A SMALL IDEA. A STORY YOU CAN KEEP.
One choice.
A different ending.
Play a five-passage story, change one choice, then take your own version with you.
No accountNo paymentWorks offline after download
01 / LEARN
A story is a few places to go.
A PASSAGE
A short piece of the story. This starter has five: a beginning, two places to visit and two endings.
A CHOICE
A button that takes the reader to another passage. Change its words to make a new possibility.
YOUR FIRST CHANGE
In the first passage, change “Follow the river path” to “Look for lights by the river”. Preview it, then play both paths.
Optional AI practice: Learn4Free helps you practise asking clearly and checking a result. You do not need AI to make this story.
Loading the story editor…
Start by playing the story, or make your first change below. Nothing is saved automatically.
02 / CREATE
Make a small change.
Edit the first choice, then preview. Open the other passages when you want to change more. This starter keeps five passages and up to two choices each.
03 / PLAY & CHECK
The Lantern Path
No timer, score or wrong choice. Use Tab to reach a choice and Enter or Space to choose it.
Restart uses the last previewed story. It does not erase your edits.
04 / KEEP IT & TRY IT AGAIN
Your story, in a file.
- Export playable HTML. It includes your story, this editor and the licence. Export applies your current edits.
- Find the file in Downloads. Open it with a browser. Some phones need a file app or a desktop browser to run downloaded HTML.
- Play your changed choice and restart. Try both endings. The downloaded file works offline, and its editor lets you keep making changes.
- Keep the editable JSON too. Import it below to restore the story text and choices.
A local file, up to 100 KB. Import replaces the current story after validation. No upload happens.
Keep a copy before closing. This page does not automatically save, collect or submit your story. Avoid private information in a file you plan to share.
From a first story to your next game.
You have practised a useful loop: make a small change, test what happens, and keep a working copy. Explore game foundations at Games4Free, or try another Create4Free starting point.
Sharing this file with someone is your choice. This page does not publish it or submit it to the game catalog.
Free to use. Yours to adapt.
This original starter, its code, lesson and supplied story use the MIT licence. You may copy, modify and share them, including commercially, while keeping the notice below. Check rights to anything you add. Other Free4AllHub content keeps its own terms.
Read the full licence
MIT License Copyright (c) 2026 Free4AllHub contributors This licence covers the original Branching Story Starter v1 code, page styling, lesson text, and The Lantern Path story supplied in this folder and its exports. It does not change the licences of other Free4AllHub pages, games, brands, or third-party material. You are responsible for rights to anything you add. Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions: The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software. THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
What was tested, and what was not
Starter v1, checked 7 November 2026 in Chromium on Linux: change a choice, preview, export HTML and JSON, inspect the downloaded bytes, reopen the exported HTML through a local web preview, play both endings, restart, and restore JSON. Automated tests also check all four routes and reject invalid story files.
Opening a downloaded file directly with a file:// address was unavailable in the test browser. The export has no external code or assets, but its offline use on your own device still needs checking. Narrow-layout checks are not a physical-phone test. No real beginner or screen-reader testing has been completed.