chem - html5 game engine optimized for rapid development
Usage
# install chem
sudo apt-get install libcairo2-dev
sudo npm install -g chem-cli
# create a new project
chem init <your_project_name>
# run a development server which will automatically recompile your code,
# generate your spritesheets, and serve your assets
chem dev
# see more commands
chem
Synopsis
See the demo in action.
Layout
Source files
./chemfile.js
./src/main.js
./public/index.html
./assets/img/ship.png
./assets/img/explosion/01.png
...
./assets/img/explosion/12.png
Generated files
./public/main.js
./public/spritesheet.png
./public/animations.json
./src/main.js
var chem = require('chem');
var Vec2d = chem.vec2d;
chem.onReady(function () {
var canvas = document.getElementById("game");
var engine = new chem.Engine(canvas);
var batch = new chem.Batch();
var boom = new chem.Sound('sfx/boom.ogg');
var ship = new chem.Sprite('ship', {
batch: batch,
pos: new Vec2d(200, 200),
rotation: Math.PI / 2
});
var shipVel = new Vec2d();
var rotationSpeed = Math.PI * 0.04;
var thrustAmt = 0.1;
engine.on('update', function (dt, dx) {
ship.pos.add(shipVel);
if (engine.buttonState(chem.button.KeyLeft)) {
ship.rotation -= rotationSpeed * dx;
}
if (engine.buttonState(chem.button.KeyRight)) {
ship.rotation += rotationSpeed * dx;
}
var thrust = new Vec2d(Math.cos(ship.rotation), Math.sin(ship.rotation));
if (engine.buttonState(chem.button.KeyUp)) {
shipVel.add(thrust.scaled(thrustAmt * dx));
}
if (engine.buttonState(chem.button.KeyDown)) {
shipVel.sub(thrust.scaled(thrustAmt * dx));
}
if (engine.buttonJustPressed(chem.button.KeySpace)) {
boom.play();
ship.setAnimationName('boom');
ship.setFrameIndex(0);
ship.on('animationend', function() {
ship.delete();
});
}
});
engine.on('draw', function (context) {
context.fillStyle = '#000000'
context.fillRect(0, 0, engine.size.x, engine.size.y);
engine.draw(batch);
context.fillStyle = '#ffffff'
engine.drawFps();
});
engine.start();
canvas.focus();
});
./chemfile.js
exports.main = 'src/main';
exports.spritesheet = {
defaults: {
delay: 0.05,
loop: false,
anchor: "center"
},
animations: {
boom: {
frames: "explosion"
},
ship: {}
}
};
./public/index.html
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Chem Example</title>
</head>
<body style="text-align: center">
<canvas id="game" width="853" height="480"></canvas>
<p>Use the arrow keys to move around and space to destroy yourself.</p>
<script type="text/javascript" src="main.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
See the demo in action.
See also Meteor Attack demo
Documentation
Developing With Chem
Chemfile
Start by looking at your chemfile
. This file contains all the instructions
on how to build your game.
This file, like every other source file in your game, can be in any compile-
to-JavaScript language (including JavaScript itself) that you choose.
Getting Started
The first step is to require "chem":
var chem = require('chem');
chem.onReady(function() {
});
Vec2d Convention
As a convention, any Vec2d
instances you get from Chem are not clones. That
is, pay careful attention not to perform destructive behavior on the Vec2d
instances returned from the API.
Not Using a Spritesheet
If you omit the spritesheet object in your chemfile, no spritesheet files will
be generated. Be sure to set chem.useSpritesheet = false
in your app code to
avoiding attempting to load the missing resources.
Reference
Batch
var Batch = require('chem').Batch;
A Batch
is a set of sprites which you can conveniently draw using the
Engine::draw(batch)
method.
Batch::add(sprite)
:
Adds a sprite to the batch. If called multiple times for the same sprite,
the sprite is only added once.
Batch::remove(sprite)
:
Removes a sprite from the batch. OK to call multiple times.
button
var button = require('chem').button;
Enumeration to get the button that a person is activating. Keyboard buttons
start with Key
and mouse buttons start with Mouse
.
For example, the left mouse button is chem.button.MouseLeft
and the
right arrow key is chem.button.KeyRight
.
