Forum Discussion
Plans for Non-AI Storyline360 Updates?
I was looking through the recent Storyline 360 updates and the feature roadmap, and it feels like most of the new stuff lately is focused on AI features, with not much being added to the core functionality.
Are there any plans to keep adding to or improving the standard features in Storyline, or is the main focus going to be AI moving forward?
For a lot of us building internal or compliance-based courses, AI just isn’t something we can really use due to protected information. Often many scripts and images are already approved ahead of time, so those features don’t add much value to our process.
It’s a little frustrating because there are some existing features that feel outdated and could really benefit from even small improvements, but they seem to be getting less attention.
12 Replies
I'd like this post twice if I could. The rather egregious generative AI spam and capitulation from an industry-leading authoring tool I otherwise enjoy dearly is disappointing. I would really appreciate a renewed focus on improving the core experience, quality of life, stability, efficiency, performance, player functionality, interactivity, and more. There have been some good updates to this end in the past year, but we still don't have a native Mac version after over a *decade* of requests. We still don't have dark mode after over a *decade* of requests. The SL quiz engine and its associated features often feel archaic and buggy. Please innovate and iterate on your core features.
Hey JosephFerraroKW,
I completely understand the frustration.
I can confirm that feedback like what you’ve shared here isn’t going unnoticed. Even when a long-standing request hasn’t led to a feature being built, the feedback and context customers provide help us understand where the friction lies and what users need most from our products.
You raised a broader point about wanting to see continued investment in Storyline’s core authoring experience, alongside newer capabilities like AI. Of the core improvements you mentioned, which one is creating the biggest obstacle in your work today?
Hi StevenBenassi,
I appreciate your thoughtful reply. I'd say the biggest obstacles are:
1) Sluggish application performance related to needing to run SL360 in a VM because Articulate doesn't develop for Mac natively. I've dealt with this since Storyline 2 across multiple companies, computers, and virtualization methods. Articulate is a multibillion dollar company. It should have a Mac version. It should have dark mode.2) Ancient default quiz engine interaction elements, with a lot of rather inflexible characteristics that make them harder to use than they need to be. Why for instance is the hotspot interaction selection icon this weird tiny green radar thing that's color can't be changed? There are all sorts of quirks from these presets that could use an overhaul. Maybe introduce some gamification tools.
3) The Modern Player's navigation restrictions can't be controlled via variable (e.g., toggle locked slide to unlocked, or completed, etc.). This would be a game changer if you could unlock everything for returning users and custom configurations.
I'm interested in engaging experiences that are authentic, and human-generated. The agentic support for beginners / user accessibility, and things like internal closed captioning support are nice to haves. I have little interest in the majority of the generative AI offerings. It doesn't accelerate things as much as it just makes for more rework and de-sloppification. AI voiceovers are tacky, disingenuous, and disengaging, and really only acceptable for placeholders. YMMV, but that's the feedback.
Overall, I'd just say that after over a decade, I still really enjoy building in Storyline, but I encourage you to explore and refocus on how to support efforts to make even more engaging, authentic, and human-design forward experiences, with more interesting and flexible content formats and user interactions, while also looking towards core support for Mac.
Too much focus on AI and not enough are improving software and bug fixing.
Since all these recent updates, I feel the AI features have really bloated the product and slowed it down. Constant posts about why is Storyline taking forever to do this or that. I understand adding AI features, but can't it be a seperate package that SL accesses rather than embedding it into the core package?
Heads up, you can ask your Storyline rep (or email customer support) to turn off AI features for your instance of Storyline. If you don't use any of the AI features anyhow, it helps a TON with the speed.
Wahhh I did not know this. I work for a studio and the boss doesn't want to purchase the AI features. This is good to know. Thank you.
Hi, _ErinShaw_ and Silverfire. Thanks for taking the time to share your perspectives.
I can understand why the recent emphasis on AI features has left you feeling like improvements to Storyline's core authoring experience aren't receiving the same level of attention. I also appreciate Erin's point about making non-AI enhancements more visible. How we communicate ongoing investments is just as important as the work itself, especially for authors who rely on those core workflows every day.
While I don't have any roadmap updates to share, I appreciate you both taking the time to explain how this has shaped your experience. Conversations like this help us better understand not only the improvements customers care about, but also how they're experiencing the direction of the product.
Articulate would be better served listening to real users who design and create with the tool, but if you see how they're marketing SL360, it looks like those days are over. We're all the data now and the only thing that matters is creating crap at faster and faster speeds.
Unfortunately that is the trend right now with many authoring tools. Not to say AI doesn't have its uses, but it has become a huge focus.
I would love to see more focus on accessibility. I think that will become a way to stay competitive in the authoring tools market.
There was one accessibility upgrade in Storyline with the accessibility toggle now appearing in the timeline which should make this more efficient and reduce overlooked issues.Hi MollieJamison-7,
Thank you for taking the time to share the candid feedback!
You’re right that AI Assistant features have been a big focus in recent updates and on our product roadmap. However, that doesn't mean we're moving away from improving Storyline's core features. That work is still very much occurring, even if it's not always visible.
Also, we do understand that not everyone is able to utilize AI tools, especially in compliance or more controlled environments. So continuing to improve the core authoring experience is still a priority for us. If there are specific Storyline features you’ve been hoping to see, please let us know. We're happy to advocate for you and submit that feedback directly to our product team.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
I highly recommend making the non-AI feature updates more visible in your roadmaps and reporting. I concur with Mollie - it feels like users who don't use AI aren't a priority anymore for Articulate.
