON, default: false) setting to true.
Output Directory: By default, compiled files are placed in an out folder in your workspace root. You can specify a different location by changing the "Ink > Compile > Output: Directory" (ink.compile.output.directory, default: out) setting.
Ignoring Included Files: It is common to have Ink files that are meant to be included in other files and not compiled as standalone stories (e.g., _character_definitions.ink). By default, files starting with an underscore are not emitted as separate JSON files. You can customize this behavior with the "Ink > Compile > Output: Ignore Ink Includes" (ink.compile.output.ignoreInkIncludes, default: **/_*.ink) glob pattern setting.
Compilation Options
You can fine-tune the Ink compiler's behavior with the following setting:
- Count All Visits: The "Ink > Compile > Options: Enable Count All Visits" (
ink.compile.options.enableCountAllVisits, default: true) setting is enabled by default. This corresponds to the Ink compiler option that tracks the visit count for all knots, stitches, etc. You can disable it if your story's logic requires it.
Ink & Inkle Studios Documentation
This project is under active development.
This project leverages inkjs, the JavaScript implementation of Ink.
Syntax Highlighting Attribution
This extension's syntax highlighting is based on prior work from:
Contributing
Contributions are welcome!
Please report issues, request features, or submit pull requests via GitHub.
