sdl3-starter-template

A minimal SDL3 project template. Clone it, build it, and start writing your game.

Includes SDL3, SDL3_image, and SDL3_ttf via vcpkg.

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Requirements

Tool	Version
CMake	3.15+
vcpkg	latest
GCC / Clang / MSVC	C++23 support

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Setup

1. Install vcpkg

Skip this if you already have it. Clone it anywhere — there is no standard location.

git clone https://github.com/microsoft/vcpkg.git ~/vcpkg
cd ~/vcpkg
./bootstrap-vcpkg.sh   # macOS / Linux
.\bootstrap-vcpkg.bat  # Windows

Then add these to your shell profile (~/.zshrc, ~/.bashrc, or PowerShell $PROFILE):

export VCPKG_ROOT=~/vcpkg   # update to your actual path
export CMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=$VCPKG_ROOT/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake

2. Linux — install build dependencies

sudo apt install build-essential git cmake autoconf autoconf-archive automake libtool

3. macOS — install Xcode tools

xcode-select --install

4. Windows — install Visual Studio

Visual Studio 2022 with the Desktop development with C++ workload.

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Building

Linux & macOS

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/sdl3-starter-template.git
cd sdl3-starter-template
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make -j$(nproc)

Windows (Visual Studio)

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/sdl3-starter-template.git
cd sdl3-starter-template
mkdir build && cd build
cmake .. -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64
cmake --build . --config Release

Windows (Ninja)

cmake .. -G Ninja
cmake --build .

vcpkg will automatically download and build SDL3, SDL3_image, and SDL3_ttf on first run. This may take a few minutes.

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Running

# Linux & macOS
./sdl3-starter-template

# Windows
.\Release\sdl3-starter-template.exe

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Project Structure

sdl3-starter-template/
├── src/
│   ├── main.cpp        # entry point and game loop
│   ├── window.hpp      # SDLWindow class
│   └── window.cpp      # SDLWindow implementation
├── vcpkg.json          # dependency manifest
├── CMakeLists.txt
└── README.md

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Usage

Your game loop lives in src/main.cpp:

while (!gameWindow.shouldClose()) {
    gameWindow.handleEvents();

    SDL_SetRenderDrawColor(gameWindow.getRenderer(), 0, 0, 0, 255);
    SDL_RenderClear(gameWindow.getRenderer());

    // render here

    SDL_RenderPresent(gameWindow.getRenderer());
}

To add source files, update CMakeLists.txt:

set(SOURCES
    src/main.cpp
    src/window.cpp
    src/player.cpp   # add yours here
)

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LSP / clangd

Symlink the generated compile_commands.json to the project root:

ln -s build/compile_commands.json compile_commands.json

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License

MIT