docs/Quickstart.md
This document provides a quick overview of the different features and concepts in Flecs with short examples. This is a good resource if you're just getting started or just want to get a better idea of what kind of features are available in Flecs!
See the Building Flecs manual.
This section contains an overview of all the different concepts in Flecs and how they wire together. The sections in the quickstart go over them in more detail and with code examples.
The world is the container for all ECS data. It stores the entities and their components, does queries and runs systems. Typically there is only a single world, but there is no limit on the number of worlds an application can create.
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_world_t *world = ecs_init();
// Do the ECS stuff
ecs_fini(world);
flecs::world world;
// Do the ECS stuff
using World world = World.Create();
// Do the ECS stuff
let world = World::new();
// Do the ECS stuff
;; The dependency for this binding is at https://clojars.org/io.github.pfeodrippe/vybe-flecs,
;; code at https://github.com/pfeodrippe/vybe, see also https://vybegame.dev/vybe-flecs
;; Require a higher-level binding and a lower-level one.
(require '[vybe.flecs :as vf])
(require '[vybe.flecs.c :as vf.c])
(import '(org.vybe.flecs flecs))
(def w (vf/make-world))
;; Do the ECS stuff
An entity is a unique thing in the world, and is represented by a 64 bit id. Entities can be created and deleted. If an entity is deleted it is no longer considered "alive". A world can contain up to 4 billion(!) alive entities. Entity identifiers contain a few bits that make it possible to check whether an entity is alive or not.
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_entity_t e = ecs_new(world);
ecs_is_alive(world, e); // true!
ecs_delete(world, e);
ecs_is_alive(world, e); // false!
auto e = world.entity();
e.is_alive(); // true!
e.destruct();
e.is_alive(); // false!
Entity e = world.Entity();
e.IsAlive(); // true!
e.Destruct();
e.IsAlive(); // false!
let e = world.entity();
e.is_alive(); // true!
e.destruct();
e.is_alive(); // false!
(merge w {:e []})
(vf/alive? (:e w))
;; => #{}
(dissoc w :e)
(:e w)
;; => nil
Entities can have names which makes it easier to identify them in an application. In C++ the name can be passed to the constructor. If a name is provided during entity creation time and an entity with that name already exists, the existing entity will be returned.
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>In C a name can be assigned with the ecs_entity_init function or ecs_entity macro.
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_entity(world, { .name = "Bob" });
printf("Entity name: %s\n", ecs_get_name(world, e));
auto e = world.entity("Bob");
std::cout << "Entity name: " << e.name() << std::endl;
Entity e = world.Entity("Bob");
Console.WriteLine($"Entity name: {e.Name()}");
let e = world.entity_named("bob");
println!("Entity name: {}", e.name());
(merge w {:bob []})
(vf/get-name (:bob w))
;; => "bob"
Entities can be looked up by name with the lookup function:
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_lookup(world, "Bob");
auto e = world.lookup("Bob");
Entity e = world.Lookup("Bob");
let e = world.lookup("bob");
(def e (w :bob))
An id is a 64 bit number that can encode anything that can be added to an entity. In flecs this can be either a component, tag or a pair. A component is data that can be added to an entity. A tag is an "empty" component. A pair is a combination of two component/tag ids which is used to encode entity relationships. All entity/component/tag identifiers are valid ids, but not all ids are valid entity identifier.
The following sections describe components, tags and pairs in more detail.
A component is a type of which instances can be added and removed to entities. Each component can be added only once to an entity (though not really, see Pair). In C applications components must be registered before use. By default in C++ this happens automatically.
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ECS_COMPONENT(world, Position);
ECS_COMPONENT(world, Velocity);
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_new(world);
// Add a component. This creates the component in the ECS storage, but does not
// assign it with a value.
ecs_add(world, e, Velocity);
// Set the value for the Position & Velocity components. A component will be
// added if the entity doesn't have it yet.
ecs_set(world, e, Position, {10, 20});
ecs_set(world, e, Velocity, {1, 2});
// Get a component
const Position *p = ecs_get(world, e, Position);
// Remove component
ecs_remove(world, e, Position);
auto e = world.entity();
// Add a component. This creates the component in the ECS storage, but does not
// assign it with a value.
e.add<Velocity>();
// Set the value for the Position & Velocity components. A component will be
// added if the entity doesn't have it yet.
e.set<Position>({10, 20})
.set<Velocity>({1, 2});
// Get a component
const Position& p = e.get<Position>();
// Get mutable:
// Position& p = e.get_mut<Position>();
// Get optional:
// const Position* p = e.try_get<Position>();
// Get optional mutable:
// Position* p = e.try_get_mut<Position>();
// Remove component
e.remove<Position>();
Entity e = world.Entity();
// Add a component. This creates the component in the ECS storage, but does not
// assign it with a value.
e.Add<Velocity>();
// Set the value for the Position & Velocity components. A component will be
// added if the entity doesn't have it yet.
e.Set<Position>(new(10, 20))
.Set<Velocity>(new(1, 2));
// Get a component
ref readonly Position p = ref e.Get<Position>();
// Remove component
e.Remove<Position>();
let e = world.entity();
// Add a component. This creates the component in the ECS storage, but does not
// assign it with a value.
e.add::<Velocity>();
// Set the value for the Position & Velocity components. A component will be
// added if the entity doesn't have it yet.
e.set(Position { x: 10.0, y: 20.0 })
.set(Velocity { x: 1.0, y: 2.0 });
// Get a component
e.get::<&Position>(|p| {
println!("Position: ({}, {})", p.x, p.y);
});
// Remove component
e.remove::<Position>();
(merge w {:e []})
(def e (:e w))
;; Add a component. This creates the component in the ECS storage, but does not
;; assign it with a value.
