Unlocking the Power of Rust for Game Development

Game Development with Rust: A Growing Ecosystem

The game development industry has traditionally relied on languages like C/C++, Java, and C#. However, Rust is changing the landscape with its focus on performance, safety, and concurrency. The Rust ecosystem is growing rapidly, with new libraries and frameworks emerging to support game development.

Scripting Languages for Gaming in Rust

We’ll take a closer look at eight scripting languages developed for gaming in Rust, each with its unique features and benefits:

• GameLisp: A scripting language designed for building 2D games, with features like:
  • Garbage collection
  • Ease of Rust API integration
  • Memory safety

  let mut game = GameLisp::new();
  game.eval("println(\"Hello, World!\");");

• Throne: A scripting language for game prototyping and story logic, with features like:
  • Prototyping
  • Story logic
  • WebAssembly support

  let throne = Throne::new();
  throne.eval("story.begin();");

• Wgpu: A cross-platform graphics API that runs on Vulkan, Metal, D3D12, D3D11, and OpenGLES, with features like:
  • Internal WebGPU implementation
  • GPU API abstraction layer

  let instance = wgpu::Instance::new();
  let adapter = instance.request_adapter(&wgpu::RequestAdapterOptions {
      power_preference: wgpu::PowerPreference::HighPerformance,
     ..Default::default()
  });

• Mlua: A high-level binding for the Lua language, with features like:
  • Multiple Lua version support
  • Async/await support
  • Serialization

  let lua = Mlua::new();
  lua.load("script.lua").exec();

• Dyon: A dynamically-typed language designed for game engines and interactive applications, with features like:
  • Built-in support for 4D vectors
  • Go-like coroutines

  let dyon = Dyon::new();
  dyon.eval("println(4d vec);");

• Ketos: A scripting language developed to provide an interface for accessing Lisp APIs, with features like:
  • Compilation of expressions into bytecode objects
  • Macro support

  let ketos = Ketos::new();
  ketos.eval("(+ 2 3)");

• Mun: An innovation of Lua JIT designed for productivity and speed, with features like:
  • Ahead-of-time compilation
  • Statically typed
  • Performance optimization

  let mun = Mun::new();
  mun.compile("script.lua");

• LuaJIT RS: A library that interfaces Lua code from Rust, with features like:
  • Cross-platform support
  • Macro support

  let luajit = LuaJIT::new();
  luajit.eval("print(\"Hello, World!\");");

Rust is a powerful language with a growing ecosystem, and its potential for game development is vast. The scripting languages explored in this article offer a range of features and benefits, from performance and safety to concurrency and WebAssembly support. Whether you’re building a 2D game or a complex game engine, Rust has something to offer.

Which Rust scripting language do you use for your game projects? Share your experiences in the comments!