FEATURES
Features
What LUMINA Engine can do, grouped by area (details may change as the engine is updated). Staging and screen features are used from scenarios and screen scripts; release-related features from the production tools. At the end you will find the differences between platforms (Windows, browser, Android) and the tools that support production.
Text and dialogue
The core of a visual novel: presenting text to read.
Message window
Shows names and lines. The window and its buttons are images you can restyle for your game.
Text styling
Ruby, colour and size can be set inside a line of dialogue.
Text speed
Set the text speed and the click-wait marker (animated if you like).
Auto and skip
Read on automatically, or skip only what has been read. The engine tracks read text.
Backlog
Reread past text, replay voices and jump back to a scene.
Fonts
Choose from bundled fonts (plus installed fonts on Windows), with outlines and shadows.
Text input
Show a text-entry screen, for example for the hero's name (browser and Android too).
Characters, backgrounds and CGs
Showing each scene with pictures.
Backgrounds
Show, switch and scroll. Pan across wide backgrounds like a camera.
Character sprites
Enter, leave and change expressions. Layer a base body and an expression as one image.
Position and framing
Place characters left, centre, right and more, and choose whether to show the full body or just the upper half.
Lip sync
Character mouths move in time with the voice.
Event CGs
Layer a base picture and its variations.
Sprites
Place images anywhere, then move or remove them.
Screen effects
Transitions and effects that bring scenes to life.
Transitions
Fades, crossfades and wipes, plus transitions shaped by black-and-white mask images.
Screen effects
Shake, flash, monochrome and sepia tones, and camera pan, zoom and rotation.
Particles
Snow, rain, cherry blossoms and other falling particles.
Shape effects
Speed lines, slashes, lightning, magic circles and more, drawn without images. Over 70 ready-to-use presets.
Frame animation
Animate frames laid out on a single sprite sheet.
Animated characters
Making characters move smoothly. LUMINA's own formats need no extra contract.
2D motion (LUMINA format)
Deform a single illustration with a mesh. Supports blinking, lip sync and depth. Build it from a PSD in the dedicated editor.
Parts animation (LUMINA format)
Animate a picture split into separate parts.
Live2D support (license required)
About Live2D
Live2D Cubism models can be displayed and animated too. To use Live2D in a game, though, you must agree to Live2D Inc.'s license and sign a contract when required. See
About Live2D support
for details.
3D
Using 3D scenes inside an ADV.
3D scenes
Place glTF / GLB models in a scene with light, shadows, sky and fog, and layer the result as a background.
Terrain and many objects
Show rolling terrain and large numbers of objects such as trees.
3D exploration
Walk a character in first or third person, with collision against walls and ground, enemies and pickups.
Physics
Objects roll, collide and stack; bodies can collapse as ragdolls.
3D staging
Move the camera and objects smoothly over time.
Sound and movies
BGM, sound effects, voice and movies.
BGM
Looping, fade in and out, track changes, pause and volume.
Sound effects
Several at once, looping, with left/right position and distance.
Voice
Per-character volume and mute, simultaneous voices, lip sync, and lowering the BGM while a voice plays.
System sounds
Button sounds and system voices play separately from the story's audio.
Movies
Opening, ending and event movies, with control over whether a click skips them.
Formats
Platform differences
Audio is mainly Ogg Vorbis and Opus. Movie formats differ by platform (
platform differences
).
Branching and progress
Splitting the story with choices and flags.
Choices
Mark choices already taken, show choices that cannot be picked yet, or add a time limit that falls through to a set choice.
Variables and conditions
Variables, flags and #if / #elif / #else blocks, conditional jumps and random branches.
Records across playthroughs
Clear and progress records can be shared by every save.
Flowchart
Show only the chapters reached, and restart from any of them.
Scene titles
Name a scene and the name appears in the save list.
Macros
Bundle frequently used steps so a single line calls them.
Raising and dating simulation
Systems for games where you pick a weekly schedule, raise stats and grow closer to the people you meet — built from one settings file plus scenarios.
Weekly schedule
Pick an activity from the schedule and stats go up or down; too much stress can leave the hero sick for a week.
Stats and status screen
Define stats such as study or stamina and show them with gauges on a status screen.
Meetings and feelings
Characters appear when conditions are met and affection starts to change — optionally split into friendship and romance meters. Neglect someone for too long and their mood sours.
Dates, calls and walks home
Invite someone on a date and pick the place (their tastes change how they feel). Phone calls and walking home together are supported too.