(conj e Velocity)
;; Set the value for the Position & Velocity components. A component will be
;; added if the entity doesn't have it yet.
(conj e (Position [10 20]) (Velocity [1 2]))
;; Get a component
(e Position)
;; => {Position {:x 10.0, :y 20.0}}
;; Remove component
(disj e Position)
Each component is associated by a unique entity identifier by Flecs. This makes it possible to inspect component data, or attach your own data to components.
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>C applications can use the ecs_id macro to get the entity id for a component.
ECS_COMPONENT(world, Position);
ecs_entity_t pos_e = ecs_id(Position);
printf("Name: %s\n", ecs_get_name(world, pos_e)); // outputs 'Name: Position'
// It's possible to add components like you would for any entity
ecs_add(world, pos_e, Serializable);
C++ applications can use the world::entity function.
flecs::entity pos_e = world.entity<Position>();
std::cout << "Name: " << pos_e.name() << std::endl; // outputs 'Name: Position'
// It's possible to add components like you would for any entity
pos_e.add<Serializable>();
C# applications can use the World.Entity() function.
Entity posE = world.Entity<Position>();
Console.WriteLine($"Name: {posE.Name()}"); // outputs 'Name: Position'
// It's possible to add components like you would for any entity
posE.Add<Serializable>();
Rust applications can use the world::entity_from function.
let pos_e = world.entity_from::<Position>();
println!("Name: {}", pos_e.name()); // outputs 'Name: Position'
// It's possible to add components like you would for any entity
pos_e.add::<Serializable>();
Clojure applications can use the vf/ent function.
(def pos-e (vf/ent w Position))
;; Components generated from Clojure have the name prefixed with `C_` in the Flecs internal name
(vf/get-name pos-e)
;; => "C_Position"
;; It's possible to add components like you would for any entity
(conj pos-e Serializable)
The thing that makes an ordinary entity a component is the EcsComponent (or flecs::Component, in C++) component. This is a builtin component that tells Flecs how much space is needed to store a component, and can be inspected by applications:
ECS_COMPONENT(world, Position);
ecs_entity_t pos_e = ecs_id(Position);
const EcsComponent *c = ecs_get(world, pos_e, EcsComponent);
printf("Component size: %u\n", c->size);
flecs::entity pos_e = world.entity<Position>();
const EcsComponent& c = pos_e.get<flecs::Component>();
std::cout << "Component size: " << c.size << std::endl;
Entity posE = world.Entity<Position>();
ref readonly EcsComponent c = ref posE.Get<EcsComponent>();
Console.WriteLine($"Component size: {c.size}");
let pos_e = world.entity_from::<Position>();
pos_e.get::<&flecs::Component>(|c| {
println!("Component size: {}", c.size);
});
;; We use the lower-level C Flecs API directly.
(-> (vf.c/ecs-get-id w (vf/eid pos-e) (vf/eid w :vf/component))
(vp/as vf/EcsComponent))
;; => #:vybe.flecs{EcsComponent {:size 8, :alignment 4}}
Because components are stored as regular entities, they can in theory also be deleted. To prevent unexpected accidents however, by default components are registered with a tag that prevents them from being deleted. If this tag were to be removed, deleting a component would cause it to be removed from all entities. For more information on these policies, see Relationship cleanup properties.
A tag is a component that does not have any data. In Flecs tags can be either empty types (in C++) or regular entities (C & C++) that do not have the EcsComponent component (or have an EcsComponent component with size 0). Tags can be added & removed using the same APIs as adding & removing components, but because tags have no data, they cannot be assigned a value. Because tags (like components) are regular entities, they can be created & deleted at runtime.
// Create Enemy tag
ecs_entity_t Enemy = ecs_new(world);
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_new(world);
ecs_add_id(world, e, Enemy);
ecs_has_id(world, e, Enemy); // true!
ecs_remove_id(world, e, Enemy);
ecs_has_id(world, e, Enemy); // false!
// Option 1: create Tag as empty struct
struct Enemy { };
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
auto e = world.entity().add<Enemy>();
e.has<Enemy>(); // true!
e.remove<Enemy>();
e.has<Enemy>(); // false!
// Option 2: create Tag as entity
auto Enemy = world.entity();
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
auto e2 = world.entity().add(Enemy);
e2.has(Enemy); // true!
e2.remove(Enemy);
e2.has(Enemy); // false!
// Option 1: create Tag as empty struct
public struct Enemy { }
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
Entity e = world.Entity().Add<Enemy>();
e.Has<Enemy>(); // true!
e.Remove<Enemy>();
e.Has<Enemy>(); // false!
// Option 2: create Tag as entity
Entity Enemy = world.Entity();
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
Entity e = world.Entity().Add(Enemy);
e.Has(Enemy); // true!
e.Remove(Enemy);
e.Has(Enemy); // false!
// Option 1: create Tag as empty struct
#[derive(Component)]
struct Enemy;
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
let e = world.entity().add::<Enemy>();
e.has::<Enemy>(); // true!
e.remove::<Enemy>();
e.has::<Enemy>(); // false!
