TIC-80 v1.3.0

TIC-80 v1.3.0 adds MiniScript and Forth runtimes, new audio-analysis APIs, native Metal rendering for macOS/iOS, and a wide set of web, editor, controller, and platform fixes since v1.2.0.

What's new

• New runtimes: MiniScript and Forth are now supported, with MiniScript updated to the latest MiniScript 2 main. Help/version docs now name both as post-1.2.0 runtimes.
• Audio APIs: Added VQT audio analysis and spectral whitening APIs, plus raw FFT magnitude APIs fftr and fftrs.
• Script eval: Python and JavaScript now implement eval; JavaScript also no longer crashes when there is nothing to evaluate.
• Editor & templates: Python editor now outlines defs/classes; code from codeimport updates before running; new TinyGo-based Go starter template; Zig template updated for Zig 0.17.
• Web & export: Added a Surf build option, a sokol web system layer, 4M wasm stack plus a check, and HTML export/site-player improvements. A played cart now returns to the browser on CLOSE GAME, and Surf no longer starves the browser or leaks fetch bodies.

Platform

• Apple: New Metal renderer with native macOS/iOS support; optimized gamepad polling, border rendering, and file-change checks on Metal.
• Linux/ARM: Added Linux ARM GLESv2 support; Linux icons/mimetypes moved to the hicolor theme.
• Android: Manifest now uses the Game category and fixes .tic association on Android 12+.
• Controllers: Dynamic controller assignment; SDL right stick moves the cursor and only shows after first movement.
• Web/libretro: WASM libretro core no longer fails at runtime; optional libretro environment calls are non-fatal; console add survives Emscripten runtime trimming.
• Console: Improved eval feedback when no cart is loaded; help tables and VRAM docs cleaned up.

Bug fixes

• Fixed bookmark panel crash when a bookmark is on a blank line.
• Fixed Squirrel out-of-bounds array indexing and a scanline/border callback memory leak.
• Fixed Python sfx() ignoring note/octave/speed from the SFX editor.
• Fixed world map preview ignoring the map editor BPP setting.
• Fixed space key with KEYBOARD_LAYOUT_ES after tic_key_iso_extra removal.
• Fixed code editor tab width after horizontal scroll.
• Fixed same-platform export preferring an external native template instead of the local one.
• Fixed JavaScript eval crash when there is nothing to evaluate.
• Improved code rendering by adjusting viewport handling.
• Fixed Studio net field declaration and tic80_tick callback declarations.

Build & infrastructure

• CI now builds main and pull requests instead of every branch, builds players on every build, and restores stubs to releases.
• Site now consumes per-language HTML pairs on every build.
• Added a PRO linux-arm64 build; removed GCC 14 from the matrix.
• Configure now warns when the build has no network.
• Release tag builds receive Android signing secrets; stub lists include MiniScript and Forth.
• Release notes now lead with this summary before GitHub's PR list; SECURITY.md no longer pins specific versions.
• Build asset directory now follows the build itself; toolbar modularized.

Statistics: 62 commits, 54 pull requests, 19 contributors.

On tic80.com

The site moved on too:

• Games delete and restore. Your own cartridges, from their page or your profile: hidden at once, recoverable for 30 days, comments and +1s included. An account can delete itself the same way.
• A notifications page — comments and +1s on your cartridges, with a counter in the navigation.
• A liked-games page — everything you have +1'd, in one place.
• +1 is open to everyone: the old gate that required your own games to be liked first is gone.
• Sign in with your e-mail as well as your user name.
• A full-screen player — a game page, and the browser IDE, can open the cartridge alone: no site chrome, the player fills the screen, and the game starts as soon as the page opens.
• Every game states the language it is written in.
• Game pages load a player built for that language — several times smaller than the universal one, so they start faster.
• New games are announced in the community chat again.

