Modify GML events and create resources — GMS2 picks up changes instantly.
Features
No IDE Restart Required
Write GML code, create or delete resources, add room instances — GameMaker Studio 2 reloads the changes automatically while the IDE stays open. No manual restart, no lost editor layout.
28 Command Palette Commands
Create and manage every major GMS2 resource type directly from VS Code:
- Objects, Scripts, Rooms, Sprites, Shaders, Fonts, Paths, Sequences, Timelines, Notes
- Modify any GML event (50+ event types including Alarms, Draw sub-events, Async, User Events)
- Duplicate objects, add instances to rooms, manage room layers
TCP Bridge — Control Your Running Game
Connect VS Code to your running GMS2 game over a local TCP connection. Read live data, evaluate GML expressions, modify instance variables, and toggle an in-game HUD overlay — all without leaving VS Code.
GML Syntax Highlighting + 9 Themes
Full TextMate grammar for .gml, .yy, and .yyp files. Switch between 9 built-in color themes from the status bar. Interface available in 13 languages.
Auto-Detection from Folder
Create a folder inside objects/, scripts/, rooms/, sprites/, shaders/, fonts/, paths/, sequences/, timelines/, or notes/ — GMSync automatically generates the correct .yy file and registers the resource in .yyp. Works with any file manager or terminal, no commands required.
How It Works
GMS2 caches its resource structure when a project is opened. Editing an existing .gml file works fine — GMS2 picks it up on save. But adding a new object, script, or event normally requires restarting the project.
GMSync solves this by triggering a native GMS2 resource tree rescan without closing the IDE:
- You create or modify a resource (via command, file manager, or terminal)
- GMSync writes the files atomically (via temp → rename) to prevent partial reads
- GMSync creates and removes a temporary folder inside the project — GMS2 reacts to this filesystem event and rescans its resource tree
- The new resource appears in GMS2's Resource Tree instantly, with no project reload
All writes go through a safe atomic pipeline. On startup, GMSync also cleans up any stale entries left in .yyp from previously deleted resources.
Requirements
- GameMaker Studio 2 (2022.x or newer)
- VS Code 1.85.0 or newer
- GMS2 setting (required): In GMS2 open
Preferences → General Settings and enable Automatically reload changed files.
This tells GMS2 to pick up code changes from external editors immediately — without restarting the project or the IDE.
- For TCP Bridge only: Open your project, go to
Game Options → Windows and check Disable file system sandbox.
Without this, GMS2 blocks the network calls the bridge uses to connect to VS Code.
Quick Start
- Open your GMS2 project folder in VS Code (the folder containing your
.yyp file)
- In GMS2 IDE: go to Preferences → General Settings and enable Automatically reload changed files
- Use
Ctrl+Shift+P and type GMSync: to see all available commands
The extension activates automatically when a .yyp file is detected in the workspace.
Activity Bar
Click the GMSync icon in the VS Code Activity Bar to open the resource tree. It shows all project resources in a 3-level hierarchy:
- Category (Objects, Scripts, Rooms, Sprites, Shaders, …)
- Resource (e.g.
obj_player, scr_utils, Room1)
- Events — for objects only: each event is listed as a child node (e.g.
Create, Step, Draw)
Right-clicking any node opens a context menu with relevant actions:
- Right-click a category → Create resource of that type
- Right-click an object → Modify Event, Duplicate Object
- Right-click a room → Add Instance to Room
- Right-click an event → Modify Event, Write GML File
The tree header buttons give quick access to Refresh, Settings, and Bridge start/stop.
