Fonts

Version History

Build Version	Change Date	Change Type	Description
676042	2025-06-21	stable	Current version

Overview

The fonts.lua module defines the font system for Don't Starve Together, including font constants, fallback configurations, and the master font registry. It provides standardized font aliases and manages language-specific font variants to ensure consistent text rendering across different UI elements and languages.

Usage Example

-- Use predefined font constants
local text_widget = Text(DEFAULTFONT, 24, "Hello World!")
local title = Text(TITLEFONT, 48, "Game Title")
local chat_message = Text(CHATFONT, 20, "Player message")

-- Access font configuration
for _, font_config in ipairs(FONTS) do
    print("Font: " .. font_config.alias .. " -> " .. font_config.filename)
end

Font Constants

Primary UI Fonts

DEFAULTFONT

Value: "opensans"

Description: Default font used for general UI text and dialogue.

DIALOGFONT

Value: "opensans"

Description: Font used for dialogue text. Currently identical to DEFAULTFONT.

TITLEFONT

Value: "bp100"

Description: Large decorative font used for game titles and headers.

UIFONT

Value: "bp50"

Description: Medium-sized font used for general UI elements.

BUTTONFONT

Value: "buttonfont"

Description: Font specifically designed for button text.

Modern UI Fonts

NEWFONT

Value: "spirequal"

Description: Primary modern UI font for new interface elements.

NEWFONT_SMALL

Value: "spirequal_small"

Description: Smaller variant of the modern UI font.

NEWFONT_OUTLINE

Value: "spirequal_outline"

Description: Outlined version of the modern UI font for better visibility.

NEWFONT_OUTLINE_SMALL

Value: "spirequal_outline_small"

Description: Small outlined variant (currently not in use).

Specialized Fonts

NUMBERFONT

Value: "stint-ucr"

Description: Font optimized for displaying numbers.

SMALLNUMBERFONT

Value: "stint-small"

Description: Smaller version of the number font.

BODYTEXTFONT

Value: "stint-ucr"

Description: Font used for body text and descriptions.

CODEFONT

Value: "ptmono"

Description: Monospaced font for code display (planned for promo-code verification).

Character-Specific Fonts

TALKINGFONT

Value: "talkingfont"

Description: Default character dialogue font.

TALKINGFONT_WORMWOOD

Value: "talkingfont_wormwood"

Description: Special dialogue font for Wormwood character.

TALKINGFONT_TRADEIN

Value: "talkingfont_tradein"

Description: Dialogue font for trade-in related characters.

TALKINGFONT_HERMIT

Value: "talkingfont_hermit"

Description: Dialogue font for hermit characters.

Chat and Communication

CHATFONT

Value: "bellefair"

Description: Font used for chat messages.

CHATFONT_OUTLINE

Value: "bellefair_outline"

Description: Outlined version of chat font for better readability.

HEADERFONT

Value: "hammerhead"

Description: Font used for section headers.

Fallback Font System

Fallback Font Constants

FALLBACK_FONT

Value: "fallback_font"

Description: Basic fallback font for missing glyphs.

FALLBACK_FONT_FULL

Value: "fallback_font_full"

Description: Full character set fallback font.

FALLBACK_FONT_OUTLINE

Value: "fallback_font_outline"

Description: Outlined fallback font.

FALLBACK_FONT_FULL_OUTLINE

Value: "fallback_font_full_outline"

Description: Full character set outlined fallback font.

Fallback Tables

DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE

Configuration:

DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE = {
    CONTROLLERS,    -- Controller button glyphs
    EMOJIFONT,      -- Emoji support
    FALLBACK_FONT,  -- Basic fallback
    FALLBACK_FONT_FULL,  -- Extended fallback
}

Description: Standard fallback sequence for non-outlined fonts.

DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE

Configuration:

DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE = {
    CONTROLLERS,             -- Controller button glyphs
    EMOJIFONT,               -- Emoji support
    FALLBACK_FONT_OUTLINE,   -- Outlined fallback
    FALLBACK_FONT_FULL_OUTLINE,  -- Extended outlined fallback
}

Description: Fallback sequence for outlined fonts.

