Component

A Component is data attached to an entity. Extend the base class, add fields, you're done.

The smallest possible Component

import { Component } from '@babylonjsmarket/ecs';

class Health extends Component {
  current = 100;
  max = 100;
}

That's a complete, valid Component. It has no logic — logic lives in Systems. Components are data containers.

What the base class gives you

• A unique component ID
• A reference to the owning entity once attached (this.entityId)
• Optional lifecycle hooks: onAttachOverride(), onDetachOverride()
• An eventBus reference once the parent entity is created in a World

Lifecycle hooks

Most Components don't need them. Use them when you need to allocate or release a resource that lives as long as the component is attached.

class CameraTarget extends Component {
  targetEntityId?: string;
  private unsubscribe?: () => void;

  onAttachOverride() {
    this.unsubscribe = this.eventBus.on('entity.destroyed', (data) => {
      if (data.entityId === this.targetEntityId) {
        this.targetEntityId = undefined;
      }
    });
  }

  onDetachOverride() {
    this.unsubscribe?.();
  }
}

onAttachOverride fires after the Component is added to an Entity and the Entity is in a World — this.eventBus is safe to use. onDetachOverride fires when the Component is removed or the Entity is destroyed.

Naming convention

By convention, every Component in this ecosystem follows the same shape:

• {Name}Component — the data class
• {Name}System — the System that operates on it
• {Name}Events — an object with event-name constants the System emits
• {Name}InputEvents — an object with event-name constants the System listens to

// Position.ts
export class PositionComponent extends Component {
  x = 0;
  y = 0;
  z = 0;
}

export const PositionEvents = {
  CHANGED: 'position.changed',
  TELEPORTED: 'position.teleported',
} as const;

export const PositionInputEvents = {
  SET: 'position.set',
} as const;

export class PositionSystem extends System {
  // ...
}

This convention is what lets the lazy SceneLoader in @babylonjsmarket/arcade find your component classes by name from a JSON scene file. Stick to it and your components are JSON-loadable for free.

Component data is just data

Don't put functions on Components. Don't put references to other entities (use IDs). Don't put renderer handles directly. The reason: state that's hard to serialize is hard to save, hard to replay, hard to test.

// ❌ Bad — function on a Component
class Bullet extends Component {
  damage = 10;
  onHit = (target: Entity) => { /* ... */ };
}

// ✅ Good — Components are data, behavior is in the System
class BulletComponent extends Component {
  damage = 10;
  ownerId = '';  // who fired it; an entity ID, not a reference
}

Serialization

The base Component exposes a serialize() method that JSON-encodes the public fields. The SceneLoader uses this format both ways: it writes scene state to JSON and instantiates entities from JSON.

Override it if you need custom serialization, but the default is usually enough:

class CustomComponent extends Component {
  internalState = new Map();

  serialize() {
    return {
      ...super.serialize(),
      internalState: Array.from(this.internalState.entries()),
    };
  }
}

Multiple components on one entity

Entities can hold any number of components, one per class. Adding a second instance of the same class replaces the first:

const player = world.createEntity('Player');
player.add(new HealthComponent());
player.add(new PositionComponent());
player.add(new VelocityComponent());

const hp = player.get(HealthComponent);     // typed, optional
const hp2 = player.get(HealthComponent)!; // typed, non-null assertion

Where to next

• Entity — how Components get attached
• System — how Components get processed