IsometryInstallation & Setup
Downloading Isometry
Isometry is a single executable — the engine is the product. Download it from itch.io:
The download includes builds for Linux, Windows, and macOS. Pick the build for your platform and unpack it into a folder of your choosing.
On macOS, if the app won't open, run this once:
xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine Isometry.app
Installing Campaigns
Campaign files are ZIP archives containing YAML or JSON entity definitions and
assets. Place a campaign .zip in one of these locations:
- The same folder as the Isometry executable
- A
campaigns/subfolder next to the executable - A custom path you point at with
--dir=/path/to/campaigns
Using the Launcher
Launching Isometry without network flags opens the launcher — a graphical interface for starting games.
Choosing a username & password. Your in-game username is displayed to other players. Your password is encrypted on the host's machine, and a new username/password combination is created automatically the first time you connect to a host. Be mindful of where your password is stored: don't reuse a password from another personal account, and write your username and password down — the host has no way to recover them for you.
- Open Isometry.
- Enter your username and password.
- Select a campaign from the dropdown.
- Enter the URI and port (defaults:
localhost:5000). - Click HOST to start a server, or JOIN to connect to one.
Command-Line Launch
For advanced use, Isometry can launch directly from the command line. The examples below use the Linux executable name; substitute the executable for your platform.
# Single player (host mode, localhost)
./isometry --campaign=demo --network=host --port=5000 \
--username=player1 --secret=secret
# Join a multiplayer server
./isometry --campaign=demo --network=client \
--uri=server.example.com --port=5000 \
--username=player1 --secret=secret
# Run a dedicated server
./isometry --campaign=demo --network=server --port=5000 \
--username=server --secret=serverpass
CLI Arguments Reference
| Argument | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
--campaign=NAME |
Campaign name (without .zip) |
Required |
--network=MODE |
host, server, client, or none |
Required |
--uri=HOST |
Server address | localhost |
--port=PORT |
Server port (1024–65535) | 5000 |
--dir=PATH |
Campaign directory path | auto-detected |
--username=NAME |
Player display name | Required |
--secret=PASS |
Authentication password | Required |
--log-level=LEVEL |
trace, debug, info, warn, error |
info |
--delay=MS |
Connection delay in milliseconds | 0 |
You can also validate a campaign without launching a session:
# Check a campaign for errors (exit 0 = valid, 1 = invalid)
./isometry --validate=/path/to/campaign.zip