Language Support

Language-Specific Font Variants

The system supports language-specific font variants through the font_posfix system:

local font_posfix = ""

if LanguageTranslator then
    local lang = LanguageTranslator.defaultlang
    local specialFontLangs = {"jp"}
    
    for i,v in pairs(specialFontLangs) do
        if v == lang then
            font_posfix = "__"..lang
        end
    end
end

Supported Languages:

• Japanese ("jp"): Uses "__jp" suffix for specialized character support

Example:

• Default: "fonts/opensans50.zip"
• Japanese: "fonts/opensans50__jp.zip"

FONTS Configuration Table

The FONTS table contains the complete font registry with detailed configurations:

FONTS = {
    {
        filename = "fonts/opensans50.zip",
        alias = DEFAULTFONT,
        fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE
    },
    {
        filename = "fonts/bellefair50.zip",
        alias = CHATFONT,
        fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE
    },
    -- ... additional font configurations
}

Font Configuration Structure

Each font entry contains:

filename

Type: string

Description: Path to the font file, including language suffix if applicable.

alias

Type: string

Description: Font constant name used for referencing the font in code.

fallback

Type: table

Description: Array of fallback fonts to use when glyphs are missing.

adjustadvance (optional)

Type: number

Description: Character spacing adjustment for the font.

Example:

{
    filename = "fonts/belisaplumilla50.zip",
    alias = UIFONT,
    fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE,
    adjustadvance = -2  -- Tighten character spacing
}

disable_color (optional)

Type: boolean

Description: Disables color rendering for special fonts like controllers and emoji.

Font Categories

Core UI Fonts

-- Essential fonts for game interface
{ filename = "fonts/opensans50.zip", alias = DEFAULTFONT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE },
{ filename = "fonts/belisaplumilla50.zip", alias = UIFONT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE, adjustadvance=-2 },
{ filename = "fonts/belisaplumilla100.zip", alias = TITLEFONT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE },

Character Dialogue Fonts

-- Specialized fonts for character speech
{ filename = "fonts/talkingfont.zip", alias = TALKINGFONT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE },
{ filename = "fonts/talkingfont_wormwood.zip", alias = TALKINGFONT_WORMWOOD, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE },
{ filename = "fonts/talkingfont_hermit.zip", alias = TALKINGFONT_HERMIT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE_OUTLINE },

Utility Fonts

-- Special purpose fonts
{ filename = "fonts/controllers.zip", alias = CONTROLLERS, disable_color = true },
{ filename = "fonts/emoji.zip", alias = EMOJIFONT, disable_color = true },
{ filename = "fonts/ptmono32.zip", alias = CODEFONT, fallback = DEFAULT_FALLBACK_TABLE },

Fallback Fonts

-- Fallback fonts for missing glyphs
{ filename = "fonts/fallback.zip", alias = FALLBACK_FONT },
{ filename = "fonts/fallback_full_packed.zip", alias = FALLBACK_FONT_FULL },
{ filename = "fonts/fallback_outline.zip", alias = FALLBACK_FONT_OUTLINE },
{ filename = "fonts/fallback_full_outline_packed.zip", alias = FALLBACK_FONT_FULL_OUTLINE },

Common Usage Patterns

UI Text Creation

-- Create text widgets with appropriate fonts
local title = Text(TITLEFONT, 48, "Game Settings")
local description = Text(BODYTEXTFONT, 24, "Configure your game options")
local button_text = Text(BUTTONFONT, 32, "Apply Changes")

Character Dialogue

-- Select appropriate dialogue font based on character
local font = TALKINGFONT
if character == "wormwood" then
    font = TALKINGFONT_WORMWOOD
elseif character == "hermit" then
    font = TALKINGFONT_HERMIT
end

local dialogue = Text(font, 28, character_line)

Chat System Integration

-- Chat message with proper fallback support
local chat_text = Text(CHATFONT, 24, message)
if needs_outline then
    chat_text:SetFont(CHATFONT_OUTLINE)
end

Language-Specific Font Loading

-- Font system automatically handles language variants
-- Japanese players automatically get "__jp" font variants
local ui_text = Text(UIFONT, 32, localized_string)

Font Loading Process

1. Language Detection: System determines current language
2. Font Suffix Application: Adds language suffix to font filenames if needed
3. Asset Registration: Fonts are registered as game assets
4. Loading: Font files are loaded during game initialization
5. Fallback Setup: Fallback chains are established for missing glyphs
6. Runtime Usage: Fonts become available for UI text rendering

Performance Considerations

Memory Usage

• All registered fonts are loaded into memory
• Fallback fonts add to memory footprint
• Language variants duplicate font data

Loading Time

• Font loading occurs during game startup
• Large font files can increase load times
• Multiple language variants affect startup performance

Glyph Fallback

• Missing glyphs trigger fallback chain traversal
• Complex fallback chains can impact text rendering performance
• Emoji and controller fonts are frequently used fallbacks

Related Modules

• Font Helper: Utility for adding font assets
• Translator: Language detection and localization
• Text Widgets: UI text rendering components
• Localization: Multi-language string management