useParticles

useParticles creates and controls a particle emitter for visual effects like fire, smoke, explosions, and more. It reads from the ParticleManager which is automatically set up by Game.

tsx

import { useParticles } from "@carverjs/core/hooks";

Note

Particles use GPU-instanced rendering via InstancedMesh. Each emitter is a single draw call regardless of particle count.

Quick Start #

tsx

import { useRef } from "react";
import { Actor } from "@carverjs/core/components";
import { useParticles } from "@carverjs/core/hooks";
import type { Group } from "@carverjs/core/types";

function Torch() {
  const particles = useParticles({ preset: "fire" });

  return (
    <Actor type="primitive" shape="box" color="#333">
      <group ref={particles.ref} position={[0, 1, 0]} />
    </Actor>
  );
}

Return Value #

Property	Type	Description
`ref`	`RefObject<Object3D>`	Attach to a `<group>` to position the emitter
`burst(count?)`	`(number?) => void`	Emit a burst of particles (default: 30)
`start()`	`() => void`	Start continuous emission
`stop()`	`() => void`	Stop emission (alive particles finish their lifetime)
`clear()`	`() => void`	Stop emission and kill all particles immediately
`setRate(rate)`	`(number) => void`	Change emission rate (stream mode)
`getActiveCount()`	`() => number`	Current number of alive particles
`isEmitting()`	`() => boolean`	Whether the emitter is currently emitting
`reset()`	`() => void`	Reset to initial state

Options #

useParticles accepts all ParticleEmitterConfig fields plus:

Option	Type	Default	Description
`preset`	`ParticlePreset`	—	Base preset: `"fire"`, `"smoke"`, `"explosion"`, `"sparks"`, `"rain"`, `"snow"`, `"magic"`, `"confetti"`. Individual props override preset values
`enabled`	`boolean`	`true`	Enable/disable the emitter

Emission Config #

Option	Type	Default	Description
`maxParticles`	`number`	`1000`	Maximum alive particles at once
`emission`	`"stream" \| "burst"`	`"stream"`	Emission mode
`rate`	`ValueRange`	`50`	Particles per second (stream mode)
`bursts`	`BurstConfig[]`	—	Burst schedule (burst mode)
`duration`	`number`	`Infinity`	Emission duration. `0` = one-shot
`loop`	`boolean`	`true`	Loop after duration ends
`startDelay`	`number`	`0`	Delay before first emission (seconds)
`autoPlay`	`boolean`	`true`	Start emitting immediately

Emitter Shape #

Option	Type	Default	Description
`shape`	`EmitterShapeConfig`	`{ shape: "point" }`	Emission shape

Shapes #

tsx

// Point (all particles emit from one spot)
shape: { shape: "point" }

// Cone (spread upward)
shape: { shape: "cone", angle: Math.PI / 4, radius: 1, surface: false }

// Sphere (radial emission)
shape: { shape: "sphere", radius: 1, surface: false }

// Rectangle (flat area)
shape: { shape: "rectangle", width: 1, height: 1 }

// Edge (line segment)
shape: { shape: "edge", from: [-0.5, 0, 0], to: [0.5, 0, 0] }

// Ring (donut area)
shape: { shape: "ring", radius: 1, innerRadius: 0.8 }

Particle Properties #

Option	Type	Default	Description
`particle.speed`	`ValueRange`	`5`	Initial speed
`particle.lifetime`	`ValueRange`	`1`	Lifetime in seconds
`particle.size`	`ValueRange`	`1`	Initial scale
`particle.rotation`	`ValueRange`	`0`	Initial rotation (radians)
`particle.rotationSpeed`	`ValueRange`	`0`	Rotation speed (radians/sec)
`particle.color`	`ColorRange`	`"#ffffff"`	Initial color
`particle.alpha`	`ValueRange`	`1`	Initial opacity
`particle.acceleration`	`[x, y, z]`	`[0, 0, 0]`	Constant acceleration
`particle.gravity`	`number`	`0`	Downward gravity force
`particle.drag`	`number`	`0`	Linear drag (0 = none, 1 = full stop)

ValueRange can be a single number or [min, max] for randomization:

tsx

particle: {
  speed: [2, 5],        // Random between 2 and 5
  lifetime: 1,          // Always exactly 1 second
  color: ["#ff0000", "#ffff00"],  // Random color between red and yellow
}

Over-Lifetime Curves #

Modify particle properties over their lifetime using keyframe curves. t is normalized (0 = birth, 1 = death).

tsx

overLifetime: {
  // Size multiplier (multiplies initial size)
  size: [
    { t: 0, value: 0 },
    { t: 0.2, value: 1 },
    { t: 1, value: 0 },
  ],

  // Alpha multiplier (multiplies initial alpha)
  alpha: [
    { t: 0, value: 1 },
    { t: 0.7, value: 0.8 },
    { t: 1, value: 0 },
  ],

  // Color gradient (replaces initial color)
  color: [
    { t: 0, color: "#ffffff" },
    { t: 0.3, color: "#ff8800" },
    { t: 1, color: "#331100" },
  ],

  // Speed multiplier
  speed: [
    { t: 0, value: 1 },
    { t: 1, value: 0.2 },
  ],

  // Rotation speed multiplier
  rotationSpeed: [
    { t: 0, value: 1 },
    { t: 1, value: 0 },
  ],
}

