Build System & CI

MinecraftConsoles supports two build methods: the original Visual Studio solution (.sln) and a newer CMake-based build. Both target Windows x64 only at build time.

C++17

The CMake build enforces C++17:

set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED ON)
set(CMAKE_CXX_EXTENSIONS OFF)

The project uses C++17 features throughout, including shared_ptr, make_shared, dynamic_pointer_cast, and modern STL containers.

Build methods

Visual Studio solution

File: MinecraftConsoles.sln

This is the main build method, documented in COMPILE.md:

1. Open MinecraftConsoles.sln in Visual Studio 2022.
2. Set Minecraft.Client as the Startup Project.
3. Pick your configuration: Debug (recommended) or Release.
4. Pick your platform: Windows64.
5. Build with Ctrl+Shift+B, run with F5.

CMake

File: CMakeLists.txt

A supplementary build system that generates a Visual Studio 2022 solution.

Configure:

cmake -S . -B build -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 \
  -DCMAKE_GENERATOR_INSTANCE="C:/Program Files/Microsoft Visual Studio/2022/Community"

Build:

cmake --build build --config Debug --target MinecraftClient
cmake --build build --config Release --target MinecraftClient

Run:

cd .\build\Debug
.\MinecraftClient.exe

The game relies on relative paths (e.g., Common\Media\...), so you need to launch it from the output directory.

Project structure

The CMake build defines two targets:

Target	Type	Description
MinecraftWorld	Static library	Game logic, entities, items, tiles, commands
MinecraftClient	Win32 executable	Rendering, UI, networking, platform code

Source file lists are kept in separate CMake includes:

• cmake/WorldSources.cmake for all Minecraft.World/ source files
• cmake/ClientSources.cmake for all Minecraft.Client/ source files

Compile definitions

Both targets define:

Definition	Purpose
_LARGE_WORLDS	Extended world size support
_DEBUG_MENUS_ENABLED	Debug menu availability
_CRT_NON_CONFORMING_SWPRINTFS	MSVC printf compatibility
_CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS	Disable MSVC security warnings
_WINDOWS64	64-bit platform flag
_DEBUG	Debug-only definition
_LIB	World library only

MSVC options

The configure_msvc_target() function applies:

Debug:

• /W3 warnings
• /MP multi-processor compilation
• /FS force synchronous PDB writes
• /EHsc C++ exception handling

Release:

• /W0 warnings (all disabled)
• /MP multi-processor compilation
• /GL whole-program optimization
• /O2 maximize speed
• /Oi intrinsic functions
• /GT fiber-safe thread-local storage
• /GF string pooling

Release linker:

• /LTCG link-time code generation
• /INCREMENTAL:NO no incremental linking

Dependencies

MinecraftClient links against:

Library	Purpose
MinecraftWorld	Static library with game logic
d3d11	DirectX 11 rendering
XInput9_1_0	Controller input
wsock32	Networking
legacy_stdio_definitions	MSVC compatibility
iggy_w64.lib	SWF/Flash UI rendering
iggyperfmon_w64.lib	Iggy performance monitoring
iggyexpruntime_w64.lib	Iggy expression runtime
4J_Input.lib	4J input abstraction (debug/release variants)
4J_Storage.lib	4J storage abstraction (debug/release variants)
4J_Render_PC.lib	4J rendering abstraction (debug/release variants)

The Iggy libraries handle the Flash/SWF-based UI system from the original console edition. The 4J libraries are proprietary platform abstraction layers.

Platform support

Windows (primary)

Both the .sln and CMake builds target Windows x64 only. The CMake build checks for this explicitly:

if(NOT WIN32)
  message(FATAL_ERROR "This CMake build currently supports Windows only.")
endif()
if(NOT CMAKE_SIZEOF_VOID_P EQUAL 8)
  message(FATAL_ERROR "Use a 64-bit generator/toolchain (x64).")
endif()

Asset copying

The CMake build automatically copies runtime assets during configuration:

Windows: Uses robocopy.exe to copy:

• Redistributables from x64/Release/
• Client assets (excluding source files)
• DurangoMedia patches

Unix/Linux: Uses rsync with equivalent exclusion filters. This path exists for asset copying, but the actual compilation still needs MSVC.

