Story

Hi HN,

I’m working on an experimental 3D FPS game engine in C++20, aiming to deeply understand engine internals from first principles rather than just using existing frameworks.

Currently I'm strictly following LearnOpenGL docs.

This project focuses on: Entity-Component-System (ECS) architecture for high performance. OpenGL 4.1 rendering with a PBR pipeline, material system, HDR, SSAO, and shadow mapping. Modular systems: input, physics (Jolt), audio (miniaudio), assets, hot reload. A sample FPS game & debug editor built into the repo.

Repo: https://github.com/jackthepunished/horizon-engine

This isn’t intended to be a commercial rival to any commercial game engines.

it’s a learning and exploration project: understanding why certain engine decisions are made, and how to build low-level engine systems from scratch.

I’m especially looking for feedback on: Architecture choices (ECS design, render loop, module separation) Your thoughts on modern C++ engine patterns

What you’d build vs stub early in a homemade engine

Tips from experienced graphics/engine developers Criticism and suggestions are very welcome — it’s early days and meant to evolve. Thanks for checking it out!