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Rendering-and-Visuals
John McCardle edited this page 2025-10-25 22:41:11 +00:00
Rendering and Visuals
How to create and display visual elements in McRogueFace.
Quick Reference
Systems: UI-Component-Hierarchy, Grid-System, Animation-System
Key Types:
Frame- Rectangles and containersCaption- Text renderingSprite- Images and sprite sheetsGrid- TilemapsEntity- Grid-based sprites
Basic Rendering
Creating UI Elements
import mcrfpy
# Create scene
mcrfpy.createScene("game")
# Rectangle/Frame
frame = mcrfpy.Frame(100, 100, 200, 150)
frame.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(50, 50, 50)
frame.outline_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 255)
frame.outline_thickness = 2
# Text
label = mcrfpy.Caption((10, 10), "Hello World!")
label.font_size = 24
label.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 255)
# Sprite
sprite = mcrfpy.Sprite("player.png", 50, 50)
sprite.scale_x = 2.0
sprite.scale_y = 2.0
# Add to scene
scene_ui = mcrfpy.sceneUI("game")
scene_ui.append(frame)
scene_ui.append(label)
scene_ui.append(sprite)
Textures and Sprite Sheets
Loading Textures
# Load single image
texture = mcrfpy.createTexture("sprites/player.png")
# Use with sprite
sprite = mcrfpy.Sprite("dummy.png", 0, 0) # Path doesn't matter
sprite.texture = texture
Sprite Sheets
# Load sprite sheet (multiple sprites in one image)
sheet = mcrfpy.createTexture("spritesh eet.png")
# Use specific sprite from sheet
sprite = mcrfpy.Sprite("dummy.png", 100, 100)
sprite.texture = sheet
sprite.sprite_index = 5 # Use 6th sprite (0-indexed)
# Grid with tileset
grid = mcrfpy.Grid(50, 50, 16, 16) # Each tile is 16x16
grid.texture = mcrfpy.createTexture("tileset.png")
# Set tiles
for x in range(50):
for y in range(50):
grid.at((x, y)).tilesprite = 0 # Floor tile
Z-Order Layering
Control render order with z_index (higher = front):
# Background layer (z=0)
background = mcrfpy.Sprite("bg.png", 0, 0)
background.z_index = 0
# Game layer (z=10)
grid = mcrfpy.Grid(50, 50, 16, 16)
grid.z_index = 10
# UI layer (z=100)
hud = mcrfpy.Frame(0, 0, 800, 50)
hud.z_index = 100
# Add to scene (order doesn't matter, z_index controls rendering)
ui = mcrfpy.sceneUI("game")
ui.append(hud)
ui.append(background)
ui.append(grid)
# Renders: background → grid → hud
Implementation: Automatic sorting by z_index in src/Scene.cpp::render()
Colors
Color Creation
# RGB
red = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0)
# RGBA (with alpha/transparency)
semi_transparent = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 255, 128)
# Access components
color = mcrfpy.Color(100, 150, 200, 255)
print(f"R: {color.r}, G: {color.g}, B: {color.b}, A: {color.a}")
Color Application
# Frame colors
frame.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(50, 50, 50)
frame.outline_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 255)
# Text color
caption.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 0) # Yellow text
# Grid point colors
grid.at((x, y)).color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0) # Red tint
# Opacity
sprite.opacity = 0.5 # 50% transparent
Visual Effects
Animations
See Animation-System for complete animation documentation.
# Fade in
mcrfpy.animate(sprite, "opacity", 1.0, 1000, "ease_in_quad")
# Color transition
mcrfpy.animate(frame, "fill_color", mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0), 500, "linear")
# Movement
mcrfpy.animate(entity, "x", target_x, 300, "ease_out_cubic")
mcrfpy.animate(entity, "y", target_y, 300, "ease_out_cubic")
# Scaling
mcrfpy.animate(sprite, "scale_x", 2.0, 200, "bounce_out")
Visibility
# Show/hide elements
sprite.visible = False # Hidden
sprite.visible = True # Visible
# Opacity
sprite.opacity = 0.0 # Invisible
sprite.opacity = 0.5 # Semi-transparent
sprite.opacity = 1.0 # Opaque
Common Patterns
HUD/UI Overlay
def create_hud():
# HUD container
hud = mcrfpy.Frame(0, 0, 800, 60)
hud.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(30, 30, 30, 200)
hud.z_index = 100 # Front layer
# Health text
health_label = mcrfpy.Caption((10, 10), "HP: 100/100")
health_label.font_size = 18
health_label.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 255)
hud.children.append(health_label)
return hud, health_label
# Update HUD
def update_hud(health_label, current_hp, max_hp):
health_label.text = f"HP: {current_hp}/{max_hp}"
# Color code health
if current_hp < max_hp * 0.3:
health_label.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0) # Red
elif current_hp < max_hp * 0.6:
health_label.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 0) # Yellow
else:
health_label.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(0, 255, 0) # Green
Particle-Like Effects
def create_explosion(x, y):
"""Create explosion effect using animated sprites."""