// Option 2: create Tag as entity
let enemy = world.entity();
// Create entity, add Enemy tag
let e = world.entity().add_id(enemy);
e.has_id(enemy); // true!
e.remove_id(enemy);
e.has_id(enemy); // false!
;; Add tag (it will create the tag if it doesn't already exist) to an entity
(merge w {:e [:enemy]})
(:enemy (w :e))
;; => :enemy
(disj (w :e) :enemy)
(:enemy (w :e))
;; => nil
Note that both options in the C++ example achieve the same effect. The only difference is that in option 1 the tag is fixed at compile time, whereas in option 2 the tag can be created dynamically at runtime.
When a tag is deleted, the same rules apply as for components (see Relationship cleanup properties).
A pair is a combination of two entity ids. Pairs can be used to store entity relationships, where the first id represents the relationship kind and the second id represents the relationship target (called "object"). This is best explained by an example:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>// Create Likes relationship
ecs_entity_t Likes = ecs_new(world);
// Create a small graph with two entities that like each other
ecs_entity_t Bob = ecs_new(world);
ecs_entity_t Alice = ecs_new(world);
ecs_add_pair(world, Bob, Likes, Alice); // Bob likes Alice
ecs_add_pair(world, Alice, Likes, Bob); // Alice likes Bob
ecs_has_pair(world, Bob, Likes, Alice); // true!
ecs_remove_pair(world, Bob, Likes, Alice);
ecs_has_pair(world, Bob, Likes, Alice); // false!
// Create Likes relationship as empty type (tag)
struct Likes { };
// Create a small graph with two entities that like each other
auto Bob = world.entity();
auto Alice = world.entity();
Bob.add<Likes>(Alice); // Bob likes Alice
Alice.add<Likes>(Bob); // Alice likes Bob
Bob.has<Likes>(Alice); // true!
Bob.remove<Likes>(Alice);
Bob.has<Likes>(Alice); // false!
// Create Likes relationship as empty type (tag)
public struct Likes { }
// Create a small graph with two entities that like each other
Entity Bob = world.Entity();
Entity Alice = world.Entity();
Bob.Add<Likes>(Alice); // Bob likes Alice
Alice.Add<Likes>(Bob); // Alice likes Bob
Bob.Has<Likes>(Alice); // true!
Bob.Remove<Likes>(Alice);
Bob.Has<Likes>(Alice); // false!
// Create Likes relationship as empty type (tag)
#[derive(Component)]
struct Likes;
// Create a small graph with two entities that like each other
let bob = world.entity();
let alice = world.entity();
bob.add_first::<Likes>(alice); // bob likes alice
alice.add_first::<Likes>(bob); // alice likes bob
bob.has_first::<Likes>(alice); // true!
bob.remove_first::<Likes>(alice);
bob.has_first::<Likes>(alice); // false!
;; Create a small graph with two entities that like each other
;; NOTE that relationships are encoded using `[...]`
(merge w {:bob [[:likes :alice]]
:alice [[:likes :bob]]})
(get (w :bob) [:likes :alice])
;; => [:likes :alice]
(disj (w :bob) [:likes :alice])
(get (w :bob) [:likes :alice])
;; => nil
A pair can be encoded in a single 64 bit identifier by using the ecs_pair macro in C, or the world.pair function in C++:
ecs_id_t id = ecs_pair(Likes, Bob);
flecs::id id = world.pair<Likes>(Bob);
Id id = world.Pair<Likes>(bob);
let id = world.id_first::<Likes>(bob);
(vf/eid w [:likes :bob])
The following examples show how to get back the elements from a pair:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>if (ecs_id_is_pair(id)) {
ecs_entity_t relationship = ecs_pair_first(world, id);
ecs_entity_t target = ecs_pair_second(world, id);
}
flecs::id id = world.pair<Likes>(Bob);
if (id.is_pair()) {
auto relationship = id.first();
auto target = id.second();
}
Id id = ...;
if (id.IsPair())
{
Entity relationship = id.First();
Entity target = id.Second();
}
let id = world.id_from::<(Likes, Apples)>();
if id.is_pair() {
let relationship = id.first_id();
let target = id.second_id();
}
(let [id (vf/eid w [:alice :likes])]
[(vf/get-name (vf/pair-first w id))
(vf/get-name (vf/pair-second w id))])
;; => ["alice" "likes"]
A component or tag can be added multiple times to the same entity as long as it is part of a pair, and the pair itself is unique:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_add_pair(world, Bob, Eats, Apples);
ecs_add_pair(world, Bob, Eats, Pears);
ecs_add_pair(world, Bob, Grows, Pears);
ecs_has_pair(world, Bob, Eats, Apples); // true!
ecs_has_pair(world, Bob, Eats, Pears); // true!
ecs_has_pair(world, Bob, Grows, Pears); // true!
flecs::entity bob = world.entity();
bob.add(Eats, Apples);
bob.add(Eats, Pears);
bob.add(Grows, Pears);
bob.has(Eats, Apples); // true!
bob.has(Eats, Pears); // true!
bob.has(Grows, Pears); // true!
Entity Bob = ...;
Bob.Add(Eats, Apples);
Bob.Add(Eats, Pears);
Bob.Add(Grows, Pears);
Bob.Has(Eats, Apples); // true!
Bob.Has(Eats, Pears); // true!
