Above: The official logo for CyberBasic, a modern take on classic BASIC programming.
The Modern BASIC Language for Game Development
CyberBasic combines the simplicity and elegance of classic BASIC programming with the full power of modern game development. Write games, graphics applications, and interactive programs using familiar BASIC syntax while leveraging the complete Raylib graphics library.
Above: A fully functional Pong game written in CyberBasic, demonstrating real-time graphics, input handling, and collision detection.
Above: A smooth animation demo showcasing real-time graphics, particle effects, smooth movement, and performance metrics - all in just a few lines of BASIC code.
Remember when programming was fun and accessible? When you could create games in just a few lines of code? CyberBasic brings back that magic while giving you access to modern graphics, audio, and input systems.
Perfect for:
- Learning programming fundamentals
- Rapid game prototyping
- Educational projects
- Retro-style game development
- Anyone who wants to code without complexity
Full implementation of classic BASIC features with modern enhancements:
- Variables, arrays, and functions
- Control flow (IF/THEN, WHILE/WEND, FOR/NEXT)
- String manipulation and math functions
- File I/O operations
- Optional strict typing and scoping
Every single Raylib function is available in BASIC:
- Graphics: 2D/3D rendering, textures, models, shaders
- Audio: Sound effects, music, 3D spatial audio
- Input: Keyboard, mouse, gamepad support
- Physics: Collision detection, rigid body simulation
- Window Management: Multi-monitor support, fullscreen modes
No complex setup, no dependencies to manage. Just write BASIC code and run it.
# Clone and build
git clone https://github.com/CharmingBlaze/cyberbasic.git
cd cyberbasic
mkdir build-mingw && cd build-mingw
cmake -G "MinGW Makefiles" ..
cmake --build .
# Run your first program
../cyberbasic.exe simple_pong.basREM Simple bouncing ball
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "My First Game")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
LET ballX = 400
LET ballY = 300
LET speedX = 3
LET speedY = 3
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
LET ballX = ballX + speedX
LET ballY = ballY + speedY
IF ballX < 0 OR ballX > 790 THEN LET speedX = -speedX
IF ballY < 0 OR ballY > 590 THEN LET speedY = -speedY
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(0, 0, 0)
DRAWRECTANGLE(ballX, ballY, 20, 20, 255, 255, 255)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
CLOSEWINDOW()REM Smooth movement with animated effects
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "Smooth Animation Demo")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
LET player_x = 400.0
LET player_y = 300.0
LET player_speed = 300.0
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
LET delta_time = GETDELTATIME()
REM Smooth WASD movement
IF ISKEYDOWN(KEY_W) THEN LET player_y = player_y - player_speed * delta_time
IF ISKEYDOWN(KEY_S) THEN LET player_y = player_y + player_speed * delta_time
IF ISKEYDOWN(KEY_A) THEN LET player_x = player_x - player_speed * delta_time
IF ISKEYDOWN(KEY_D) THEN LET player_x = player_x + player_speed * delta_time
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(20, 20, 40)
REM Animated background circles
LET current_time = GETTIME()
FOR i = 0 TO 10
LET x = (i * 80) + (SIN(current_time + i) * 30)
LET y = 100 + (COS(current_time + i * 0.7) * 50)
DRAWCIRCLE(x, y, 20, 50 + i * 20, 100 + i * 10, 150 + i * 20)
NEXT
REM Player with animated effects
DRAWCIRCLE(player_x, player_y, 25, 255, 255, 0)
DRAWTEXT("FPS: " + STR(GETFPS()), 10, 10, 20, 255, 255, 255)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
CLOSEWINDOW()REM Mouse-following circle
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "Mouse Demo")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
LET mouseX = GETMOUSEX()
LET mouseY = GETMOUSEY()
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(50, 50, 100)
DRAWCIRCLE(mouseX, mouseY, 30, 255, 200, 100)