See also:
Engine::buttonState
Engine::buttonJustPressed
Engine:: 'buttondown' event (button)
Engine:: 'buttonup' event (button)
See lib/button.js
for the full listing.
Engine
var Engine = require('chem').Engine;
methods
Engine::new(canvas)
Create an instance of the engine and bind it to a canvas:
var engine = new chem.Engine(document.getElementById("the-canvas"));
Engine::setSize(size)
Resize the game.
Engine::start()
Call this to start the main loop and start listening to events.
Engine::setMinFps(minFps)
If the FPS drops below this value, your engine will lag instead of trying
to compensate with a larger dt/dx sent to `update`
Defaults to 20.
See also `Engine:: 'update' event(dt, dx)`
Engine::stop()
Call this to stop the main loop and stop listening to events.
Engine::buttonState(button)
Check if `button` is currently pressed. See also `button`.
Engine::buttonJustPressed(button)
Call from the `update` event. It returns true if `button` is pressed,
but then returns false for subsequent calls until `button` is released
and pressed again.
See also `button`.
Engine::draw(batch)
Call from the `draw` event and pass in the `Batch` that you want to draw.
All of the sprites will be drawn with the correct rotations, offsets,
scaling, `zOrder`, and animation applied.
Engine::drawFps()
Draws the current frames per second in the corner of your game with
whatever fillColor and font are currently set.
properties
Engine::size
Read only. `Vec2d` instance. Use `Engine::setSize` if you want to update
the size.
Engine::fps
Read only. Contains an up to date value for the current frames per second.
Engine::canvas
Read only. The canvas element that the engine is using.
Engine::mousePos
Read only. `Vec2d` instance representing the current mouse position
relative to the canvas.
events
These are events that you can subscribe to. See EventEmitter
on how to
subscribe to events.
Engine:: 'update' event (dt, dx)
Fired as often as possible, capping at about 60 FPS. Use it to compute
the next frame in your game.
`dt` is the "delta time" - the amount of time in seconds that has passed
since `update` was last fired.
`dx` is a multiplier intended to adjust your physics. If your game is
running perfectly smoothly at 60 FPS, `dx` will be exactly 1. If your game
is running half as fast as it should, at 30 FPS, `dx` will be 2. `dx` is
equal to `dt` * 60.
Engine:: 'draw' event (context)
You should perform all canvas drawing based on your game state in response
to this event.
See also:
* `Engine::draw`
Engine:: 'mousemove' event (pos, button)
Fired when the mouse moves.
`pos`: a `Vec2d` instance.
`button`: an enum from `button`.
See also:
* `Engine::mousePos`
Engine:: 'buttondown' event (button)
Engine:: 'buttonup' event (button)
Fired when the player presses a button down or up, respectively.
`button`: an enum from `button`.
Sound
var Sound = require('chem').Sound;
new Sound(url)
Example:
var sound = new chem.Sound('url/to/sound.ogg');
sound.play()
Plays the sound. If the sound is already playing, it will play another
instance at the same time.
Returns the HTML5 Audio object that is generating the sound, which has these
methods: `pause()`, `play()`
And these properties: `currentTime`, `duration`
Sprite
var Sprite = require('chem').Sprite;
methods
Sprite::new(animationName, params)
Example:
var sprite = new chem.Sprite('some_animation_name', {
pos: new Vec2d(0, 0),
scale: new Vec2d(1, 1),
zOrder: 0,
batch: some_batch,
rotation: 0,
visible: true,
frameIndex: 0,
loop: true
});
All the params are optional.
Sprite::setAnimationName(animationName)
Changes the sprite's animation to the one indexed by `animationName`.
Note that you probably also want to call `setFrameIndex(0)` if you want
the new animation to start from the beginning.
Sprite::setAnimation(animation)
Changes the sprite's animation to `animation`.
Note that you probably also want to call `setFrameIndex(0)` if you want
the new animation to start from the beginning.
Sprite::getSize()
Like `Sprite::size` but takes scale and current frame into account.
Sprite::getAnchor()
Convenience method to get a `Vec2d` representing the anchor position.
Takes into account scale.
Does not take into account rotation.
Sprite::getTopLeft()
Sprite::getBottomRight()
Convenience methods returning a `Vec2d` instance of corners of the sprite.