Bob.Has(Grows, Pears); // true!
let bob = world.entity();
bob.add_id((eats, apples));
bob.add_id((eats, pears));
bob.add_id((grows, pears));
bob.has_id((eats, apples)); // true!
bob.has_id((eats, pears)); // true!
bob.has_id((grows, pears)); // true!
(merge w {:bob [[:eats :apple] [:eats :pears] [:grows :pears]]})
(:bob w)
;; => #{[:grows :pears] [:eats :pears] [:eats :apple]}
The target function can be used in C and C++ to get the object for a relationship:
ecs_entity_t o = ecs_get_target(world, Alice, Likes, 0); // Returns Bob
flecs::entity alice = world.entity();
auto o = alice.target<Likes>(); // Returns Bob
Entity Alice = ...;
Entity o = Alice.Target<Likes>(); // Returns Bob
let alice = world.entity().add_first::<Likes>(bob);
let o = alice.target::<Likes>(0); // Returns bob
(vf/get-name (vf/target (w :alice) :likes))
;; => "bob"
Entity relationships enable lots of interesting patterns and possibilities. Make sure to check out the Relationships manual.
Flecs has builtin support for hierarchies with the builtin EcsChildOf (or flecs::ChildOf, in C++) relationship. A hierarchy can be created with the regular relationship API, or with the child_of shortcut in C++:
ecs_entity_t parent = ecs_new(world);
// ecs_new_w_pair is the same as ecs_new_id + ecs_add_pair
ecs_entity_t child = ecs_new_w_pair(world, EcsChildOf, parent);
// Deleting the parent also deletes its children
ecs_delete(world, parent);
auto parent = world.entity();
auto child = world.entity().child_of(parent);
// Deleting the parent also deletes its children
parent.destruct();
Entity parent = world.Entity();
Entity child = world.Entity().ChildOf(parent);
// Deleting the parent also deletes its children
parent.Destruct();
let parent = world.entity();
let child = world.entity().child_of_id(parent);
// Deleting the parent also deletes its children
parent.destruct();
;; Note the nested map representing a child.
(merge w {:parent [{:child []}]})
(def child (w [:parent :child]))
(vf/alive? child)
;; => true
;; Deleting the parent also deletes its children
(dissoc w :parent)
(vf/alive? child)
;; => false
When entities have names, they can be used together with hierarchies to generate path names or do relative lookups:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_entity_t parent = ecs_entity(world, {
.name = "parent"
});
ecs_entity_t child = ecs_entity(world, {
.name = "child"
});
ecs_add_pair(world, child, EcsChildOf, parent);
char *path = ecs_get_path(world, child);
printf("%s\n", path); // output: 'parent.child'
ecs_os_free(path);
ecs_lookup(world, "parent.child"); // returns child
ecs_lookup_from(world, parent, "child"); // returns child
auto parent = world.entity("parent");
auto child = world.entity("child").child_of(parent);
std::cout << child.path() << std::endl; // output: 'parent::child'
world.lookup("parent::child"); // returns child
parent.lookup("child"); // returns child
Entity parent = world.Entity("parent");
Entity child = world.Entity("child").ChildOf(parent);
Console.WriteLine(child.Path()); // output: 'parent.child'
world.Lookup("parent.child"); // returns child
parent.Lookup("child"); // returns child
let parent = world.entity_named("parent");
let child = world.entity_named("child").child_of_id(parent);
println!("Child path: {}", child.path().unwrap()); // output: 'parent::child'
world.lookup("parent::child"); // returns child
parent.lookup("child"); // returns child
(vf/get-name (w [:parent :child]))
;; => "parent.child"
Queries (see below) can use hierarchies to order data breadth-first, which can come in handy when you're implementing a transform system:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_query_t *q = ecs_query(world, {
.terms = {
{ .id = ecs_id(Position) },
{ .id = ecs_id(Position),
.trav = EcsChildOf, // Use ChildOf relationship for traversal
.src.id = EcsCascade // Breadth-first order
}}
});
ecs_iter_t it = ecs_query_iter(world, q);
while (ecs_query_next(&it)) {
Position *p = ecs_field(&it, Position, 0);
Position *p_parent = ecs_field(&it, Position, 1);
for (int i = 0; i < it.count; i++) {
// Do the thing
}
}
auto q = world.query_builder<Position, Position>()
.term_at(1).parent().cascade()
.build();
q.each([](Position& p, Position& p_parent) {
// Do the thing
});
Query q = world.QueryBuilder<Position, Position>()
.TermAt(1).Parent().Cascade()
.Build();
q.Each((ref Position p, ref Position pParent) =>
{
// Do the thing
});
let q = world
.query::<(&Position, &mut Position)>()
.term_at(1)
.parent()
.cascade()
.build();
q.each(|(p, p_parent)| {
// Do the thing
});
;; The result of `with-query` will be available for you in the form of a vector.
(vf/with-query w [pos Position
pos-parent [:meta {:flags #{:up :cascade}}
Position]]
;; Process each entity.
)
;; => [...]
