/zengine

Custom made game engine written in C# & .NET 6

Primary LanguageC#GNU General Public License v3.0GPL-3.0

ZEngine (Zechy's Engine)

The goal of this project is to create a custom game engine, entirely written in the C# language and using the .NET framework, incorporating modern techniques and practices. For linking game systems, dependency injection is used, and for primary logging, native extensions from Microsoft are utilized. It also focuses on native multi-threading support.

The main motivation for creating this engine was primarily the desire to delve deeper into the intricacies of game engine development, and to learn about the things that are hidden behind engine creation. The engine does not claim to be professional, and any potential use is at one's own risk.

Architecture

The foundation of game objects is based on components, where basic ones, like transformation, are provided by the engine. Users have the freedom to expand the logic of game objects with their own components.

Communication

The engine offers two methods of communication between objects.

Messages

Game objects can communicate with each other through messages. These can be sent to any object that implements the IMessageReceiver interface. A unified approach to processing this communication has been created in the form of MessageHandler, which can be embedded in objects.

With SendMessage, one can target specific methods offered by objects. Specific recipients must be marked with the MessageReceiverAttribute.

Events

Events are managed through the EventMediator, and are intended for cases when the source or recipient of the message is unknown. Any method can register with the mediator, which is accessible via DI, to receive messages of a certain type.

Messages are objects that inherit the IEventMessage interface.

Systems

The main building blocks for the engine's operation are modular systems. These are independent parts that manage specific logic. For example, the management of game objects, rendering, or inputs. These systems are connected to the engine via DI or can be additionally added to the GameManager. Using the IGameSystem interface, one can create their own, additional systems.

Game Object System

This system is responsible for the creation and destruction of game objects. Developers can access these methods through the ObjectManager.

Input System

The system for processing user inputs. At the moment, we are only implementing the keyboard and mouse within the Windows environment. For interactions in one's own code, the InputManager is available, through which one can subscribe to events received from devices.

GameBuilder

An object that helps create a basic environment and dependencies from which the GameManager can then be further developed.

GameManager

The main class responsible for the game loop and managing all systems. The GameManager is registered in the game's DI as a singleton, which should be loaded and initiated in the player's implementation.

Project Layout

The structure of the project is as follows:

  • Solutions Items contains files like this readme or .gitignore.
  • Sources Contains the engine's source codes.
    1. Architecture Contains libraries defining the engine's basic architecture.
    2. Game Core The core responsible for the basic game loop process.
    3. Game Systems Systems responsible for the engine's individual functional units.
  • Tests Contains tests for the engine.