PixiJS 8.21 Rendering

Set up and structure a PixiJS 8.21 application: the async Application, asset loading via Assets, the Container/Sprite scene graph, the ticker loop, pointer events, and render groups. Pins the 8.21 API (async init, unified Assets, eventMode).

When to use

• Use when starting a PixiJS v8 project, fixing a blank canvas, structuring the display list, loading textures, animating via the ticker, or handling pointer input.
• Use when package.json depends on pixi.js (v8) and code does import { Application } from 'pixi.js'.

When not to use: Phaser's scene/loader model → phaser-core. 3D scenes → threejs-scene-setup. PixiJS v7-and-earlier code (synchronous new Application({...}), Loader, beginFill/endFill) needs the v8 migration first; this skill targets v8 only. (interactive = true still works in v8 as an alias for eventMode = 'static', but prefer the explicit eventMode.)

Core workflow

1. Create and await the Application. In v8, new Application() is empty; configuration happens in await app.init({...}). Append app.canvas (not app.view) to the DOM. Wrap top-level await in an async function for bundlers.
2. Load assets with Assets. await Assets.load(url) returns a Texture. For many assets, register a manifest/bundle and load by name. There is no v7 Loader.
3. Build the scene graph. Everything descends from app.stage (a Container). Group related objects in Containers; child transforms are relative to the parent. Draw order = insertion order (later = on top).
4. Animate with the ticker. app.ticker.add((ticker) => {...}). Scale motion by ticker.deltaTime (frames, ~1 at 60fps) or ticker.deltaMS (milliseconds) so speed is frame-rate independent.
5. Enable events per object by setting eventMode = 'static' (or 'dynamic'), then obj.on('pointerdown', ...). Federated pointer events cover mouse/touch/pen.
6. Promote big static subtrees to render groups (isRenderGroup: true) so the GPU caches their transforms. Profile before and after; confirm pixels on screen.

Patterns

1. Async Application boot (the v8 entry point)

import { Application, Assets, Sprite } from 'pixi.js';

(async () => {
  // v8: construct empty, then await init(). Config does NOT go in the constructor.
  const app = new Application();
  await app.init({
    background: '#1099bb',
    resizeTo: window,        // track the window size
    antialias: true,
    // preference: 'webgpu',  // hint only; default order tries 'webgl' first.
    //                        // Pixi falls back if the backend is unavailable —
    //                        // branch on app.renderer.name, don't assume it took.
  });

  document.body.appendChild(app.canvas); // v8 uses app.canvas, not app.view

  const texture = await Assets.load('https://pixijs.com/assets/bunny.png');
  const bunny = new Sprite(texture);
  bunny.anchor.set(0.5);
  bunny.position.set(app.screen.width / 2, app.screen.height / 2);
  app.stage.addChild(bunny);
})();

2. Containers for a relative-transform scene graph

import { Container, Sprite } from 'pixi.js';

const world = new Container();
app.stage.addChild(world);

// Children are positioned relative to `world`; move/scale/rotate the whole group
// by transforming the parent.
for (let i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
  const coin = new Sprite(coinTexture);
  coin.x = i * 40;
  world.addChild(coin);
}
world.position.set(100, 100);
world.scale.set(2);            // every coin scales with the container

3. The ticker loop (frame-rate independent)

let elapsed = 0;
app.ticker.add((ticker) => {
  // deltaTime ≈ 1 at 60fps; deltaMS is milliseconds since last frame.
  elapsed += ticker.deltaMS;
  bunny.rotation += 0.05 * ticker.deltaTime;          // smooth at any frame rate
  bunny.y = app.screen.height / 2 + Math.sin(elapsed / 500) * 50;
});

4. Pointer events (federated)

bunny.eventMode = 'static';   // 'static' = interactive, doesn't move on its own
bunny.cursor = 'pointer';     // hover cursor; `buttonMode` was removed in v8
bunny.on('pointerdown', (event) => {
  bunny.tint = 0xff0000;
  // event.global is the pointer position in stage space.
});
bunny.on('pointerover', () => bunny.scale.set(1.1));
bunny.on('pointerout',  () => bunny.scale.set(1.0));

