This is a quick guide to how to create cutscene transcript articles. We'll go over the layout we're using on the Kingdom Hearts Database, the templates, and more! This project is constantly evolving, so if you have any suggestions, feel free to post them in the discussion page!
Types of transcript pages[edit source]
There are three types of transcript pages:
- Game transcript pages
- Chapter and side (think: Aqua, Terra, Ventus in BBS) pages
- Cutscene pages
Each one has its own layout and things we want to include.
Game transcript pages: There is one of these for each of the titles in the Kingdom Hearts series. There may also be a few others for some other purposes (ex. Transcript:Kingdom Hearts Orchestra -World Tour-). These are basically top-level hubs for each game, and consist of just links to the chapter or side pages.
Chapter and side pages: Chapter and side pages are basically groups of links to the cutscenes. These are based on the groupings used in Theater Mode, usually labeled "Chapter" or "Interval". Ideally, these could also be used for any quotes said outside of cutscenes, such as optional side quest conversation, in-field character quotes, or interaction quotes.
Cutscene pages: These are the individual pages for each cutscene. These contain the text or transcript of the cutscene.
Templates[edit source]
There are a couple of templates that are commonly used.
All articles use the Articlenav template to link each article to its parent game. For example, the pages for cutscenes in Kingdom Hearts III, using the Articlenav template adds links to the main Kingdom Hearts III article and other subpages.
Game transcript pages use the Card template for each link to the chapter and side pages. These can then use an image to represent each chapter.
Chapter and side pages currently use the TheaterList template to create the list of cutscenes. This may change, however, as we explore ways to integrate non-cutscene quotes, which sometimes occur between cutscenes.
Cutscene pages generally use three templates. The Ts template is the main template and is used for each line or quote in a cutscene. It's also used for inputting valuable information in the scene, such as where a track begins to play and where the cutscene takes place. The TranscriptImg is used to display up to three images along the top of the page. Finally, most pages use the YouTube template to embed a YouTube video of the cutscene.
Layouts[edit source]
Game transcript pages[edit source]
These pages really only have one layout: A grid of panels of cards, with four panels of 1 card each per row. The code is generally as follows:
<div style="display:flex; flex-direction:row; width:100%;">
{{Panel|style=flex:1;|content={{Card|image=IMG FILE NAME|imagelink=CHAPTER OR SIDE PAGENAME|bottomCard=CHAPTER OR SIDE DISPLAY NAME}}}}
</div>
Repeat the code for the panel and card up to four times for the row. Repeat the entire block for each row. Replace IMG FILE NAME with the name of the image you wish to use for the chapter or side page. Generally, we use the same image that's used in theater mode. Replace CHAPTER OR SIDE PAGENAME with the page title of the chapter or side hub. Replace CHAPTER OR SIDE DISPLAY NAME with the name you want to appear in the card. We don't want the card text to say "Transcript:Kingdom Hearts III/Epilogue", so in this area, we put Epilogue so the card just says "Epilogue", but still links to Transcript:Kingdom Hearts III/Epilogue.
Examples: Transcript:Kingdom Hearts III
Chapter and side pages[edit source]
These pages also currently have just one layout: A list of links to the individual cutscenes, placed on top of the same image representing the chapter or side. The code is generally as follows:
{{TheaterList|chapter=NAME OF CHAPTER|image=IMG FILE NAME|theaterlist=
*{{Transcript|CHAPTER OR SIDE|CUTSCENE NAME}}
}}
Repeat the code *{{Transcript|CHAPTER OR SIDE|CUTSCENE NAME}} for each cutscene you want to add to the list. Replace NAME OF CHAPTER with the name of the chapter. Replace IMG FILE NAME with the name of the image you wish to use for the chapter or side page. It should be the same as the one used in the game transcript page. Replace CHAPTER OR SIDE with the name of the chapter. Replace CUTSCENE NAME with the name of the cutscene.
This layout is still up for discussion, as we want to also include the quotes said between cutscenes, and ideally these would be between the cutscene links. The exact layout for how this will look with the non-cutscene quotes is still not defined.
