Delve Framework

Delve is a simple framework for building games written in Zig using Lua for scripting. Currently targets Zig 0.11.0

This is in early development and the api is still coming together, so be warned!

Design Philosphy

Delve uses Zig to make writing cross platform games easy, and because it is easy to interop with the vast library of existing C/C++ game development libraries. Its main goal is to be as cross platform and unopinionated as much as possible, making it easy to switch out implementations as needed.

Libraries Used

Sokol for cross platform graphics and input
Lua for scripting using ziglua
stb_image for loading images
zaudio and zmesh from zig-gamedev

Scripting

The scripting manager can generate bindings for Lua automatically by reflecting on a zig file. Example:

// Find all public functions in `api/graphics.zig` and make them available to Lua under the module name `graphics`
bindZigLibrary("graphics", @import("api/graphics.zig"));

Delve will use the assets/main.lua Lua file for scripting unless given a new path on the command line during startup.

2D and 3D rendering

Rendering uses the Sokol framework to use modern, cross platform graphics APIs. Supports Vulkan, Metal, DirectX 11/12, OpenGL 3/ES, and WebGPU.

Batched 2d shape rendering:

GLTF mesh rendering:

Modules, all the way down

In the Delve framework most everything is a module, so that applications can use just the functionality they want as well as extending the framework as needed. As an example, the scripting layer is a module that registers other modules.

Additional Zig code can be registered as a Module to run during the game lifecycle:

const exampleModule = modules.Module {
    .name = "example-module",
    .init_fn = my_on_init,
    .tick_fn = my_on_tick,
    .draw_fn = my_on_draw,
    .cleanup_fn = my_on_cleanup,
};

try modules.registerModule(exampleModule);

Some example modules are included automatically to exercise some code paths, these live under src/examples and are good examples of how to start using the framework.

Building the examples

Clone the repo, then from a terminal:

# just build
zig build

# build and run an example
zig build run-audio
zig build run-clear
zig build run-debugdraw
zig build run-forest
zig build run-lua
zig build run-meshes
zig build run-sprites
zig build run-sprite-animation
zig build run-stresstest

Integrating into another Zig project

Add the framework to your build.zig.zon file as a dependency:

.{
    .name = "my_project",
    .version = "0.0.1",
    .dependencies = .{
        .delve = .{
            .url = "https://github.com/interrupt/delve-framework/archive/refs/tags/0.0.2.tar.gz",
            .hash = "1220b7bea202d8eb41a70b1f6fb5511d92d1fde891410de1cb8923b4ebf046f21e7c",
        },
    },
}

Then in your build.zig file, Delve can be included as a dependency:

const delve = b.dependency("delve", .{
    .target = target,
    .optimize = optimize,
});

...

exe.addModule("delve", delve.module("delve"));
exe.linkLibrary(delve.artifact("delve"));

Interrupt / delve-framework