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This guide walks you through creating a complete game with Talon, from initial setup to implementing game states and rendering.

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Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have Talon installed and can run the basic example: 
talon run examples/basic.wren

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Project Structure

Create a new file called my_game.wren in your project directory. This will contain our complete game.

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Step 1: Import Required Modules

1

Import Raylib and Math modules

Start by importing the essential modules for game development:
import "raylib" for Color, Raylib, Rectangle, Vector2, KeyCode
import "math" for Math
These imports give you access to:
  • Color: Predefined colors and color creation
  • Raylib: Core rendering and window functions
  • Rectangle and Vector2: Geometric primitives
  • KeyCode: Input constants
  • Math: Mathematical operations
2

Define game constants

Set up your game window dimensions and other constants:
var screenWidth = 800
var screenHeight = 450
var title = "My First Talon Game"

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Step 2: Create Game States

Game states help organize your game logic into distinct phases (menu, gameplay, game over, etc.). 
class GameScreen {
  static Logo { 0 }
  static Title { 1 }
  static GamePlay { 2 }
  static Ending { 3 }
}

var currentScreen = GameScreen.Logo
var framesCounter = 0
Using static methods in a class is an elegant way to define enumerations in Wren.

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Step 3: Initialize the Window

Create your game window and set the target frame rate: 
Raylib.initWindow(screenWidth, screenHeight, title)
Raylib.setTargetFPS(60)

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Step 4: Implement the Game Loop

The game loop is the heart of your game. It runs continuously until the window closes: 
while (!Raylib.windowShouldClose()) {
  // Update logic
  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Logo) {
    framesCounter = framesCounter + 1
    if (framesCounter > 120) {
      currentScreen = GameScreen.Title
    }
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Title) {
    if (Raylib.isKeyPressed(KeyCode.KEY_ENTER)) {
      currentScreen = GameScreen.GamePlay
    }
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.GamePlay) {
    if (Raylib.isKeyPressed(KeyCode.KEY_ENTER)) {
      currentScreen = GameScreen.Ending
    }
  }

  // Rendering
  Raylib.beginDrawing()
  Raylib.clearBackground(Color.RayWhite)

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Logo) {
    Raylib.drawText("LOGO SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Gray)
    Raylib.drawText("Wait for 2 seconds...", 290, 220, 20, Color.Gray)
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Title) {
    Raylib.drawRectangle(0, 0, screenWidth, screenHeight, Color.Green)
    Raylib.drawText("TITLE SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Blue)
    Raylib.drawText("PRESS ENTER to START", 120, 220, 20, Color.DarkGreen)
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.GamePlay) {
    Raylib.drawText("GAMEPLAY SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Purple)
    Raylib.drawText("PRESS ENTER to END", 130, 220, 20, Color.Maroon)
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Ending) {
    Raylib.drawText("ENDING SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.DarkBlue)
    Raylib.drawText("PRESS ENTER to return to TITLE", 130, 220, 20, Color.Maroon)
  }

  Raylib.endDrawing()
}
The game loop follows a consistent pattern:
  1. Handle input and update game state
  2. Begin drawing with beginDrawing()
  3. Clear the background
  4. Draw all visual elements
  5. End drawing with endDrawing()

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Step 5: Clean Up Resources

Always close the window when your game exits: 
Raylib.closeWindow()

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Complete Example

import "raylib" for Color, Raylib, KeyCode

var screenWidth = 800
var screenHeight = 450

class GameScreen {
  static Logo { 0 }
  static Title { 1 }
  static GamePlay { 2 }
  static Ending { 3 }
}

var currentScreen = GameScreen.Logo
var framesCounter = 0

Raylib.initWindow(screenWidth, screenHeight, "My First Talon Game")
Raylib.setTargetFPS(60)

while (!Raylib.windowShouldClose()) {
  // Update
  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Logo) {
    framesCounter = framesCounter + 1
    if (framesCounter > 120) {
      currentScreen = GameScreen.Title
    }
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Title) {
    if (Raylib.isKeyPressed(KeyCode.KEY_ENTER)) {
      currentScreen = GameScreen.GamePlay
    }
  }

  // Draw
  Raylib.beginDrawing()
  Raylib.clearBackground(Color.RayWhite)

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Logo) {
    Raylib.drawText("LOGO SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Gray)
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.Title) {
    Raylib.drawText("TITLE SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Blue)
    Raylib.drawText("PRESS ENTER to START", 120, 220, 20, Color.DarkGreen)
  }

  if (currentScreen == GameScreen.GamePlay) {
    Raylib.drawText("GAMEPLAY SCREEN", 20, 20, 40, Color.Purple)
  }

  Raylib.endDrawing()
}

Raylib.closeWindow()

​
Running Your Game

Run your game using the Talon CLI: 
talon run my_game.wren

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Next Steps

Now that you’ve created your first game, you can:
The example code is based on the basic.wren example from the Talon repository.

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