Controllers

Controllers are the main building blocks of Crdle. They are exclusively client sided code that can be used to organise your code into logical groups. Controllers are used to create a modular system that is easy to maintain and expand.

For this tutorial we will be creating a simple Camera Controller which will manage the in-game camera.

Creating a Controller

Controllers can be made on the client side using:

local CameraController = Cradle:CreateController({
    Name = "CameraController",
})

return CameraController

The Name field is required and must be unique. This is used to identify the controller and is used in the Cradle:GetController() method.

Controllers are Client Sided Only

Controller are not accessible from the server. If you need to communicate with the server, you can pair your controller with a Service.

See the Services Guide for more information.

Adding Methods

To add methods to your controller, simply add them to the controller object.

function CameraController:ZoomIn()
    -- TODO: Code to zoom in
end

function CameraController:ZoomOut()
    -- TODO: Code to zoom out
end

function CameraController:ResetZoom()
    -- TODO: Code to reset zoom
end

Adding Properties

Properties can be added to your controller by adding them to the object. You can do this in two ways:

CameraController.DefaultZoomLevel = 60
CameraController.ZoomLevel = 0

or 

self.DefaultZoomLevel = 60 -- Inside a method
self.ZoomLevel = 0 -- Inside a method

or using the Cradle:CreateController() method:

local CameraController = Cradle:CreateController({
    Name = "CameraController",
    DefaultZoomLevel = 60, -- FOV
    ZoomLevel = 0,
})

Usng Methods and Properties

We can now use the properties and methods we have created. For example, we can add methods to zoom the camera in and out:

function CameraController:SetZoom(input: number)
    self.ZoomLevel = input
end

function CameraController:ZoomIn()
    self.ZoomLevel += 1
end

function CameraController:ZoomOut()
    self.ZoomLevel -= 1
end

function CameraController:ResetZoom()
    self.ZoomLevel = self.DefaultZoomLevel
end

Adding Init and Start Methods

Init and Start methods can then be added to this object:

The Init function is called when running Cradle:Start(), however it is not guaranteed that any other controller will be fully initialised, so in this stage other controllers should not be referenced.

local RunService = game:GetService("RunService")

function CameraController:Init()
    local Camera = workspace.CurrentCamera
    RunService.RenderStepped:Connect(function()
        if Camera and Camera.FieldOfView ~= self.ZoomLevel then
            Camera.FieldOfView = self.ZoomLevel
        end
    end)
end

The Start function is called when running Cradle:Start() once all :Init() methods have ran, only at this stage other controllers are considered initialised and safe to use.

function CameraController:Start()
    self:ResetZoom()
end

info

This is optional, however it is recommended to use these methods or leave them empty.

Server Communication

Server communication is done through Services. Services allows client code to access server methods and properties that have been explicitly exposed in the Client table.

tip

See the Services Guide for more information.

An example of communicating with a service:

function CameraController:Start()
    local SomeService = self:GetService("SomeService")
    SomeService:DoSomething()
    SomeService.SomeProperty:Get()
    SomeService.SomeRemoteEvent:FireServer()
    SomeService.SomeGroup.SomeRemoteEvent:FireServer()
    SomeService.SomeEvent:Connect(function()
        print("SomeEvent fired!")
    end)
end

No Client Table forces Server-Only

If the Client table is omitted, the service will be server only and cannot be accessed from the client.

Full Example

CameraController

local RunService = game:GetService("RunService")
local Cradle = require(game:GetService("ReplicatedStorage").Cradle"))

local CameraController = Cradle:CreateController({
    Name = "CameraController",
    DefaultZoomLevel = 60, -- FOV
    ZoomLevel = 0, -- FOV
})

function CameraController:SetZoom(input: number)
    self.ZoomLevel = input -- Set the ZoomLevel property
end

function CameraController:ZoomIn()
    self.ZoomLevel += 1 -- Increase the ZoomLevel property
end

function CameraController:ZoomOut()
    self.ZoomLevel -= 1 -- Decrease the ZoomLevel property
end

function CameraController:ResetZoom()
    self.ZoomLevel = self.DefaultZoomLevel -- Reset the ZoomLevel property
end


function CameraController:Init()
    local Camera = workspace.CurrentCamera
    RunService.RenderStepped:Connect(function()
        if Camera and Camera.FieldOfView ~= self.ZoomLevel then
            Camera.FieldOfView = self.ZoomLevel
        end
    end)
end

function CameraController:Start()
    self:ResetZoom()
end

Controllers

Creating a Controller​

Adding Methods​

Adding Properties​

Usng Methods and Properties​

Adding Init and Start Methods​

Server Communication​

Full Example​

CameraController​