raylib-cpp-setup

Raylib C++ Project Setup

Installing Raylib on Linux

Install it with Package Manager

# Arch/Manjaro
sudo pacman -S raylib
 

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Project Structure

my-raylib-game/
├── CMakeLists.txt       # or Makefile
├── src/
│   └── main.cpp
├── resources/           # textures, sounds, fonts
│   ├── images/
│   ├── audio/
│   └── fonts/
└── build/               # build output (gitignored)

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Build Systems

CMake

# CMakeLists.txt
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.10)
project(MyRaylibGame LANGUAGES CXX)
 
set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED ON)
 
# Find raylib
find_package(PkgConfig REQUIRED)
pkg_check_modules(RAYLIB REQUIRED raylib)
 
add_executable(${PROJECT_NAME} src/main.cpp)
 
target_include_directories(${PROJECT_NAME} PRIVATE ${RAYLIB_INCLUDE_DIRS})
target_link_directories(${PROJECT_NAME} PRIVATE ${RAYLIB_LIBRARY_DIRS})
target_link_libraries(${PROJECT_NAME} PRIVATE ${RAYLIB_LIBRARIES})
target_compile_options(${PROJECT_NAME} PRIVATE ${RAYLIB_CFLAGS_OTHER})

Build:

mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make
./MyRaylibGame

Simple Makefile

# Makefile
CXX = g++
CXXFLAGS = -std=c++17 -Wall -Wextra -O2
RAYLIB_FLAGS = $(shell pkg-config --cflags --libs raylib)
 
TARGET = game
SRC = src/main.cpp
 
all: $(TARGET)
 
$(TARGET): $(SRC)
	$(CXX) $(CXXFLAGS) -o $(TARGET) $(SRC) $(RAYLIB_FLAGS)
 
clean:
	rm -f $(TARGET)
 
run: $(TARGET)
	./$(TARGET)

Manual Compilation (Quick Test)

g++ -std=c++17 src/main.cpp -o game $(pkg-config --cflags --libs raylib)
./game

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Minimal Working Example

// src/main.cpp
#include "raylib.h"
 
int main() {
    // Initialization
    const int screenWidth = 800;
    const int screenHeight = 450;
    
    InitWindow(screenWidth, screenHeight, "Raylib C++ Setup");
    SetTargetFPS(60);
 
    // Main game loop
    while (!WindowShouldClose()) {
        // Update
        
        // Draw
        BeginDrawing();
            ClearBackground(RAYWHITE);
            DrawText("Raylib is working!", 190, 200, 20, DARKGRAY);
        EndDrawing();
    }
 
    // De-initialization
    CloseWindow();
    return 0;
}

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Common Pitfalls

Issue	Fix
raylib.h not found	Install libraylib-dev or check pkg-config --cflags raylib
Linker errors (undefined reference)	Ensure -lraylib is in linker flags, after source files
Window opens then closes immediately	Missing SetTargetFPS(60) or event loop
Resources not loading	Use absolute paths or set working directory to project root
High CPU usage	Always call SetTargetFPS()

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Resources

• Official Raylib Cheatsheet
• Raylib GitHub
• Raylib Examples
• CMake FindRaylib Module

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Next Steps

• raylib-game-loop - Understanding the game loop
• raylib-resource-management - Loading textures, sounds, fonts
• raylib-input-handling - Keyboard, mouse, gamepad input
• raylib-scenes - Managing multiple game screens