DRAWTEXT("Move your mouse!", 10, 10, 20, 255, 255, 255)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
CLOSEWINDOW()REM Sound effects and music
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "Audio Demo")
INITAUDIODEVICE()
LET sound = LOADSOUND("beep.wav")
LET music = LOADMUSICSTREAM("background.mp3")
PLAYMUSICSTREAM(music)
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
IF ISKEYPRESSED(KEY_SPACE) THEN PLAYSOUND(sound)
UPDATEMUSICSTREAM(music)
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(0, 0, 0)
DRAWTEXT("Press SPACE for sound", 300, 300, 20, 255, 255, 255)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
UNLOADSOUND(sound)
UNLOADMUSICSTREAM(music)
CLOSEAUDIODEVICE()
CLOSEWINDOW()REM 3D rotating cube
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "3D Demo")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
LET camera = CAMERA3D()
LET camera.position = VECTOR3(0, 10, 10)
LET camera.target = VECTOR3(0, 0, 0)
LET camera.up = VECTOR3(0, 1, 0)
LET camera.fovy = 45
LET camera.projection = CAMERA_PERSPECTIVE
LET rotation = 0
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
LET rotation = rotation + 1
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(0, 0, 0)
BEGINDRAW3D(camera)
DRAWCUBE(VECTOR3(0, 0, 0), 2, 2, 2, RED)
DRAWCUBEWIRES(VECTOR3(0, 0, 0), 2, 2, 2, WHITE)
ENDDRAW3D()
DRAWTEXT("3D Cube Demo", 10, 10, 20, WHITE)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
CLOSEWINDOW()The included Pong game demonstrates:
- Real-time input handling
- Collision detection
- Game loop architecture
- Graphics rendering
- Window management
REM Full Pong implementation
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "CyberBasic Pong")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
LET leftPaddleY = 250
LET rightPaddleY = 250
LET ballX = 400
LET ballY = 300
LET ballSpeedX = 3
LET ballSpeedY = 3
WHILE NOT WINDOWSHOULDCLOSE()
REM Handle input
IF ISKEYHELD(KEY_W) THEN LET leftPaddleY = leftPaddleY - 5
IF ISKEYHELD(KEY_S) THEN LET leftPaddleY = leftPaddleY + 5
IF ISKEYHELD(KEY_UP) THEN LET rightPaddleY = rightPaddleY - 5
IF ISKEYHELD(KEY_DOWN) THEN LET rightPaddleY = rightPaddleY + 5
REM Update ball
LET ballX = ballX + ballSpeedX
LET ballY = ballY + ballSpeedY
REM Collision detection
IF ballY < 0 OR ballY > 590 THEN LET ballSpeedY = -ballSpeedY
IF ballX <= 50 AND ballX >= 30 AND ballY >= leftPaddleY AND ballY <= leftPaddleY + 100 THEN LET ballSpeedX = -ballSpeedX
IF ballX >= 740 AND ballX <= 770 AND ballY >= rightPaddleY AND ballY <= rightPaddleY + 100 THEN LET ballSpeedX = -ballSpeedX
REM Render
BEGINDRAW()
CLEARBACKGROUND(0, 0, 0)
DRAWRECTANGLE(30, leftPaddleY, 20, 100, WHITE)
DRAWRECTANGLE(750, rightPaddleY, 20, 100, WHITE)
DRAWRECTANGLE(ballX, ballY, 10, 10, WHITE)
DRAWTEXT("W/S", 10, 10, 20, WHITE)
DRAWTEXT("UP/DOWN", 700, 10, 20, WHITE)
ENDDRAW()
WEND
CLOSEWINDOW()CyberBasic is built with modern C++17 and follows clean architecture principles:
- Lexer: Converts BASIC source code into tokens
- Parser: Builds an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST)
- Interpreter: Executes the AST with full runtime support
- Function Registry: Manages built-in and user-defined functions
- Code Generator: Auto-generates Raylib bindings from YAML specifications
cyberbasic/
├── src/ # Core interpreter implementation
│ ├── main.cpp # Application entry point
│ ├── lexer.cpp # Tokenization engine
│ ├── parser.cpp # AST construction
│ ├── interpreter.cpp # Runtime execution
│ ├── builtins_core.cpp # Core BASIC functions
│ ├── builtins_console.cpp # Console I/O
│ └── rt_raylib.gen.cpp # Generated Raylib bindings
├── include/bas/ # Public headers
├── specs/ # YAML function specifications
├── tools/ # Build and code generation tools
├── examples/ # Sample programs and games
└── simple_pong.bas # Complete Pong game
- CMake 3.20 or higher
- MinGW-w64 GCC 13+ (Windows) or GCC/Clang (Linux/macOS)
- Python 3.10+ with PyYAML
git clone https://github.com/CharmingBlaze/cyberbasic.git
cd cyberbasic
mkdir build-mingw && cd build-mingw
cmake -G "MinGW Makefiles" -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release ..