The type (often referred to as "archetype") is the list of ids an entity has. Types can be used for introspection which is useful when debugging, or when for example building an entity editor. The most common thing to do with a type is to convert it to text and print it:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ECS_COMPONENT(world, Position);
ECS_COMPONENT(world, Velocity);
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_new(world);
ecs_add(world, e, Position);
ecs_add(world, e, Velocity);
const ecs_type_t *type = ecs_get_type(world, e);
char *type_str = ecs_type_str(world, type);
printf("Type: %s\n", type_str); // output: 'Position,Velocity'
ecs_os_free(type_str);
auto e = world.entity()
.add<Position>()
.add<Velocity>();
std::cout << e.type().str() << std::endl; // output: 'Position,Velocity'
Entity e = ecs.Entity()
.Add<Position>()
.Add<Velocity>();
Console.WriteLine(e.Type().Str()); // output: 'Position,Velocity'
let e = world.entity().add::<Position>().add::<Velocity>();
println!("Components: {}", e.archetype().to_string().unwrap()); // output: 'Position,Velocity'
(merge w {:some-entity [(Position) (Velocity)]})
(:some-entity w)
;; => #{{Position {:x 0.0, :y 0.0}}, {Velocity {:x 0.0, :y 0.0}} }
A type can also be iterated by an application:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>const ecs_type_t *type = ecs_get_type(world, e);
for (int i = 0; i < type->count; i++) {
if (type->array[i] == ecs_id(Position)) {
// Found Position component!
}
}
auto e = world.entity();
e.each([&](flecs::id id) {
if (id == world.id<Position>()) {
// Found Position component!
}
});
e.Each((Id id) =>
{
if (id == world.Id<Position>())
{
// Found Position component!
}
});
e.each_component(|id| {
if id == world.component_id::<Position>() {
// Found Position component!
}
});
(for [c (:some-entity w)]
(vf/get-name w c))
A singleton is a single instance of a component that can be retrieved without an entity. The functions for singletons are very similar to the regular API:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>// Register singleton component
ecs_add_id(world, ecs_id(Gravity), EcsSingleton);
// Set singleton component
ecs_singleton_set(world, Gravity, { 9.81 });
// Get singleton component
const Gravity *g = ecs_singleton_get(world, Gravity);
// Register singleton component
world.component<Gravity>().add(flecs::Singleton);
// Set singleton component
world.set<Gravity>({ 9.81 });
// Get singleton component
const Gravity& g = world.get<Gravity>();
// Set singleton component
world.Set<Gravity>(new(9.81));
// Get singleton component
ref readonly Gravity g = ref world.Get<Gravity>();
// Set singleton component
world.set(Gravity { x: 10, y: 20 });
// Get singleton component
world.get::<&Gravity>(|g| {
println!("Gravity: {}, {}", g.x, g.y);
});
(vf/singleton! w (Position [30 40]))
(vf/singleton w Position)
;; => {Position {:x 30.0, :y 40.0}}
Singleton components are created by adding the component to its own entity id. The above code examples are shortcuts for these regular API calls:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_set(world, ecs_id(Gravity), Gravity, {9.81});
const Gravity *g = ecs_get(world, ecs_id(Gravity), Gravity);
flecs::entity grav_e = world.entity<Gravity>();
grav_e.set<Gravity>({9.81});
const Gravity& g = grav_e.get<Gravity>();
Entity gravE = world.Entity<Gravity>();
gravE.Set<Gravity>(new(10, 20));
ref readonly Gravity g = ref gravE.Get<Gravity>();
let grav_e = world.entity_from::<Gravity>();
grav_e.set(Gravity { x: 10, y: 20 });
grav_e.get::<&Gravity>(|g| {
println!("Gravity: {}, {}", g.x, g.y);
});
(merge w {Position [(Position [30 40])]})
(get-in w [Position Position])
The following examples show how to query for a singleton component:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_add_id(world, ecs_id(Gravity), EcsSingleton);
// Create query that matches Gravity as singleton
ecs_query_t *q = ecs_query(world, {
.terms = {
// Regular component
{ .id = ecs_id(Velocity) },
// A singleton is a component matched on itself
{ .id = ecs_id(Gravity), .src.id = ecs_id(Gravity) }
}
});
// Create a system using the query DSL with a singleton:
ECS_SYSTEM(world, ApplyGravity, EcsOnUpdate, Velocity, Gravity);
world.query_builder<Velocity, Gravity>()
.build();
world.QueryBuilder<Velocity, Gravity>().Build();
world
.query::<(&Velocity, &Gravity)>()
.build();
(vf/with-query w [_ Velocity
pos [:src Position Position]]
pos)
Queries are the main mechanism for finding and iterating through entities. Queries are used in many parts of the API, such as for systems and observers. The following example shows a simple query:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_query_t *q = ecs_query(world, {
.terms = {
{ .id = ecs_id(Position) },
{ .id = ecs_pair(EcsChildOf, parent) }
}
});
// Iterate the query results. Because entities are grouped by their type there
// are two loops: an outer loop for the type, and an inner loop for the entities
// for that type.
