CODEWITHSUNDEEP
iosswiftsprite-kit
claassenApps
claassenApps

Reputation: 1147

Removing SKNodes When Not Visible On Screen

In my game, the size of the level can be larger than the screen of the phone and the camera will follow the player around the level, so there can be a decent amount of content(such as SKEmitterNodes) in the scene that is not visible at any given time. I've been reading through some of the SpriteKit documentation and found this quote in the SMEmitterNode section:

"Consider removing a particle emitter from the scene when it is not visible onscreen. Add it just before it becomes visible."

Is this something that can be done in my type of game design? I don't want the nodes to be completely removed since they will eventually be put on the screen, but is there a good way for me to add/remove the EmitterNodes (or other SpriteNodes) that are a certain distance from the screen/is this a good idea to do? I'm looking to improve my frame-rate and don't want costly nodes like SMEmitterNodes working while they're not even being displayed, but will adding/removing them as the player moves around reduce the performance?

Here is the idea I currently have: create a rectangle that extends a certain distance around the screen and detect when a node comes into that rectangle, and if it's not already added to the scene, go ahead and add it. Thank you for any suggestions.

Upvotes: 1

Views: 77

Answers (1)

Knight0fDragon
Knight0fDragon

Reputation: 16827

SKNodes really aren't a problem because when they are off screen they are not being rendered anyway, just evaluated. So the main thing to worry about with SKNodes are any physics bodies attached to them,

SKEmitterNodes however require some processing power, and that is why apple is recommending not having them emit if they are not on screen. I would just subclass my SKScene class, and do a checks only on SKEmitterNodes whether or not they are in frame, and emit based on that.

So, I would throw all your SKEmitterNodes into a container like an array, and have a loop function to have the node do a CGRectIntersectsRect check based on your camera location and viewable screen size. and if they intersect, add it to the scene, if not remove it from the scene. The array will keep a strong reference so you do not have to worry about it deiniting on you

Upvotes: 2

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