cmake --build .git clone https://github.com/CharmingBlaze/cyberbasic.git
cd cyberbasic
mkdir build && cd build
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release ..
make -j$(nproc)- Variables:
LET x = 10orx = 10 - Arrays:
DIM arr(10),arr(5) = 100 - Functions:
SUB,FUNCTION,RETURN - Control Flow:
IF/THEN/ENDIF,WHILE/WEND,FOR/NEXT - File I/O:
OPEN,CLOSE,READ,WRITE
- Optional Strict Mode:
OPTION EXPLICITfor variable declaration checking - Scoping:
LOCALandGLOBALvariable declarations - Error Handling: Comprehensive runtime error reporting
- Debug Support: Built-in debugging capabilities
All 527 Raylib functions are available with automatic type conversion:
INITWINDOW(800, 600, "My Game")
SETTARGETFPS(60)
SETWINDOWTITLE("New Title")
CLOSEWINDOW()DRAWRECTANGLE(100, 100, 200, 150, RED)
DRAWCIRCLE(400, 300, 50, BLUE)
DRAWTEXT("Hello World", 10, 10, 20, WHITE)
DRAWTEXTURE(texture, 0, 0, WHITE)DRAWCUBE(VECTOR3(0, 0, 0), 2, 2, 2, RED)
DRAWSPHERE(VECTOR3(0, 0, 0), 1, GREEN)
DRAWMODEL(model, VECTOR3(0, 0, 0), 1, WHITE)LET sound = LOADSOUND("beep.wav")
PLAYSOUND(sound)
LET music = LOADMUSICSTREAM("song.mp3")
PLAYMUSICSTREAM(music)IF ISKEYDOWN(KEY_W) THEN LET playerY = playerY - 5
LET mouseX = GETMOUSEX()
LET mouseY = GETMOUSEY()
IF ISMOUSEBUTTONPRESSED(MOUSE_BUTTON_LEFT) THEN PRINT "Click!"- Add function specification to
specs/raylib_api.yaml - Run
python tools/gen_raylib_bindings.py - Rebuild the project
- C++17 standard with strict warnings
- Modular design with single responsibility
- Comprehensive error handling
- No global static initialization
- Files under 250 lines where possible
CyberBasic is designed for both learning and production use:
- Fast startup: Programs begin execution immediately
- Efficient execution: Optimized interpreter with minimal overhead
- Memory safe: Automatic memory management with no leaks
- Cross-platform: Consistent performance across Windows, Linux, and macOS
This project is open source. See the LICENSE file for details.
We welcome contributions! Whether you're fixing bugs, adding features, or improving documentation:
- Fork the repository
- Create a feature branch
- Make your changes
- Add tests if applicable
- Submit a pull request
- Enhanced error messages with line numbers and suggestions
- Integrated debugger with breakpoints and variable inspection
- IDE integration with syntax highlighting and autocomplete
- Additional BASIC dialects (QBASIC, Visual Basic compatibility)
- Performance optimizations and JIT compilation
- Web-based editor and runtime
For questions, bug reports, or feature requests, please open an issue on GitHub.
CyberBasic - Where classic programming meets modern game development. Start coding games today, not tomorrow.