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DialogueResponsesMenu is a specialized Container node that manages and displays dialogue response options. It handles keyboard and mouse navigation, focus management, and response selection automatically.

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Exports

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response_template
Control
default:"null"
Optionally specify a control to duplicate for each response. If not set, the menu will create a default Button for each response.The template control can have a response property to receive the full DialogueResponse object, or it will fall back to setting the text property.
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next_action
StringName
default:"&''"
The action for accepting a response. If empty, defaults to ui_accept. This can be overridden by a parent dialogue balloon.
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auto_configure_focus
bool
default:"true"
Automatically set up focus neighbours when the responses list changes. This configures keyboard navigation between response items.
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auto_focus_first_item
bool
default:"true"
Automatically focus the first item when the menu becomes visible.
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hide_failed_responses
bool
default:"false"
Hide any responses where is_allowed is false. When disabled, failed responses are shown but disabled.

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Properties

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responses
Array
The list of dialogue responses to display. Setting this property automatically rebuilds the menu with the new responses.Each response should be a DialogueResponse object from the dialogue line.

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Signals

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response_focused
response_focused(response: Variant)
Emitted when a response item gains focus through keyboard navigation or mouse hover.
  • response - The DialogueResponse object that was focused
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response_selected
response_selected(response: Variant)
Emitted when a response is selected by the player (via mouse click or keyboard accept action).
  • response - The DialogueResponse object that was selected

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Methods

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get_menu_items()

func get_menu_items() -> Array
Returns an array of all selectable (visible and not disallowed) items in the menu. Returns: An array of Control nodes representing the response items.

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configure_focus()

func configure_focus() -> void
Manually prepares the menu for keyboard and mouse navigation. This sets up focus neighbors and connects input signals for all menu items.
This method is automatically called when auto_configure_focus is enabled and the responses list changes. You typically only need to call this manually if you’ve disabled auto-configuration.

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Usage Example

extends CanvasLayer

@onready var responses_menu: DialogueResponsesMenu = $ResponsesMenu
@onready var dialogue_label: DialogueLabel = $DialogueLabel

func _ready():
    # Configure the menu
    responses_menu.hide_failed_responses = false
    responses_menu.auto_focus_first_item = true
    
    # Connect to signals
    responses_menu.response_selected.connect(_on_response_selected)
    responses_menu.response_focused.connect(_on_response_focused)
    
    # Start dialogue
    show_dialogue()

func show_dialogue():
    var line = await DialogueManager.get_next_dialogue_line(dialogue_resource)
    
    if line.responses.size() > 0:
        # Show response menu
        dialogue_label.hide()
        responses_menu.responses = line.responses
        responses_menu.show()
    else:
        # Show dialogue text
        responses_menu.hide()
        dialogue_label.dialogue_line = line
        dialogue_label.type_out()

func _on_response_selected(response: DialogueResponse):
    # Hide menu and continue dialogue
    responses_menu.hide()
    
    # Get next line based on selected response
    var next_line = await DialogueManager.get_next_dialogue_line(
        dialogue_resource, 
        response.next_id
    )
    
    if next_line:
        show_dialogue()
    else:
        # Dialogue ended
        queue_free()

func _on_response_focused(response: DialogueResponse):
    # Play sound effect when hovering over responses
    $FocusSound.play()

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Custom Response Template

You can create a custom response button with additional styling and behavior: 
# custom_response_button.gd
extends PanelContainer

@onready var label: Label = $Label
@onready var icon: TextureRect = $Icon

var response: DialogueResponse:
    set(value):
        response = value
        label.text = response.text
        
        # Show different icon based on response character
        if response.character:
            icon.texture = load("res://icons/%s.png" % response.character)
        
        # Apply styling for disallowed responses
        if not response.is_allowed:
            modulate = Color(0.5, 0.5, 0.5, 0.7)
Then reference this custom control in the response_template export of your DialogueResponsesMenu.

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Focus Management

The menu automatically handles focus in several ways:
  • Keyboard Navigation: Arrow keys (up/down) navigate between responses
  • Mouse Navigation: Hovering over a response automatically focuses it
  • Automatic Focus: The first response is focused when the menu becomes visible
  • Focus Neighbors: All responses are properly linked for seamless navigation
Disallowed responses (where is_allowed is false) are automatically excluded from navigation and marked as disabled.

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Integration with Dialogue Lines

The responses menu works seamlessly with dialogue lines returned by DialogueManager.get_next_dialogue_line(): 
var dialogue_line = await DialogueManager.get_next_dialogue_line(resource, "start")

if dialogue_line.responses.size() > 0:
    # Line has responses - show the menu
    responses_menu.responses = dialogue_line.responses
Each DialogueResponse in the array contains:
  • id - The ID of the response
  • next_id - The ID of the next dialogue line if this response is chosen
  • is_allowed - Whether the response passed its condition check
  • text - The text to display for this response
  • character - The character name (or empty string)
  • tags - A list of tags for this response

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