Dragging needs globalpointermove, not pointermove. In v8 pointermove fires only while the pointer is over the object, so a drag that follows the cursor past the object's edge stops updating. globalpointermove fires on every move:

let dragging = false;
bunny.on('pointerdown', () => { dragging = true; });
bunny.on('pointerup', () => { dragging = false; });
bunny.on('pointerupoutside', () => { dragging = false; }); // release off the object
bunny.on('globalpointermove', (event) => {
  if (dragging) bunny.position.copyFrom(event.global);
});

5. Loading many assets by name (bundles)

import { Assets } from 'pixi.js';

await Assets.init({
  manifest: {
    bundles: [{
      name: 'level-1',
      assets: [
        { alias: 'hero',  src: 'assets/hero.png' },
        { alias: 'tiles', src: 'assets/tiles.png' },
      ],
    }],
  },
});

const bundle = await Assets.loadBundle('level-1'); // { hero: Texture, tiles: Texture }
const hero = new Sprite(bundle.hero);

6. Render groups for large static layers

// A big, rarely-changing background subtree: let the GPU cache its transforms.
const background = new Container({ isRenderGroup: true });
app.stage.addChild(background);
// Add hundreds of static tiles to `background`. Moving `background` itself stays
// cheap; constantly re-adding/removing children negates the benefit.

Pitfalls

• Blank canvas / "app.stage is undefined" → you didn't await app.init(), or you configured the constructor. In v8 the constructor is empty; all options go to init(). app.renderer/app.canvas/app.screen are undefined until the init() promise resolves.
• app.view is undefined → v8 renamed it to app.canvas.
• Porting v7 code → Loader/loader.add → Assets.load (the Loader class is gone); synchronous new Application({...}) → empty constructor + async init() (options in the constructor are ignored with a deprecation warning, not an error); beginFill()/endFill() → shape-first .rect(...).fill(...). interactive = true and app.view still work as deprecated aliases.
• Ticker callback arg is the Ticker, not a delta number → app.ticker.add((dt) => { obj.rotation += dt; }) compiles, but dt is the whole Ticker object, so the math yields NaN and nothing animates. Read ticker.deltaTime off the argument.
• Top-level await build error (Vite ≤6.0.6) → wrap boot in (async () => { ... })().
• Speed varies with frame rate → multiply movement by ticker.deltaTime (~1 at 60fps) or scale by ticker.deltaMS; never assume 60fps. deltaTime is a dimensionless multiplier, not milliseconds.
• Clicks do nothing → the object's eventMode is still 'passive' (the v8 default: self not interactive, children still are); set it to 'static' (or 'dynamic' for objects that move under a stationary cursor).
• Drag stops at the object's edge → pointermove fires only while the pointer is over the object in v8; use globalpointermove for drag/global tracking.
• Texture.from(url) returns a blank/undefined texture → in v8 it only reads the Assets cache; await Assets.load(url) first, then use the returned Texture.
• WebGPU features error out → preference is a hint. If the backend is unavailable Pixi falls back (WebGL, then Canvas); branch on app.renderer.name before using backend-specific code.
• Textures look blurry on pixel art → set texture.source.scaleMode = 'nearest' (or pass it when loading).
• Memory grows → removeChild does not free GPU memory; call sprite.destroy() and Assets.unload(url) for assets you're done with.
• Flicker/corruption after tearing down and re-creating an app in the same tab → destroy with app.destroy({ releaseGlobalResources: true }); otherwise pooled batches/textures from the old app leak into the new one.

References

• For the texture/asset pipeline (sprite sheets/atlases, Assets.add, background loading, unloading) and Graphics/Text/TilingSprite/ParticleContainer plus filters, read references/assets-and-display.md.

Related skills

• phaser-core — a batteries-included 2D framework (scenes, physics, input).
• threejs-scene-setup — 3D in the browser with three.js.
• prototype-fast — greybox a playable slice quickly (often cites PixiJS).