Desktop Build export

Desktop Build packages one story, including the phone UI and whichever modules it uses, into a standalone app that runs completely offline. No Sexter.io account, no internet connection, no other players. You can upload the result to itch.io (or anywhere) as your own game.

Status: beta, Tier 3 and Hall of Fame

Desktop Build is in beta while the pipeline matures. Both the .zip Story package export and Desktop Build in the Export tab (Publish -> Export) are reserved for Tier 3 (Super Supporter) creators and Hall of Fame members, since both rebuild the whole story on Sexter's servers and Desktop Build additionally runs a full Windows build behind the scenes. Creators manually granted Studio access by staff also get the Story package export even without Tier 3, but not Desktop Build, that one stays Tier 3 / Hall of Fame only either way. Below that, the Export tab still shows both cards with an Upgrade button instead of the export action, so you can see what's coming.

It builds a single portable Windows .exe for now (the download is a small zip with that .exe and a README, not a folder of node_modules). Unzip, run the .exe. A saves folder appears next to it and holds the story database plus player progress. Mac needs real Apple hardware to sign, so it isn't part of the server-side button yet.

Export scope

The Export tab's Export scope card applies to both the regular Story package .zip export and Desktop Build. Leave Whole story on to include everything, or turn it off and pick a conversation to trim the main story chain to everything up to and including that point (handy for a demo build of just the first few chapters).

This only trims the main chain (chapters and their conversations/Ink). Side conversations, injections, App DMs, and modules (TheGram, FansOnly, Swiper, Skipr) are not cut by scope, they follow the Story package export's own content toggles, or ship in full with a Desktop Build.

What ships in the build

• Your story's chapters, NPCs, and every image it references, plus your compiled Ink, never the editable script. Real content changes always mean coming back to Studio and building again
• Whichever phone apps the story actually uses (TheGram, FansOnly, Swiper, Skipr, Injector) with your phone Design skin (wallpaper, app icons/names)
• A single local save in a saves folder next to the .exe. The player is auto-logged in with no access-code screen. Back up that folder to keep progress.
• The Sexter app icon on the Windows .exe
• A short Sexter intro slide deck (branding + 18+ Continue) before the lock screen. Staff edit the slides in Admin -> Settings -> Desktop Build intro; every export picks up the current global deck

Account-wide systems that only make sense with other real players (Idle Hustler, Hall of Fame, cross-player comment feeds, your other stories in the library) are left out. They don't error, they just don't show up, since a solo local copy has no other players to draw from.

One button, built on Sexter's servers

Hit Build & Export Windows .exe in the Export tab and Sexter builds a portable Windows exe for you. Unzip the download, then run the .exe. No installer wizard. The story database is already inside the build, so first launch copies it into saves/ next to the exe instead of creating a database from scratch. After the app opens, players see the intro slides every time they launch, tap Continue on the 18+ slide, then land on the phone lock screen. Feel free to switch Studio tabs while the server-side build runs. When it's done, the card shows a direct download link.

SmartScreen / code signing

Builds are unsigned until Sexter configures a Windows Authenticode certificate on the build servers. Until then, Windows SmartScreen may show an "unrecognized app" / "unknown publisher" warning the first time. Players can still run it via More info -> Run anyway. That warning is about the missing publisher signature, not about the zip format.

Unity and many Mac builds feel "cleaner" because those toolchains ship with (or require) signing certificates. Electron can sign the same way once a cert is in place, it is not a format limitation.

Not real DRM

The packaged app is minified by Next's production build as a light deterrent against casual editing, and never includes the editable Ink script, only the compiled version the engine runs. It is not real copy protection or anti-tamper. If that matters for how you plan to sell your build, plan around it accordingly.