Make a first change

Everything in game\ is yours now. This page changes three things you can see, so you know the whole loop works: edit, build, run.

1. Change the greeting. In game\states\hello_state.cpp, find where the greeting is created:

   samples/minimal/states/hello_state.cpp

   this->greeting_ = this->scene_->add(std::make_unique<Label>(
     L"Hello from the engine.", font_name, this->position_, resources,
     labrador::Colour::white));

   samples/minimal/states/hello_state.cpp, lines 89–91 at 862e08b

   Change its text:

   L"Hello from my game.", font_name, this->position_, resources,

   The L makes it a wide string, which is what the engine’s text drawing takes.

2. Make it spin faster. Near the top of the same file, the speed is a constant beside the one thing it configures:

   samples/minimal/states/hello_state.cpp

   constexpr float spin_speed = 1.2f;

   samples/minimal/states/hello_state.cpp, line 28 at 862e08b

   Change 1.2f to 3.0f. The unit is radians per second.

3. Name the window. In game\main.cpp, change the window’s class name and title:

   samples/minimal/main.cpp

   options.window_class_name = L"MinimalSampleWindowClass";
   // ASCII only: this file gets copied into new projects, and a wide
   // literal's encoding depends on how the compiler was told to read the
   // source.
   options.window_title = L"Labrador - minimal sample";

   samples/minimal/main.cpp, lines 24–28 at 862e08b

   options.window_class_name = L"MyGameWindowClass";
   // ...
   options.window_title = L"My game";

4. Rebuild and run:

   cmake --build --preset x64-debug
   out\build\x64-debug\game\MyGame.exe

   Only the two files you changed are compiled again. The window has your title, and your greeting circles faster.

Where to go next

The comments in hello_state.cpp explain why each part of it is written the way it is, and they are the best next thing to read. After that:

ExamplesLineSweeper: a whole game, and the order to read it in.

Why Labrador?What the engine is built to be good at, and what it gives up.

API referenceThe exact contract of every public type, read from the engine's headers.

DesignThe twelve trade-offs every part of the engine is built on.