Events
Events at set times (including yearly events on multi-year calendars), plus events triggered by conditions or chance, lead into their scenes automatically.
Endings
At the end, stats and affection decide the ending. A sample settings file and scenario are included.
System screens (built in)
Title, save, settings and the other screens a game needs come ready-made. Reshape their look and behaviour for your game with each screen's script.
Title screen
New game, continue, resume last session, settings and quit.
Save and load
Multiple slots with thumbnails, quick-save and autosave histories, and suspend save.
Settings
Six tabs — screen, text, volume, character voices, dialogs, mouse — plus language switching.
Confirmation dialogs
Confirm before quitting or returning to the title, with a “don't ask again” option.
Controls
Mouse, keyboard, touch and gamepad. Choices and system screens can be navigated with keys or a pad. Mouse gestures, and on phones a long press works as a right click.
Screenshots
Save the game screen as a PNG image (downloaded in the browser).
Startup logos
Play logos or a movie before the title screen.
Multiple languages
Releasing a game in several languages, such as Japanese and English.
Text tables
Screen text comes from per-language tables.
Per-language assets
Put images, voices and scenarios in a per-language folder and they are swapped in for that language.
Switch while playing
Change the language in the settings and it switches immediately.
English word wrap
English text wraps at word boundaries.
Shipping and stores
Releasing and publishing the finished game.
Asset packs
Pack assets folder by folder, compressed; add a password to encrypt them.
Script encryption
Encrypt scenarios and screen scripts to protect their contents.
Windows
Ship as a folder, or build an installer.
Steam
Achievements and cloud saves are supported.
Browser
No install needed — host it on an https site and it plays in WebGPU-capable browsers.
Android
Build an APK and a Google Play AAB, including delivering data through Google Play (asset delivery).
Where saves go
If the game folder is not writable (for example under Program Files), saves go to a writable location automatically.
PLATFORM DIFFERENCES
Platform differences
The same scenarios and assets run on Windows, the browser and Android. The points below differ by platform.
| Item | Windows / Steam | Browser | Android |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dialogue, characters, effects | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
Live2D (Live2D Inc. license required) |
Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 3D scenes and exploration | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Whole-scene mask transitions | Yes | Switches without the effect | Switches without the effect |
| Movie formats | ogv, mp4, wmv, avi, etc. | mp4・webm | mp4・webm |
| Audio formats | Ogg Vorbis, Opus, WAV | Whatever the browser can play (Ogg, WAV, MP3, etc.) | Ogg Vorbis, Opus (no WAV) |
| Font choices | Bundled fonts + installed fonts | Bundled fonts | Bundled fonts |
| Save location | Game folder (AppData if not writable) | Inside the browser (cleared with site data) | Inside the app |
| Resume from suspend save | Yes | — | — |
| Achievements, cloud saves | Steam version | — | — |
| Where to release | Steam, your own site, packages, etc. | An https site | Google Play, APK |
| Controls | Mouse, keyboard, gamepad | Mouse, keyboard, touch, gamepad | Touch (long press = right click), gamepad, keyboard |
| Developer debug panel | Yes (development only) | — | — |
Official manual, Chapter 6 (Japanese) Place an .ogv (Windows) and an .mp4 (browser / Android) with the same name side by side, and one scenario plays the right one everywhere. The browser version needs a WebGPU-capable browser and must be opened over https (or localhost). See chapter 6 of the official manual (Japanese) for details.
Linux, iOS, PlayStation and Switch are in development and cannot run yet.
TOOLS
Tools that support production
Production tools for Windows. See chapter 7 of the official manual for how to use them.
LuminaNovelAuthor
A dedicated scenario editor: flowchart view, preview, launch in the engine, project checks, translation and voice sheets.
LuminaScriptDesigner
Lay out the title, message window, settings, save and other screens visually.
MotionEditor
Build 2D motion from a PSD, with automatic rigging.
ParticleEditor
Design snow, petals and other particles while watching them.
LuminaImageCompressor
Convert PNG and other images to the distribution format (.lgc).
ScriptEncryptor
Encrypt scenarios and screen scripts.
PackTool / luminapack
Pack assets — a window-based version and a command-line version.
ScriptValidator / SceneViewer
Check scenarios for mistakes and step through scenes.
ReleaseBuilder / SetupBuilder
Prepare the release folder (checked, without unneeded files) and build an installer.
EngineSetting / SaveDataManager / FileCheck
A settings tool you can ship with your game, save-location management, and checking release files.
Debug tools (Shift+D)
Open it inside the game during development to inspect variables, flags, assets and more.