Rendering #

Option	Type	Default	Description
`blendMode`	`"normal" \| "additive" \| "multiply" \| "screen"`	`"normal"`	Particle blend mode
`texture`	`Texture \| string`	—	Particle texture (URL or Three.js Texture)
`spriteSheet`	`SpriteSheetConfig`	—	Animated sprite sheet
`billboard`	`boolean`	`true`	Particles face the camera
`space`	`"world" \| "local"`	`"world"`	Coordinate space for simulation
`sortByDistance`	`boolean`	`false`	Sort back-to-front for transparency

Blend Modes #

Mode	Best For
`"normal"`	Smoke, confetti, solid particles
`"additive"`	Fire, sparks, magic, glow effects
`"multiply"`	Shadows, dark effects
`"screen"`	Bright overlays

Sprite Sheets #

tsx

spriteSheet: {
  texture: "/textures/smoke-sheet.png",
  columns: 8,
  rows: 8,
  totalFrames: 60,
  fps: 30,
  loop: true,
  randomStart: true,
}

Burst Mode #

For one-shot effects like explosions:

tsx

const explosion = useParticles({
  preset: "explosion",
  autoPlay: false,
});

// Trigger on demand
function onHit() {
  explosion.burst(80);
}

Burst Schedule #

tsx

const particles = useParticles({
  emission: "burst",
  bursts: [
    { time: 0, count: [60, 100] },
    { time: 0.1, count: [20, 40] },
  ],
  duration: 0,
  loop: false,
});

Field	Type	Default	Description
`time`	`number`	`0`	Offset from emitter start (seconds)
`count`	`ValueRange`	—	Required. Particles to emit
`cycles`	`number`	`1`	Repeat count. `0` = infinite
`interval`	`number`	`1`	Delay between cycles (seconds)

Presets #

8 built-in presets for common effects:

Preset	Mode	Description
`"fire"`	stream	Ascending glow, orange to transparent, additive
`"smoke"`	stream	Slow rise, grey, expanding, normal blend
`"explosion"`	burst	Radial burst, quick fade, additive
`"sparks"`	burst	Fast bright particles with gravity
`"rain"`	stream	Vertical downpour, additive
`"snow"`	stream	Gentle falling, white, normal blend
`"magic"`	stream	Colorful sphere emission, additive
`"confetti"`	burst	Tumbling colored particles with gravity

Custom Presets #

tsx

import { registerParticlePreset } from "@carverjs/core/systems";

registerParticlePreset("myEffect", {
  maxParticles: 500,
  rate: 60,
  shape: { shape: "sphere", radius: 0.5 },
  particle: {
    speed: [2, 5],
    lifetime: [1, 3],
    color: ["#00ffaa", "#0044ff"],
  },
  blendMode: "additive",
});

// Use it
const particles = useParticles({ preset: "myEffect" as any });

World/Local Space #

tsx

// World space (default): particles stay where they were born
const trail = useParticles({
  preset: "fire",
  space: "world",
});

// Local space: particles follow the emitter
const aura = useParticles({
  preset: "magic",
  space: "local",
});

Lifecycle Callbacks #

tsx

const particles = useParticles({
  preset: "explosion",
  autoPlay: false,
  onParticleBorn: (index) => { /* particle spawned */ },
  onParticleDeath: (index) => { /* particle expired */ },
  onComplete: () => { /* all particles died after emission stopped */ },
});

Full Example — Rocket Thruster #

tsx

import { useRef } from "react";
import { Actor } from "@carverjs/core/components";
import { useParticles, useGameLoop, useInput } from "@carverjs/core/hooks";
import type { Group } from "@carverjs/core/types";

function Rocket() {
  const ref = useRef<Group>(null);
  const { isDown } = useInput();

  const thruster = useParticles({
    maxParticles: 300,
    rate: 100,
    shape: { shape: "cone", angle: Math.PI / 8, radius: 0.1 },
    particle: {
      speed: [5, 10],
      lifetime: [0.3, 0.8],
      size: [0.1, 0.3],
      color: ["#ff6600", "#ffcc00"],
    },
    overLifetime: {
      alpha: [
        { t: 0, value: 1 },
        { t: 1, value: 0 },
      ],
      size: [
        { t: 0, value: 1 },
        { t: 1, value: 0.3 },
      ],
    },
    blendMode: "additive",
    autoPlay: false,
  });

  useGameLoop(() => {
    if (isDown("Space")) {
      thruster.start();
      thruster.setRate(150);
    } else {
      thruster.stop();
    }
  });

  return (
    <Actor ref={ref} type="primitive" shape="box" color="#888">
      <group ref={thruster.ref} position={[0, -1, 0]} />
    </Actor>
  );
}

Game Phase Integration #

Particles automatically respect the game phase:

Phase	Behavior
`"loading"`	All emitters frozen
`"playing"`	Normal operation
`"paused"`	Emitters freeze — no emission, no updates
`"gameover"`	Same as paused

Cleanup #

Emitters created via useParticles are automatically destroyed when the component unmounts. The GPU resources (InstancedMesh, material, textures) are disposed.

Type Definitions #

See Types for ParticleEmitterConfig, ParticlePreset, EmitterShapeConfig, ValueRange, ColorRange, LifetimeCurve, ColorGradient, BurstConfig, SpriteSheetConfig, ParticleBlendMode, OverLifetimeConfig, UseParticlesOptions, and UseParticlesReturn.