Building for macOS¶

1. Install dependencies¶

Xcode with the Command Line Tools (xcode-select --install)
CMake — install via the official installer or Homebrew:
Python 3 for generated editor API suggestion files

brew install cmake ninja

2. Clone the repository¶

git clone https://github.com/doriaxengine/doriax.git
cd doriax

3. Configure and build¶

Using Ninja (single-config):

cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -G "Ninja"
cmake --build build --config Release --target doriax-editor

The build produces build/Doriax.app. The executable inside it is Doriax.app/Contents/MacOS/Doriax, the engine runtime sits beside it as libdoriax.dylib, and the engine SDK is copied to Contents/Resources/engine.

Why the SDK is in Contents/Resources

codesign treats everything under Contents/MacOS as code and refuses to sign a bundle that has plain files there. The editor resolves the SDK through FileUtils::getEngineDir(), which checks Contents/Resources/engine first and falls back to the directory next to the executable on other platforms.

Using the Xcode generator

To work inside Xcode, generate an Xcode project instead:

cmake -S . -B build -G "Xcode"
cmake --build build --config Release --target doriax-editor

Xcode is a multi-config generator, so the bundle is placed under a configuration subdirectory such as build/Release/Doriax.app.

Runtime project build¶

macOS runtime builds default to Metal. When using the Xcode generator, the app backend defaults to the native Apple backend; otherwise it defaults to Sokol.

cmake -S engine -B build-runtime \
  -DPROJECT_ROOT=/path/to/project \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -G "Ninja"
cmake --build build-runtime --config Release --target doriax-project

For Xcode:

cmake -S engine -B build-xcode -DPROJECT_ROOT=/path/to/project -G "Xcode"
cmake --build build-xcode --config Release --target doriax-project

The engine sets the macOS deployment target to 10.15 for runtime builds.

VSync

The project VSync setting applies to editor Play mode and supported desktop backends, but macOS Metal runtime builds currently remain synchronized. Configuring an exported Metal project with VSync disabled prints a CMake warning instead of selecting an unsafe zero swap interval.

Vulkan backend¶

macOS has no native Vulkan driver. Vulkan runs through MoltenVK, a translation layer over Metal that ships with the Vulkan SDK. Passing -DGRAPHIC_BACKEND=vulkan builds the runtime against it, presenting to a CAMetalLayer through VK_EXT_metal_surface:

cmake -S engine -B build-vulkan \
  -DPROJECT_ROOT=/path/to/project \
  -DGRAPHIC_BACKEND=vulkan \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -G "Ninja"
cmake --build build-vulkan --config Release --target doriax-project

If VULKAN_SDK is not set, the build looks for the SDK where its installer unpacks it (~/VulkanSDK/<version>/macOS), so an editor launched from the Dock — which inherits no shell environment — still finds it.

Not runnable yet

The renderer binds its resources through VK_EXT_descriptor_buffer, and MoltenVK does not implement that extension. A macOS Vulkan build compiles and links, then exits at startup with a message saying so, and the configure step prints a warning up front. Metal is the supported macOS backend; Vulkan is here for the day a driver provides the extension. This is also why Vulkan is not offered in the editor's Desktop export.

Shaders for Vulkan projects are compiled to SPIR-V by the editor's shader builder.