particles = []
for i in range(10):
particle = mcrfpy.Sprite("particle.png", x, y)
particle.z_index = 50
# Random direction
import random
target_x = x + random.randint(-50, 50)
target_y = y + random.randint(-50, 50)
# Animate outward
mcrfpy.animate(particle, "x", target_x, 500, "ease_out_quad")
mcrfpy.animate(particle, "y", target_y, 500, "ease_out_quad")
mcrfpy.animate(particle, "opacity", 0.0, 500, "linear")
particles.append(particle)
mcrfpy.sceneUI("game").append(particle)
# Remove after animation
def cleanup(runtime_ms):
for p in particles:
mcrfpy.sceneUI("game").remove(p)
mcrfpy.setTimer("explosion_cleanup", cleanup, 600)
Health Bars
class HealthBar:
def __init__(self, x, y, width, height, max_hp):
self.max_hp = max_hp
self.current_hp = max_hp
# Background (red)
self.bg = mcrfpy.Frame(x, y, width, height)
self.bg.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0)
self.bg.z_index = 90
# Foreground (green)
self.fg = mcrfpy.Frame(x, y, width, height)
self.fg.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(0, 255, 0)
self.fg.z_index = 91
def set_hp(self, current):
self.current_hp = max(0, min(current, self.max_hp))
# Scale foreground to represent HP
ratio = self.current_hp / self.max_hp
target_width = int(self.bg.w * ratio)
# Animate width change
mcrfpy.animate(self.fg, "w", target_width, 200, "ease_out_quad")
# Color code
if ratio < 0.3:
self.fg.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0)
elif ratio < 0.6:
self.fg.fill_color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 255, 0)
Grid Rendering
See Grid-System for complete grid documentation.
Basic Grid
# Create grid
grid = mcrfpy.Grid(50, 50, 16, 16)
grid.texture = mcrfpy.createTexture("tiles.png")
grid.pos = (100, 100)
# Set tiles
for x in range(50):
for y in range(50):
if x == 0 or x == 49 or y == 0 or y == 49:
grid.at((x, y)).tilesprite = 1 # Wall
else:
grid.at((x, y)).tilesprite = 0 # Floor
Grid Colors
# Tint specific tiles
grid.at((10, 10)).color = mcrfpy.Color(255, 0, 0) # Red highlight
# Background color
grid.background_color = mcrfpy.Color(8, 8, 8) # Dark background
Grid Viewport
# Zoom
grid.zoom = 2.0 # 2x zoom
# Pan/scroll
grid.left_edge = 10 # Start viewing from tile (10, 0)
grid.top_edge = 5 # Start viewing from tile (0, 5)
# Animate viewport
mcrfpy.animate(grid, "zoom", 1.5, 1000, "ease_in_out_quad")
mcrfpy.animate(grid, "left_edge", 20, 1000, "ease_in_out_quad")
Performance Tips
Minimize Draw Calls
# Good: Group related UI in Frames
hud_frame = mcrfpy.Frame(0, 0, 800, 600)
hud_frame.children.append(label1)
hud_frame.children.append(label2)
hud_frame.children.append(label3)
# Avoid: Many top-level UI elements
# (Each top-level element is a separate draw call)
Use Visibility
# Hide off-screen elements
for element in all_elements:
if not in_viewport(element):
element.visible = False
Sprite Sheet Benefits
# Good: One texture, many sprites
texture = mcrfpy.createTexture("all_sprites.png")
for i in range(100):
sprite = mcrfpy.Sprite("dummy.png", x, y)
sprite.texture = texture # Reuse texture
sprite.sprite_index = i
# Avoid: Loading same texture multiple times
# (Wastes memory and loading time)
Related Documentation
- UI-Component-Hierarchy - UI element details
- Grid-System - Grid rendering details
- Animation-System - Animating visual properties
- Performance-and-Profiling - Rendering performance
API Reference: mcrfpy UI Classes