The asset copy excludes source files (*.cpp, *.h, etc.), build files, scripts, and platform-specific directories (Durango*, Orbis*, PS*, Xbox).

Running on Linux

Per COMPILE.md, contributors on Linux need a Windows machine or VM to build. Running the compiled game via Wine is a separate concern from having a supported build environment.

The CONTRIBUTING.md notes that one of the project’s goals is “having workable multi-platform compilation for ARM, Consoles, Linux.” This is a future goal, not something that works today.

Platform-specific code

The source contains several platform ifdefs:

Macro	Platform
__ORBIS__	PlayStation (Orbis)
_WINDOWS64	Windows 64-bit
_DURANGO	Xbox One

These are remnants of the original multi-platform console codebase. For example, BaseAttributeMap uses a different hash function on Orbis because the PlayStation standard library doesn’t default-hash enums.

CI/CD

MinecraftConsoles uses three GitHub Actions workflows:

debug-test.yml (PR gate)

Triggers: Pull requests (opened, reopened, synchronize), pushes to main, and manual dispatch.

Runs a Debug build on windows-latest using MSBuild. This is the main CI gate that makes sure all PRs compile successfully. It ignores changes to .gitignore and markdown files (both root and .github/ markdown).

nightly.yml (nightly release)

Triggers: Pushes to main and manual dispatch.

Builds a Release configuration on windows-latest, zips the output as LCEWindows64.zip, and publishes it as a nightly release using the andelf/nightly-release action. The release includes:

• LCEWindows64.zip, the full game package
• Minecraft.Client.exe, the standalone executable
• Minecraft.Client.pdb, debug symbols

Release builds use MSVC v14.44.35207 with /O2 /Ot /Oi /Ob3 /GF /fp:precise.

build.yml (manual)

Triggers: Manual dispatch only (workflow_dispatch).

Builds both Release and Debug configurations in a matrix strategy. Uploads artifacts for each configuration as MinecraftClient-Release and MinecraftClient-Debug.

Code quality tools

.clang-format

File: .clang-format

The project includes a clang-format configuration based on the Microsoft style:

Setting	Value
Base style	Microsoft
Indent width	4
Tab width	4
Use tabs	Never
Column limit	0 (unlimited)
Pointer alignment	Right (int *ptr)
Brace wrapping	Always after control statements
Insert braces	Yes (enforces braces on single-line blocks)
Sort includes	Case sensitive
Standard	Latest

Notable settings: InsertBraces: true makes sure all control flow blocks have braces, and ColumnLimit: 0 turns off line length enforcement.

Differences from LCEMP build

Aspect	LCEMP	MinecraftConsoles
Build system	Visual Studio .sln	.sln + CMake
CI/CD	None documented	3 GitHub Actions workflows
Code formatting	No enforced standard	.clang-format (Microsoft-based)
Nightly releases	None	Automated via GitHub Actions
PR validation	None	Debug build on every PR
Asset copying	Manual	Automated in CMake (robocopy/rsync)
C++ standard	C++11	C++17
Source file count	~1,564 (World)	~1,837 (World) + ~606 (Client)

LCEMP also has a build-macos directory and a Common top-level directory that don’t exist in MinecraftConsoles. LCEMP includes ConsoleSaveFileSplit files not present in MinecraftConsoles.

Contributing

The CONTRIBUTING.md file outlines strict contribution guidelines:

• Scope: Stability, quality of life, and platform support over new content. No Java Edition backports, visual changes, or content without LCE precedent.
• Parity: Must match original LCE visual and gameplay experience.
• Accepted changes: Bug fixes, multi-platform support, SWF-free UI replacements, asset quality improvements, dedicated server menus, Steamworks networking, keyboard/mouse support.
• PR requirements: One topic per PR, fully documented changes, use the PR template. Undocumented changes cause closure.
• AI policy: Code written largely or noticeably by an LLM is not accepted.