Voice & imagery
Current HPLX wording · shared Cosmik v0.16.1 rules
Product presentation comes from the current family guide. General writing and imagery rules below follow the pinned foundation. Its superseded organization-positioning section is omitted here; see current Cosmik positioning. The vendored source remains unchanged.
Product presentation#
HPLX is an editor for Amnesia: The Dark Descent custom stories, with playtesting built in. The current marketing headline is Build your story. Step inside it. Follow it with the plain description so an unfamiliar visitor knows which game and task it serves. Build a story. Play it as you build. is a supporting short line for introductions and contexts that need to explain the editing/playtesting workflow directly; it does not replace the product site's headline.
Audience and value#
Speak first to people making custom stories for the original The Dark Descent. Show placing and changing a scene, playing from the editor, and returning to make the next change. Specific workflow evidence is more useful than “easier and better” on its own. The engine reimplementation supports this experience; Rust, Bevy and repository structure are secondary technical context, not the opening pitch.
HPLX is one product. “Editor” and “built-in playtesting” describe its capabilities, not competing brands. A public mention of another supported game requires current product evidence; the HPLX name is not a promise of support for the whole HPL series.
Availability and requirements#
HPLX is in development, with no public release yet. Do not imply that a downloadable release exists because its release workflow is implemented. Describe platform support only at its verified scope, and distinguish tested configurations from planned release targets. No release date is announced.
Cosmik does not require payment to use HPLX; this commitment is specific to HPLX. The original game is obtained separately and may cost money. HPLX reads game content from the person's own legitimately obtained local installation and does not include or distribute the original game's assets. Keep this prerequisite close to download or setup decisions and in a concise FAQ, rather than making it the whole opening.
HPLX is independent of and unaffiliated with Frictional Games. Preserve third-party credits and notices. The implementation's licence, source visibility, available builds and the brand artwork's terms are separate facts; do not infer any one from another.
Voice, imagery and next steps#
Use direct, encouraging language about making a playable story. The warm palette, Spectral headings and Glimmer give HPLX its character; interface labels stay plain and familiar. Avoid writing in a horror character's voice, decorative lore, or turning the original game's identity into HPLX's own mark.
Prefer an actual editing and playtesting sequence with a clear explanation of what changed. Label a diagram as an illustration. Never present a simulated editor as a screenshot, or a prepared scene as proof of gameplay compatibility. Keep original game artwork in its credited product context.
HPLX leads its marketing, documentation and support surfaces. Use a quiet “By Cosmik” in the footer or About context, separate from the product logo. In-development pages should offer a real way to ask about HPLX or follow maintained updates; “Download” appears only when a download is available. Do not promise beta access, a response deadline or a newsletter that does not exist.
Useful, direct language#
Write like an independent developer sharing useful work: say what a project does, what works today and what someone can do next. Use “I” for Matthew's personal updates and “Cosmik” for neutral descriptions. Do not imply a larger team or write like a press release. Use plain American English in interface copy.
Labels name the task: “Export”, “Save changes”, “Choose folder”. Use sentence case, specific verbs and familiar nouns. Explain an unfamiliar setting directly beside it; a tooltip may carry optional detail, but not the information needed to decide. Do not expose internal service names or implementation details unless they help the person solve the problem.
| Situation | Say | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Pending work | What is happening, with real progress when known | A fake percentage or reassurance unsupported by the operation |
| Error | What failed, what was preserved and the next useful action | “Something went wrong” without recovery or blaming the user |
| Empty collection | What belongs here and the relevant first action | Repeated onboarding copy after every empty search |
| Confirmation | The item and consequence of the action | An unexplained “Are you sure?” |
| Product update | What now works, its build or version and remaining limits | Announcing a plan as a shipped feature |
Do not repeat the same explanation in a heading, subtitle and helper. Short does not mean cryptic: keep important consequences and limitations visible. Product copy can be confident without exaggerated claims or decorative slogans.
Imagery and icons#
Use real project screenshots, diagrams or relevant artwork when they explain the work. Label illustrative examples and hypothetical data. Do not publish private project screenshots without authorization. Preserve proportions and crop only when the essential information remains visible.
Keep genre imagery inside the project it belongs to. Avoid generic space wallpaper, decorative starfields and artificial glow as default Cosmik styling. A product's interface frames the user's work; its accent colour must not recolour that work.
Utility icons use a consistent stroke family and alignment. Give meaningful icons an accessible name through their control; hide decorative icons from assistive technology. Pair unfamiliar symbols with words. Use the same icon for the same action across the product, and distinguish different actions even when their names are similar. Icons and marks are different assets: do not adapt a logo into a generic toolbar glyph.
Identity animation#
A centred emblem sliding left to reveal lettering remains an exploration, not an approved deliverable. Keep recurring branding static. A logo reveal must never delay essential content. All interface motion, including reduced-motion behavior, follows the dedicated motion guide.