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Getting Started

Shadow Engine targets C++17 and currently supports macOS, Linux, Windows, and WebAssembly.

Install dependencies

brew install sdl2 sdl2_image sdl2_ttf sdl2_mixer cmake

sudo apt install libsdl2-dev libsdl2-image-dev libsdl2-ttf-dev libsdl2-mixer-dev cmake

Windows builds can use the vendored dependency configuration exposed by the repository's CMake setup.

Build the engine

cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build build -j

Run the default demo:

./build/sdl_app

Run one of the shipped examples:

./build/snake_example
./build/minesweeper_example
./build/tictactoe_example
./build/roguelike_example

Create a game

The fastest path is the repository's game scaffold:

make new-game GAME=Pong
make game GAME=Pong
./build-games/Pong_game

make new-game creates a complete game under Games/Pong/. Game directories are auto-registered by the CMake setup, so a new game does not need manual build wiring.

For the full workflow, continue to the Game Development Guide.

Minimal Game2D program

#include "Engine/Core/Game2D.h"

class MyGame : public Game2D {
public:
    MyGame() : Game2D("My Game", 800, 600, 20) {}

    void initGame() override {
        createGrid(40, 30, 20);

        player = createEntity<GridEntity>(getGrid(), 5, 5);
        player->setColor({0, 200, 255, 255});

        bindKey(KEY_UP).onPress([this]{ player->tryMove(0, -1); });
        bindKey(KEY_DOWN).onPress([this]{ player->tryMove(0, 1); });
        bindKey(KEY_LEFT).onPress([this]{ player->tryMove(-1, 0); });
        bindKey(KEY_RIGHT).onPress([this]{ player->tryMove(1, 0); });
    }

private:
    std::shared_ptr<GridEntity> player;
};

int main() {
    MyGame game;
    game.run();
}

Game2D is the recommended entry point for grid-based games. It owns the grid layer, entity list, input shortcuts, UI helpers, delta-time game loop, and the LLMPlayable interface.

Run tests

ctest --test-dir build --output-on-failure

The repository also contains sanitizer, smoke, layout, example-registration, and platform-specific CI coverage. See Build & Test for the complete matrix.

Build for WebAssembly

With Emscripten configured:

emcmake cmake -S . -B build_wasm -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build build_wasm -j

Or use the repository helper to build the browser catalog:

./build_wasm.sh

A single shipped game can be exported with:

./tools/build_web_game.sh Pong