Takes into account scale and current frame.
Does not take into account rotation.
Sprite::getTop()
Sprite::getLeft()
Sprite::getBottom()
Sprite::getRight()
Convenience methods returning the location of edges of the sprite.
Takes into account scale and current frame.
Does not take into account rotation.
Sprite::setLeft(x)
Sprite::setRight(x)
Sprite::setTop(y)
Sprite::setBottom(y)
Convenience methods to set the location of edges of the sprite.
Takes into account scale and current frame.
Does not take into account rotation.
Sprite::isTouching(sprite)
Returns boolean of whether the sprite is colliding with another.
Takes into account scale and current frame.
Does not take into account rotation.
Sprite::setVisible(visible)
Hides the sprite but keeps it ready to display again.
See also `Sprite::delete()`.
Sprite::setZOrder(zOrder)
Use to layer sprites the way you want to. Start with 0 as the bottom layer.
When you want to put something on top, use 1 for the zOrder, 2 for
something on top of that, and so on.
See also `Sprite::zOrder`
Sprite::setFrameIndex(frameIndex)
Set the frame to show when the sprite is rendered. Animation will continue
from this frame as usual. To find out the frame count, use
`sprite.animation.frames.length`.
Sprite::setLoop(loop)
This value overrides the animation's loop property. If set to `null`,
it will fall back to the animation's loop property.
See also `Sprite::loop`.
Sprite::setAnimationStartDate(animationStartDate)
Does the same thing as `Sprite::setFrameIndex(frameIndex)` except you
specify a date instead of a frame index.
Sprite::getFrameIndex()
Returns the index of the current frame. See also
`Sprite::setFrameIndex(frameIndex)`
Sprite::delete()
Indicates that the sprite should release all resources and no longer
display on the canvas.
See also `Sprite::setVisible(visible)`.
properties
Sprite::pos
`Vec2d`. Get or set the position in the canvas this sprite is drawn.
Sprite::size
Read only. `Vec2d` width and height of the first frame, not taking into
account `scale` or current frame.
Sprite::scale
`Vec2d`. Get or set the scale with which the sprite is drawn.
Sprite::zOrder
Read only. Use `Sprite::setZOrder` to change the `zOrder` of a sprite.
Sprite::batch
Read only. Use `Batch::add(sprite)` and `Batch::remove(sprite)` to
change this value.
Sprite::rotation
Get or set the angle of the sprite, in radians. Going over 2 * pi is OK.
Sprite::loop
Read only. Use `Sprite::setLoop(loop)` to set this value.
Sprite::id
Read only. Uniquely identifies this `Sprite` among others.
Sprite::animation
Read only. The current animation of the sprite. Properties of `animation`
are:
* `anchor` - `Vec2d` instance
* `delay` - seconds
* `loop` - boolean
* `frames` - `[{size, pos}]` - both `size` and `pos` here are `Vec2d`s.
Sprite::animationName
Read only.
events
These are events that you can subscribe to. See EventEmitter
on how to
subscribe to events.
Sprite:: 'animationend' event
Fired when the animation completes. If `loop` is true, this will be at a
regular interval. If `loop` is false, this will fire only once, until you
reset the frame index.
See also:
* `Sprite::setFrameIndex(frameIndex)`
vec2d
var vec2d = require('chem').vec2d;
See node-vec2d
Developing chem
# set up dev environment for chem itself:
sudo apt-get install libcairo2-dev
sudo npm link
History
0.4.0
- use browserify for packaging instead of jspackage
snake_case
api changed to camelCase
chem.Button
changed to chem.button
chem.Vec2d
changed to chem.vec2d
"animation_end"
changed to "animationend"
0.3.0
- rewrite chem to be faster and less error prone
- support node.js v0.10
0.2.7
- update jspackage - fixes dependencies rendered out of order sometimes
0.2.6
- add sprite.alpha property
0.2.5
- add
div
and divBy
to Vec2d
0.2.4
- correctly expose animations and spritesheet
0.2.3
(recalled)
0.2.2
- expose animations, spritesheet, and getImage
- throw error objects, not strings
0.2.1
- add top, bottom, left, right anchor shortcuts
- Vec2d: add ceil and ceiled
- drawFps: text align left