Getting Started » Creator Beta
May 24, 2026

Creator Beta

Work in Progress

This documentation is still being expanded and refined. Features, screenshots, and descriptions may change until Talescape's public release. If something is unclear or you need help, please ask on the official Talescape Discord. We're happy to clarify or update pages as needed.

Welcome to the Talescape Creator Beta

Talescape is now available to Creator Beta participants on Steam and itch.io.

This phase is focused on the first Bards creating and publishing Tales, building the initial story library, testing marketplace and release workflows under real conditions, and preparing the platform for Public Beta.

During Creator Beta, you are encouraged to actively build stories, experiment with systems, publish previews or test releases, and report anything that feels unclear, fragile or unfinished. Feature requests are welcome, especially when they would improve editor usability, publishing workflows or quality-of-life for Bards.

Current beta principles:

  • The focus is on creation, publishing tests and workflow feedback
  • Steam access uses the existing beta key setup
  • New accounts can sign in with a passwordless email verification code
  • Connecting an external account unlocks the authoring tools for Bards
  • Purchases remain in development mode during Creator Beta
  • Creator payouts are disabled and will be activated in a later phase
  • All story data and savegames persist during the beta

Before Public Beta, some marketplace and publishing state may be reset or reviewed:

  • Test purchases may be revoked or adjusted
  • Paid releases may need to go through review again
  • Pricing, taxes, refunds and payout behavior may still change

If anything is unclear or not working as expected:

  • Use the Help & Support section inside the app
  • Or join the official Discord for updates, support, feedback and Creator Beta discussion

Help and documentation are available throughout the app:

  • Click the Help icon in the header to open documentation
  • Use the Help icon next to specific components for contextual help
  • Or access the full documentation from the sidebar
  • Additional documentation is available via the Beta badge in the header

Installation

Collage of four Steam client dialogs showing Talescape installation steps: top-left menu 'Activate a Product on Steam...'; top-right 'Enter your product code' dialog with code field; bottom-left search result highlighting 'Talescape' and 'Properties' menu; bottom-right 'Game Versions & Betas' window listing a 'beta' branch and a private access code field.

Talescape can be accessed through Steam beta keys or the itch.io launcher during Creator Beta.

Steam

  1. Open Steam and select "Activate a Product on Steam..." from the Games menu.
  2. Enter your beta key and confirm to add Talescape to your library.
  3. Find Talescape in your library, right-click it and open Properties.
  4. Go to "Game Versions & Betas" and select the beta branch.

Talescape will now download and update automatically through Steam.

itch.io

  1. Open the Talescape itch.io page.
  2. Download and start the Talescape Launcher.
  3. Register or sign in with an email verification code or a connected external account.
  4. Connect an external account if you want to use the authoring tools.

Email login provides Dreamer access for playing stories. Authoring access requires a connected external account. New accounts do not require manual approval.

The itch.io launcher does not require a Steam key. It loads application updates through the launcher flow, so the first startup can take a little longer than the Steam build. See Account Settings for connection management.

Purchases

Purchases remain in development mode during Creator Beta.

Treat all purchase and marketplace behavior as test flow validation. The goal is to verify how stories are listed, selected, bought, unlocked and played before these systems are used for real marketplace activity.

Important:

  • Pricing categories are not final
  • Tax calculation is not final
  • Refund behavior may still change
  • Marketplace visibility and release state may still change
  • Paid releases may be reset, unpublished or reviewed again before Public Beta

Creator payouts are disabled for now. Even if a paid-story flow is visible during testing, it does not represent an active creator earning system yet.

Troubleshooting

If something is not working as expected, try the following:

  • Leave the story / dialogue or scene and return to it
  • Reload user data via the Maintenance section in Settings
  • Log out and log in again

If the issue persists:

  • Report it via Help & Support
  • Include as much detail as possible