ecs_iter_t it = ecs_query_iter(world, q);
while (ecs_query_next(&it)) {
// Each type has its own set of component arrays
Position *p = ecs_field(&it, Position, 0);
// Iterate all entities for the type
for (int i = 0; i < it.count; i++) {
printf("%s: {%f, %f}\n", ecs_get_name(world, it.entities[i]),
p[i].x, p[i].y);
}
}
ecs_query_fini(q);
// For simple queries the world::each function can be used
world.each([](Position& p, Velocity& v) { // flecs::entity argument is optional
p.x += v.x;
p.y += v.y;
});
// More complex queries can first be created, then iterated
auto q = world.query_builder<Position>()
.with(flecs::ChildOf, parent)
.build();
// Option 1: the each() callback iterates over each entity
q.each([](flecs::entity e, Position& p) {
std::cout << e.name() << ": {" << p.x << ", " << p.y << "}" << std::endl;
});
// Option 2: the run() callback offers more control over the iteration
q.run([](flecs::iter& it) {
while (it.next()) {
auto p = it.field<Position>(0);
for (auto i : it) {
std::cout << it.entity(i).name()
<< ": {" << p[i].x << ", " << p[i].y << "}" << std::endl;
}
}
});
// For simple queries the each function can be used
world.Each((ref Position p, ref Velocity v) => // Entity argument is optional
{
p.X += v.X;
p.Y += v.Y;
});
// More complex filters can first be created, then iterated
using Query q = world.QueryBuilder<Position>()
.With(Ecs.ChildOf, parent)
.Build();
// Option 1: The Each() callback that iterates each entity
q.Each((Entity e, ref Position p) =>
{
Console.WriteLine($"{e.Name()}: ({p.X}, {p.Y})")
});
// Option 2: The Iter() callback provides more control over the iteration
q.Iter((Iter it, Field<Position> p) =>
{
foreach (int i in it)
Console.WriteLine($"{it.Entity(i).Name()}: ({p[i].X}, {p[i].Y})")
});
// For simple queries the world::each function can be used
world.each::<(&mut Position, &Velocity)>(|(p, v)| {
// EntityView argument is optional, use each_entity to get it
p.x += v.x;
p.y += v.y;
});
// More complex queries can first be created, then iterated
let q = world
.query::<&Position>()
.with_id((flecs::ChildOf::ID, parent))
.build();
// Option 1: the each() callback iterates over each entity
q.each_entity(|e, p| {
println!("{}: ({}, {})", e.name(), p.x, p.y);
});
// Option 2: the run() callback offers more control over the iteration
q.run(|mut it| {
while it.next() {
let p = it.field::<Position>(0).unwrap();
for i in it.iter() {
println!("{}: ({}, {})", it.entity(i).name(), p[i].x, p[i].y);
}
}
});
;; We create a parent and a child, with the child containing Position and Velocity
(merge w {:parent [{:child [(Position [1 2]) (Velocity [0.1 0.2])]}]})
;; Simple query, the bindings are const by default, :mut should be used to indicate
;; that you plan to mutate binding, otherwise an exception will be thrown
(vf/with-query w [p [:mut Position]
{:keys [x y]} Velocity]
(-> p
(update :x + x)
(update :y + y)))
;; => [{Position {:x 1.1, :y 2.2}}]
;; We can do more complex queries, e.g. query for all the entities
;; that have Position and that are a child of :parent, :vf/entity
;; is a way to retrieve the entity which we are iterating over
(vf/with-query w [p Position
_ [:vf/child-of :parent]
e :vf/entity]
(vf/get-name e))
;; => ["parent.child"]
Queries can use operators to exclude components, optionally match components or match one out of a list of components. Additionally filters may contain wildcards for terms which is especially useful when combined with pairs.
The following example shows a query that matches all entities with a parent that do not have Position:
ecs_query_t *q = ecs_query(world, {
.terms = {
{ ecs_pair(EcsChildOf, EcsWildcard) },
{ ecs_id(Position), .oper = EcsNot },
}
});
// Iteration code is the same
flecs::query<> q = world.query_builder()
.with(flecs::ChildOf, flecs::Wildcard)
.with<Position>().oper(flecs::Not)
.build();
// Iteration code is the same
using Query q = world.QueryBuilder()
.With(Ecs.ChildOf, Ecs.Wildcard)
.With<Position>().Oper(Ecs.Not)
.Build();
// Iteration code is the same
let q = world
.query::<()>()
.with::<(flecs::ChildOf, flecs::Wildcard)>()
.with::<Position>()
.set_oper(OperKind::Not)
.build();
// Iteration code is the same
(vf/with-query w [_ [:vf/child-of :*]
_ [:not Position]]
...)
See the query manual for more details.
A system is a query combined with a callback. Systems can be either ran manually or ran as part of an ECS-managed main loop (see Pipeline). The system API looks similar to queries:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>
// Option 1, use the ECS_SYSTEM convenience macro
ECS_SYSTEM(world, Move, 0, Position, Velocity);
ecs_run(world, Move, delta_time, NULL); // Run system
// Option 2, use the ecs_system_init function/ecs_system macro
ecs_entity_t move_sys = ecs_system(world, {
.query.terms = {
{ ecs_id(Position) },
{ ecs_id(Velocity) },
},
.callback = Move
});
ecs_run(world, move_sys, delta_time, NULL); // Run system
// The callback code (same for both options)
void Move(ecs_iter_t *it) {
Position *p = ecs_field(it, Position, 0);
Velocity *v = ecs_field(it, Velocity, 1);
for (int i = 0; i < it->count; i++) {
p[i].x += v[i].x * it->delta_time;
p[i].y += v[i].y * it->delta_time;
}
}
// Use each() function that iterates each individual entity
auto move_sys = world.system<Position, Velocity>()
.each([](flecs::iter& it, size_t, Position& p, Velocity& v) {
p.x += v.x * it.delta_time();
p.y += v.y * it.delta_time();
});
// Just like with queries, systems have both the run() and
// each() methods to iterate entities.
