Blueprints

In Gamesmith Studio, Blueprints are the master templates that define the structural "DNA" of your game objects. Think of a Blueprint as a high-level architectural plan. It doesn't represent a specific person or item in your game world; instead, it defines the rules, variables, and capabilities that every instance of that object must follow.

Why Use Blueprints?

Without Blueprints, you would have to manually configure the logic and data for every single chest, enemy, and NPC in your game. Blueprints solve this by acting as a Source of Truth. When you define a structure in a Blueprint, every Asset created from it inherits that structure automatically.  In fact, Blueprints are necessary if you want to utilize Assets.

Core Components of a Blueprint

1. Variable Definitions

Blueprints define what data an object tracks. You can add variables for anything from "Health" and "Mana" to "Gold Cost" or "Is Secret."

Type Safety: You define the type (Integer, Boolean, String, etc.) at the Blueprint level so that every Asset remains consistent. Click here to see the different types supported by Blueprints.

Constraints: Certain variables, like integers and floats, have constraints that you can define, such as minimum or maximum value.

Default Values: You set the starting values here. If a Blueprint says all "NPCs" start with 20 HP, every NPC you create in Assets will start with that value unless you manually override it.

2. Actions (The Capabilities)

Actions are the "Methods" or behaviors of your Blueprint. They define what an object can do.

Custom Logic: Each action contains its own Action Map—a dedicated flow where you can script what happens when that action is triggered (e.g., "When Open is called, check if the player has a key, then play an animation").

Parameters: Actions can require inputs. A Heal action might require an Amount parameter to know how much health to restore. Click here to see the different parameter types supported by Blueprint Actions.

3. Inheritance (The Hierarchy)

Blueprints support Strict Inheritance. This allows you to build a hierarchy of complexity without repeating work.

Base Blueprints: You might create a "Character" Blueprint with Hitpoints and Maximum Hitpoints.

Extended Blueprints: You can then create an "Enemy" Blueprint that extends "Character." It automatically gains the Hitpoints and Maximum Hitpoints variables, but you can then add a new Damage variable specific to enemies.

4. Component-Based Design (Composition)

While Blueprints define the fundamental structure of an object, Components provide the modular logic and data that can be "bolted onto" any asset. This approach—often called Composition—allows you to build complex behavior without creating thousands of hyper-specific blueprints.  For example, you might have a Component called 'Flammable' that you add directly to any assets (or other blueprints) that are flammable.

Note that components do not export and need to be manually configured by your developer.

Different Types of Blueprints

There are 3 types of Blueprints you can create within Gamesmith Studio.  They all serve different purposes.

Blueprint

A Blueprint describes the structure of an Asset.  Programmers would call them 'Classes'.  Most Blueprints you create will be of this type.

Component

Components allow you to create a template of parameters and actions and apply them to other Blueprints or directly to Assets.

What is a Component?

Think of a Component as a "Logic Pack." If a Blueprint defines what an object is (e.g., a "Wooden Crate"), a Component defines what an object can do (e.g., it is "Flammable," "Destructible," or "Lootable").

Instead of making a Flammable_Destructible_Lootable_Crate Blueprint, you simply have a Crate Blueprint and attach the three relevant components to the specific Asset instances that need them.  With this example, you might attach Lootable to the Crate Blueprint, and Flammable/Destructible to a Wooden Chest asset directly.

Not all engines support composition. We recommend you check with your development team to see if Components make sense for your project.

Singleton

Some systems in your game should only ever exist once—like a "Game Manager" or a "Weather System." By marking a Blueprint as a Singleton, Gamesmith Studio will:

• Automatically create one (and only one) Global Asset of that type.
• Prevent any other assets of that type from being created.
• Ensure the asset cannot be deleted, protecting your core game systems.

Note: The asset of your Singleton will show up in the flow editor, not in the Asset list.