What's Changed

• Fix [#2773]: space key broken with KEYBOARD_LAYOUT_ES after tic_key_iso_extra removal by @joshgoebel in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2962
• Fix [#2920]: Python sfx() ignores note/octave/speed from SFX editor by @joshgoebel in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2963
• Fix [#1558]: world map preview ignores map editor bpp setting by @joshgoebel in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2964
• fix: squirrel scanline/border callback memory leak (#2825) by @joshgoebel in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2965
• Update SECURITY.md to remove specific versions by @pixelbath in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2948
• libretro: don't treat optional environment calls as fatal by @wescopeland in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2980
• Declare tic80_tick's callbacks as they are defined and called by @annejan in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2981
• Declare Studio's net field under the condition it is used by @annejan in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2982
• Fix WASM libretro core build failing at runtime by @Ferk in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2983
• Fix attempting to out-of-bounds index Squirrel arrays by @swoolcock in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2988
• Fix bookmark panel crashing if there is a bookmark on a blank line by @swoolcock in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2993
• [Fix] [Export] prefer local native template for same-platform export by @RDeckard in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2916
• Fix code editor tab width after horizontal scroll by @RDeckard in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2957
• web: 4M of stack for the wasm build, and a check on it by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3006
• ci: build main and pull requests, not every branch by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3008
• AndroidManifest -> Set to Game category, and fix .tic association on Android 12+ by @imsys in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2956
• Optimize code rendering by adjusting viewport handling by @Wang-Yue in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2974
• [SDL] Uses right stick to move cursor + only shows after first move by @imsys in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2936
• Dynamic controller assignment by @imsys in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2958
• Change in the index.html file for html exports by @bettywolfy in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2998
• Adds support for Linux ARM GLESv2 by @imsys in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2912
• templates: add Go starter project template using TinyGo by @akhenakh in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3002
• Add raw FFT magnitude APIs fftr and fftrs by @aliceisjustplaying in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3000
• Add VQT audio analysis and spectral whitening APIs by @aliceisjustplaying in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3001
• Add MiniScript support by @MineRobber9000 in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2992
• Forth by @luginf in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2947
• release: grow the stub lists with MiniScript and Forth by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3009
• version: a build's asset directory follows from the build itself by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3010
• help version: name the two runtimes added after 1.2.0 by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3011
• console: one definition per help table, and VRAM without angle brackets by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3013
• ci: a PRO linux-arm64 build, and gcc14 out of the matrix by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3014
• surf: a played cart returns to the browser on CLOSE GAME by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3016
• Add Metal Renderer and native macOS/iOS support for TIC-80 by @Wang-Yue in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2973
• ci: the per-language html pairs on every build the site consumes by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3027
• html: the site's players keep the editors by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3030
• ci: the players on every build, the stubs back to releases by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3031
• python: implement eval by @zayfod in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3019
• js: implement eval, and stop crashing when there is nothing to eval by @zayfod in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3020
• console: say when eval has no cart to evaluate against by @zayfod in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3022
• Update MiniScript 2 to latest main by @MineRobber9000 in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3012
• Always update code from codeimport before running game by @MartinRykfors in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3025
• console: the add command survives emscripten's runtime trimming by @zayfod in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3018
• macOS Metal: optimize gamepad polling, border rendering & rate-limit file change checks by @Wang-Yue in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3021
• Move Linux Icon to hicolor Theme by @amayer5125 in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3026
• Add Linux Mimetype Icon by @amayer5125 in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3029
• python: outline the code editor's defs and classes by @zayfod in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3023
• [#3033]: warn at configure time when the build has no network by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3034
• Surf build option by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3041
• The toolbar becomes a module by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3046
• sokol: a system layer for the web build by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3048
• surf: covers stop starving the browser, and a fetch body is freed once by @nesbox in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3049
• Update Zig template to support Zig 0.17 by @sergeypdev in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3050

New Contributors

• @pixelbath made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2948
• @wescopeland made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2980
• @annejan made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2981
• @Ferk made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2983
• @swoolcock made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2988
• @bettywolfy made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2998
• @akhenakh made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3002
• @luginf made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/2947
• @zayfod made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3019
• @amayer5125 made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3026
• @sergeypdev made their first contribution in https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/pull/3050

Full Changelog: https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80/compare/v1.2.0...v1.3.0