move_sys.run();
// Use Each() function that iterates each individual entity
System<Position, Velocity> moveSys = world.System<Position, Velocity>()
.Each((Entity e, ref Position p, ref Velocity v) =>
{
p.X += v.X * it.DeltaTime();
p.Y += v.Y * it.DeltaTime();
});
// Just like with queries, systems have both the Iter() and
// Each() methods to iterate entities.
moveSys.Run();
// Use each_entity() function that iterates each individual entity
let move_sys = world
.system::<(&mut Position, &Velocity)>()
.each_iter(|it, i, (p, v)| {
p.x += v.x * it.delta_time();
p.y += v.y * it.delta_time();
});
// Just like with queries, systems have both the run() and
// each() methods to iterate entities.
move_sys.run();
;; Use with-system function that iterates each individual entity, the return
;; is the system entity, note that the body and bindings are just like with-query
(vf/with-system w [:vf/name :my-system
p [:mut Position]
{:keys [x y]} Velocity]
(-> p
(update :x + x)
(update :y + y)))
;; Run a system
(vf/system-run (w :my-system))
;; Or you can also define it using defsystem, it will create a function that
;; can be called with a world later
(vf/defsystem my-system w
[p [:mut Position]
{:keys [x y]} Velocity]
(-> p
(update :x + x)
(update :y + y)))
(my-system w)
Systems are stored as entities with an EcsSystem component (flecs::System in C++), similar to components. That means that an application can use a system as a regular entity:
printf("System: %s\n", ecs_get_name(world, move_sys));
ecs_add(world, move_sys, EcsOnUpdate);
ecs_delete(world, move_sys);
std::cout << "System: " << move_sys.name() << std::endl;
move_sys.add(flecs::OnUpdate);
move_sys.destruct();
Console.WriteLine($"System: {moveSys.Name()}");
moveSys.Entity.Add(Ecs.OnUpdate);
moveSys.Entity.Destruct();
println!("System: {}", move_sys.name());
move_sys.add::<flecs::pipeline::OnUpdate>();
move_sys.destruct();
(vf/get-name (w :my-system))
(conj ( :my-system) (flecs/EcsOnUpdate))
(dissoc w :my-system)
A pipeline is a list of tags that when matched, produces a list of systems to run. These tags are also referred to as a system "phase". Flecs comes with a default pipeline that has the following phases:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>EcsOnLoad
EcsPostLoad
EcsPreUpdate
EcsOnUpdate
EcsOnValidate
EcsPostUpdate
EcsPreStore
EcsOnStore
flecs::OnLoad
flecs::PostLoad
flecs::PreUpdate
flecs::OnUpdate
flecs::OnValidate
flecs::PostUpdate
flecs::PreStore
flecs::OnStore
Ecs.OnLoad
Ecs.PostLoad
Ecs.PreUpdate
Ecs.OnUpdate
Ecs.OnValidate
Ecs.PostUpdate
Ecs.PreStore
Ecs.OnStore
flecs::pipeline::OnLoad;
flecs::pipeline::PostLoad;
flecs::pipeline::PreUpdate;
flecs::pipeline::OnUpdate;
flecs::pipeline::OnValidate;
flecs::pipeline::PostUpdate;
flecs::pipeline::PreStore;
flecs::pipeline::OnStore;
(flecs/EcsOnLoad)
(flecs/EcsPostLoad)
(flecs/EcsPreUpdate)
(flecs/EcsOnUpdate)
(flecs/EcsOnValidate)
(flecs/EcsPostUpdate)
(flecs/EcsPreStore)
(flecs/EcsOnStore)
When a pipeline is executed, systems are ran in the order of the phases. This makes pipelines and phases the primary mechanism for defining ordering between systems. The following code shows how to assign systems to a pipeline, and how to run the pipeline with the progress() function:
ECS_SYSTEM(world, Move, EcsOnUpdate, Position, Velocity);
ECS_SYSTEM(world, Transform, EcsPostUpdate, Position, Transform);
ECS_SYSTEM(world, Render, EcsOnStore, Transform, Mesh);
ecs_progress(world, 0); // run systems in default pipeline
world.system<Position, Velocity>("Move").kind(flecs::OnUpdate).each( ... );
world.system<Position, Transform>("Transform").kind(flecs::PostUpdate).each( ... );
world.system<Transform, Mesh>("Render").kind(flecs::OnStore).each( ... );
world.progress();
world.System<Position, Velocity>("Move").Kind(Ecs.OnUpdate).Each( ... );
world.System<Position, Transform>("Transform").Kind(Ecs.PostUpdate).Each( ... );
world.System<Transform, Mesh>("Render").Kind(Ecs.OnStore).Each( ... );
world.Progress();
world
.system_named::<(&mut Position, &Velocity)>("Move")
.kind::<flecs::pipeline::OnUpdate>()
.each(|(p, v)| {});
world
.system_named::<(&mut Position, &Transform)>("Transform")
.kind::<flecs::pipeline::PostUpdate>()
.each(|(p, t)| {});
world
.system_named::<(&Transform, &mut Mesh)>("Render")
.kind::<flecs::pipeline::OnStore>()
.each(|(t, m)| {});
world.progress();
;; Define the systems
(vf/defsystem move w
[p Position
v Velocity
;; This is the default phase.
:vf/phase (flecs/EcsOnUpdate)]
...)