Examples: Chapter I: Olympus, Memory Archive
Cutscene pages[edit source]
These all use the same layout, but there's more going on in these. There are four parts to the cutscene pages:
- Intro
- Story
- Transcript
- Video
The intro is a simple introduction: "CUTSCENE" is a cutscene in GAME. You can add something extra if desired and appropriate, such as in "Lost Masters", where we added "It was added to the game as part of an update on January 30, 2019." However, this is not required.
The Story paragraph is just a summary of the story at this scene. This is like a preview of the cutscene. It should be brief; if the story summary is too detailed, it will be redundant to the transcript itself.
The Transcript section is the actual text of the cutscene. Here is where the Ts template comes in. There should be more documentation in the template page, but basically, this template has three functions:
- Define when a track begins to play in a cutscene
- Define the area, map, and world where a cutscene takes place.
- Define a specific line and its speakers in a cutscene.
To list that a track has begun, use this code:
{{ts|track=TRACK NAME}}
TRACK NAME is the name of the track on the Kingdom Hearts Database. This means that when you have a track like Sora, the TRACK NAME is actually Sora (track), not Sora. Otherwise, if you put Sora as the TRACK NAME, it will point to the character article Sora instead.
To define that a cutscene is now taking place in a specific area and map, use this code:
{{ts|map=MAP NAME|area=AREA NAME|world=WORLD}}
Replace MAP NAME, AREA NAME, and WORLD NAME with the name of the map, area, and world where the scene is taking place. For our purposes, MAP NAME refers to the large stylized map title cards you see when a room loads in the game, such as "The Neighborhood" in Twilight Town in Kingdom Hearts III or "Hall of the Cornerstone" in Disney Castle in Kingdom Hearts II. AREA NAME refers to the area within the map. These were introduced in Kingdom Hearts III, such as "The Big Olive" in the Thebes map in Olympus or "Lobby & Offices" in the Monsters, Inc map in Monstropolis.
To define a spoken line, use this basic code:
{{ts|SPEAKER|QUOTE}}
Replace SPEAKER with the person who is speaking the line and QUOTE with the words spoken. The "spoken quote" should be everything that the speaker says until there is a clear break, such as because the speaker turns to someone specifically or someone else begins to speak. This means the QUOTE could be a single sentence or word, or it could be a paragraph.
The spoken line can get a little complex. This code uses all the available parameters:
{{ts|SPEAKER 1|1n=SPEAKER 1 DISPLAY NAME|l1=LINK SPEAKER 1?|char2=SPEAKER 2|2n=SPEAKER 2 DISPLAY NAME|l2=LINK SPEAKER 2?|char3=SPEAKER 3|3n=SPEAKER 3 DISPLAY NAME|l3=LINK SPEAKER 3?|sub=HOW THE QUOTE IS SAID|QUOTE}}
1n, 2n, and 3n(SPEAKER x DISPLAY NAME): Change the name that appears as the speaker. This is helpful, for example, for characters who begin to speak before they're introduced. In these cases, we can use these parameters to display "???" as the speaker, but still have the quote linked to the actual speaker.l1, l2, and l3(LINK SPEAKER x?): Whether the name should be a link to the speaker's character page. This should just be ayif yes, and should only be done the first time the speaker speaks.sub: A word or two describing how the quote is said. Usually, we don't use this, but it's helpful when describing something like a quote being said directly to a specific character instead of the whole group, or when a line is suddenly said sadly or angrily instead of normally. For example,sub=angrily,sub=to Goofy, orsub=thinking to self.
The Video section is simply the embedded YouTube video of the cutscene. These are taken from Regular Pat's Wayfinder Project. This uses the YouTube template, and the code looks like this:
{{YouTube|header=HEADER|id=YOUTUBE VIDEO ID}}
The HEADER is just a header above the video; usually, this is just the name of the cutscene. The YOUTUBE VIDEO ID is the id of the YouTube video that we're embedding. This comes from the video's URL, and is the part right after the v=. Remove anything after the ID, such as the playlist ID or channel ID.
Examples: "Confrontation with Vanitas", "Gambit"
Conclusion[edit source]
That's it! If this feels or looks overwhelming, don't sweat it! We don't need perfection! Even if you can only add the text itself, that's plenty okay! The Database is about building on each other's work, so don't feel pressured to be perfect. If you want, you can check out the examples listed or ask one of the members of the staff for help.