Commands
Resources
| Command |
Description |
GMSync: Create Object |
Create a new GMS2 object |
GMSync: Create Script |
Create a new script |
GMSync: Create Room |
Create a new room |
GMSync: Create Sprite |
Create a new sprite (1×1 transparent placeholder) |
GMSync: Create Shader |
Create a new GLSL shader |
GMSync: Create Font |
Create a new font stub |
GMSync: Create Path |
Create a new path |
GMSync: Create Sequence |
Create a new sequence |
GMSync: Create Timeline |
Create a new timeline |
GMSync: Create Note |
Create a new note |
GMSync: Duplicate Object |
Duplicate an existing object with all its events |
Events & Code
| Command |
Description |
GMSync: Modify Event |
Write GML code to any event on any object |
GMSync: Write GML File |
Write directly to a .gml file by relative path |
Rooms
| Command |
Description |
GMSync: Add Instance to Room |
Place an object instance in a room at X/Y |
GMSync: Add Layer to Room |
Add an Instance or Background layer |
GMSync: Remove Layer from Room |
Remove a layer (cleans up instances) |
GMSync: Set Background Colour |
Set the fill colour on a background layer |
GMSync: Set Background Sprite |
Assign or clear a sprite on a background layer |
TCP Bridge
| Command |
Description |
GMSync: Start Bridge |
Start the TCP server (port 6503) |
GMSync: Stop Bridge |
Stop the TCP server |
GMSync: Install Bridge Assets |
Inject the bridge object into your GMS2 project |
GMSync: Uninstall Bridge Assets |
Remove bridge assets from the project |
GMSync: Bridge — Send Command |
Open the command picker to send a command to the running game |
GMSync: Bridge — Show Logs |
Show the bridge log output |
Utility
| Command |
Description |
GMSync: Open Logs |
Open the extension log output |
GMSync: Reload Project |
Manually reload the project model |
GMSync: Refresh Tree |
Refresh the Activity Bar resource tree |
GMSync: GML Highlight Theme |
Pick a GML syntax color theme |
GMSync: Settings |
Open the settings panel |
TCP Bridge
The TCP Bridge lets you send commands from VS Code to your running GMS2 game in real time.
Architecture: VS Code runs a TCP server on port 6503. Your game connects as a TCP client when it starts.
Setup
- Run
GMSync: Install Bridge Assets — this injects the bridge object __gmsync_bridge into your project
- Enable Game Options → Windows → Disable file system sandbox
- Run
GMSync: Start Bridge in VS Code
- Launch your game — it will connect automatically and reconnect if the game restarts
Available Bridge Commands
| Command |
Description |
ping |
Check connection (returns pong) |
get_fps |
Get current game FPS |
room_info |
Get current room name and ID |
game_restart |
Restart the game |
gml_eval <expression> |
Evaluate a GML expression (e.g. gml_eval global.hp=100) |
list_instances <object> |
List all instance IDs of an object |
var_instance_list <id> |
List all variables on an instance |
var_instance_set <id> <var> <value> |
Set a variable on an instance |
hud_toggle |
Toggle the in-game Live HUD overlay |
hud_clear |
Clear all variables from the Live HUD |
The Live HUD (Draw GUI overlay) shows modified variables in the top-right corner of the game window for 5 seconds after each change.
GML Themes
GMSync includes 9 built-in color themes for GML syntax highlighting:
| Theme |
Description |
| Default |
Standard VS Code colors — no overrides |
| Classic |
Classic blue scheme |
| Dark Pro |
Rich dark GitHub-style |
| Monokai |
Bright Monokai style |
| Solarized |
Solarized dark |
| One Dark |
Atom One Dark |
| Pastel |
Soft pastel tones |
| HACKER |
Green-on-black terminal mode |
| Retro |
Amber CRT retro style |
Switch themes from the status bar (GML: ThemeName) or via GMSync: GML Highlight Theme.
Settings
Open GMSync: Settings to configure:
- Interface language — 13 languages: English, Русский, 简体中文, 繁體中文, 日本語, Română, Deutsch, Français, Español, Português, हिन्दी, Italiano, Українська
- GML color theme — same as the Theme Picker
Known Limitations
- TCP Bridge works on localhost only (
127.0.0.1:6503) — not suitable for remote connections
- File system sandbox must be disabled in Game Options for the Bridge to connect on Windows
- The extension only activates when a
.yyp file is found in the workspace root
- On startup, GMSync automatically cleans up stale
.yyp entries left by previously deleted resources — this is safe and requires no user action
License
MIT — see LICENSE
GML syntax grammar based on bscotch/stitch (MIT License, Copyright 2023 Butterscotch Shenanigans).
