Shaders

Shaders are GPU programs that transform vertices and determine pixel colors. They run on the graphics card in parallel, making them efficient for complex visual effects.

What They Are

Vertex shaders transform 3D model vertices into screen space
Pixel shaders (also called fragment shaders) determine the final color of each pixel
Effects (in MonoGame terminology) package shaders with parameters and techniques

Why Use Them

Use shaders when you need visual effects beyond what built-in rendering provides:

Custom lighting models (toon shading, stylized PBR)
Post-processing effects (bloom, tone mapping, color grading)
Special effects (holograms, distortion, pixelation)
Optimized rendering for specific art styles

When to Write Them

You don't need custom shaders to start. Mibo's built-in renderers work without them:

2D games: Use Batch2DRenderer with standard SpriteBatch (no shaders required)
3D games: Use PipelineRenderer with BasicEffect fallback (works without custom shaders)

Write shaders when: - You have specific visual requirements - You need performance optimizations for your target hardware - You're building advanced rendering features

Loading Shaders

Shaders are .fx HLSL files compiled to .xnb via the MonoGame Content Pipeline.

// Load an effect from your Content directory
let myEffect = ctx.Content.Load<Effect>("shaders/MyEffect")

Asset paths are relative to your Content directory without extension.

Setting Parameters

Set shader parameters before drawing:

effect.Parameters["World"].SetValue(worldMatrix)
effect.Parameters["Color"].SetValue(color)

// Or use Mibo's SafeSetParam (ignores missing parameters)
effect.SafeSetParam("World", worldMatrix)

Where to Learn More

Shader binding contracts (what parameters each shader type expects) are documented in the rendering sections:

2D rendering shaders: See Rendering 2D for LitSprite, ShadowCaster, and Post-Process contracts
3D rendering shaders: See 3D Custom Shaders for PBRForward, Unlit, ShadowCaster, Bloom, and PostProcess contracts

val myEffect: obj