(vf/defsystem transform w
[p Position
t Transform
:vf/phase (flecs/EcsPostUpdate)]
...)
(vf/defsystem render w
[t Transform
mesh Mesh
:vf/phase (flecs/EcsOnStore)]
...)
;; Add systems to the world
(move w)
(transform w)
(render w)
;; Run systems in default pipeline
(vf/progress w)
Because phases are just tags that are added to systems, applications can use the regular API to add/remove systems to a phase:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_remove_id(world, Move, EcsOnUpdate);
ecs_add_id(world, Move, EcsPostUpdate);
move_sys.add(flecs::OnUpdate);
move_sys.remove(flecs::PostUpdate);
moveSys.Add(Ecs.OnUpdate);
moveSys.Remove(Ecs.PostUpdate);
move_sys.add::<flecs::pipeline::OnUpdate>();
move_sys.remove::<flecs::pipeline::PostUpdate>();
(conj (w :move) (flecs/EcsOnUpdate))
(disj (w :move) (flecs/EcsPostUpdate))
Inside a phase, systems are guaranteed to be ran in their declaration order.
Observers are callbacks that are invoked when one or more events matches the query of an observer. Events can be either user defined or builtin. Examples of builtin events are OnAdd, OnRemove and OnSet.
When an observer has a query with more than one component, the observer will not be invoked until the entity for which the event is emitted satisfies the entire query.
An example of an observer with two components:
<div class="flecs-snippet-tabs"> <ul> <li><b class="tab-title">C</b>ecs_observer(world, {
.query.terms = { { ecs_id(Position) }, { ecs_id(Velocity) }},
.events = { EcsOnSet },
.callback = OnSetPosition
});
// Callback code is same as system
ecs_entity_t e = ecs_new(world); // Doesn't invoke the observer
ecs_set(world, e, Position, {10, 20}); // Doesn't invoke the observer
ecs_set(world, e, Velocity, {1, 2}); // Invokes the observer
ecs_set(world, e, Position, {20, 40}); // Invokes the observer
world.observer<Position, Velocity>("OnSetPosition")
.event(flecs::OnSet)
// Callback code is same as system
.each([](Position& p, Velocity& v) { });
auto e = world.entity(); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.set<Position>({10, 20}); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.set<Velocity>({1, 2}); // Invokes the observer
e.set<Position>({20, 30}); // Invokes the observer
world.Observer<Position, Velocity>("OnSetPosition")
.Event(Ecs.OnSet)
.Each( ... ); // Callback code is same as system
Entity e = ecs.Entity(); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.Set<Position>(new(10, 20)); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.Set<Velocity>(new(1, 2)); // Invokes the observer
e.Set<Position>(new(20, 30)); // Invokes the observer
world
.observer_named::<flecs::OnSet, (&Position, &Velocity)>("OnSetPosition")
.each(|(p, v)| {}); // Callback code is same as system
let e = world.entity(); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.set(Position { x: 10.0, y: 20.0 }); // Doesn't invoke the observer
e.set(Velocity { x: 1.0, y: 2.0 }); // Invokes the observer
e.set(Position { x: 30.0, y: 40.0 }); // Invokes the observer
;; Similar to with-system, but you have special configuration keys like :vf/events
(vf/with-observer w [:vf/name ::on-set-position
:vf/events #{:set}
p Position
v Velocity]
...)
;; Doesn't invoke the observer
(merge w {:e []})
;; Doesn't invoke the observer
(merge w {:e [(Position [10 20])]})
;; Invokes the observer
(merge w {:e [(Velocity [1 2])]})
;; Invokes the observer
(merge w {:e [(Position [30 40])]})
A module is a function that imports and organizes components, systems, triggers, observers, prefabs into the world as reusable units of code. A well designed module has no code that directly relies on code of another module, except for components definitions. All module contents are stored as child entities inside the module scope with the ChildOf relationship. The following examples show how to define a module in C and C++:
// Module header (e.g. MyModule.h)
typedef struct {
float x;
float y;
} Position;
extern ECS_COMPONENT_DECLARE(Position);
// The import function name has to follow the convention: <ModuleName>Import
void MyModuleImport(ecs_world_t *world);
// Module source (e.g. MyModule.c)
ECS_COMPONENT_DECLARE(Position);
void MyModuleImport(ecs_world_t *world) {
ECS_MODULE(world, MyModule);
ECS_COMPONENT_DEFINE(world, Position);
}
// Import code
ECS_IMPORT(world, MyModule);
struct my_module {
my_module(flecs::world& world) {
world.module<my_module>();
// Define components, systems, triggers, ... as usual. They will be
// automatically created inside the scope of the module.
}
};
// Import code
world.import<my_module>();
public struct MyModule : IFlecsModule
{
public void InitModule(ref World world)
{
world.Module<MyModule>();
// Define components, systems, triggers, ... as usual. They will be
// automatically created inside the scope of the module.
}
};
// Import code
world.Import<MyModule>();
#[derive(Component)]
struct MyModule;
impl Module for MyModule {
fn module(world: &World) {
world.module::<MyModule>("MyModule");
// Define components, systems, triggers, ... as usual. They will be
// automatically created inside the scope of the module.
}
}
// Import code
world.import::<MyModule>();
;; No wrapper for modules as Clojure has package namespacing already, but
;; you can use the the Flecs C Api directly if needed (vf.c/...)