pixijs-assets

name: pixijs-assets description: "Use this skill when loading and managing resources in PixiJS v8. Covers Assets.init, Assets.load/add/unload, bundles, manifests, background loading, onProgress, caching, spritesheets, video textures, web fonts, bitmap fonts, animated GIFs, compressed textures, SVG as texture or Graphics, resolution detection, per-asset data options, and forcing a specific loader with the parser field (for extension-less URLs). Triggers on: Assets, Assets.load, Assets.init, loadBundle, manifest, backgroundLoad, Spritesheet, Cache, LoadOptions, unload, parser, loadParser, loadWebFont, loadBitmapFont, loadVideoTextures, GifSource, VideoSourceOptions." license: MIT

The Assets API is PixiJS's asset loader, resolver, and cache in one singleton. Use it to load textures, video, spritesheets, fonts, JSON, and other resources with format detection, resolution switching, bundle grouping, progress tracking, and GPU cleanup.

Quick Start

await Assets.init({ basePath: "/static/" });

const texture = await Assets.load("bunny.png");
const sprite = new Sprite(texture);
app.stage.addChild(sprite);

const [hero, enemy] = await Assets.load(["hero.png", "enemy.png"]);

await Assets.load({
  alias: "logo",
  src: "logo.webp",
});

const logo = new Sprite(Assets.get("logo"));

Assets.init() is optional but recommended for setting basePath, texturePreference, or a manifest. After init, call Assets.load() with a URL, alias, array, or UnresolvedAsset; resolved assets are cached and re-resolved by Assets.get().

Supported file types

The Parser ID column is the value you pass to the top-level parser field on an asset descriptor to force a specific loader. See "Forcing a parser" below.

Forcing a parser with parser

By default, PixiJS picks a loader by matching the file extension or MIME type. When your URL lacks an extension (CDN signed URLs, blob URLs, API endpoints, content-hashed paths), the resolver can't tell the loader what to do. Set the top-level parser field on the asset descriptor to force a specific loader:

// Signed CDN URL with no extension
const texture = await Assets.load({
  src: "https://cdn.example.com/signed/abc123?token=xyz",
  parser: "texture",
});

// API endpoint that returns JSON
const data = await Assets.load({
  alias: "config",
  src: "https://api.example.com/v1/config",
  parser: "json",
});

// Extension-less font URL with explicit family
await Assets.load({
  src: "https://cdn.example.com/fonts/hero-v2",
  parser: "web-font",
  data: { family: "Hero", weights: ["400", "700"] },
});

// Video stream without a file extension
const clipTexture = await Assets.load({
  src: "https://cdn.example.com/stream/xyz",
  parser: "video",
  data: { mime: "video/mp4", muted: true, playsinline: true },
});

The parser field goes at the top level of the asset descriptor (alongside src and data), not inside data. It takes any parser ID from the "Supported file types" table above:

• 'texture', 'svg', 'video': image, SVG, and video textures
• 'json', 'text': JSON and plain text
• 'web-font', 'bitmap-font': web and bitmap fonts
• 'spritesheet': texture atlas JSON
• 'gif': animated GIFs (requires 'pixi.js/gif')
• 'basis', 'dds', 'ktx', 'ktx2': compressed textures (each requires its side-effect import)

When you need it

• Signed CDN URLs: https://cdn.example.com/get?id=abc123 has no extension the loader can test against.
• Blob or ObjectURL: URL.createObjectURL(blob) produces blob:... URLs with no extension.
• Custom routing: /api/assets/hero-v2 where the server decides the content type.
• Content-hashed paths without suffix: some build pipelines produce names like /static/abc123def instead of /static/abc123def.png.

If the URL does have an extension, you don't need parser; let auto-detection do its job. Only set parser when detection can't work.

loadParser is deprecated

The v7 loadParser field still works but emits a deprecation warning. Use parser for new code.

// Old (deprecated)
await Assets.load({ src: "...", loadParser: "loadTextures" });

// New
await Assets.load({ src: "...", parser: "texture" });

Topics

Every asset workflow is covered in a reference file. Pick the one that matches the question:

Decision guide

• Need to load a single image? Use Assets.load(url). No setup required.
• Loading many assets grouped by level/scene? Use a bundle. See references/bundles.md.
• Know all assets at build time? Use a manifest in Assets.init. See references/manifests.md.
• Need a loading bar? Pass a progress callback to Assets.load. See references/progress.md.
• Smooth transitions between levels? Background-load the next level. See references/background.md.
• Memory budget matters? Use compressed textures and Assets.unload between screens. See references/compressed-textures.md and references/caching.md.
• Need crisp SVG icons at any size? Load as Graphics, not texture. See references/svg.md.
• Retina + WebP/AVIF? Configure texturePreference and use format patterns. See references/resolution.md.

Load options and error handling

There are two separate "options" concepts when loading assets:

1. LoadOptions: the second argument to Assets.load/loadBundle. Controls error recovery, retries, progress, and completion callbacks across a whole load.
2. data: a field on each asset descriptor. Forwards parser-specific options (scale mode, resolution, font family, autoplay flags, etc.) to the specific loader for that asset.

LoadOptions (per call)

await Assets.load(["hero.png", "enemy.png"], {
  onProgress: (p) => updateBar(p),
  onError: (err, url) => {
    const src = typeof url === "string" ? url : url.src;
    console.warn("failed:", src, err);
  },
  strategy: "retry",
  retryCount: 3,
  retryDelay: 250,
});

• onProgress(progress): [0, 1] as assets in the call complete.
• onError(error, url): url is string | ResolvedAsset. Guard before reading .src; when url is a string, .src is undefined.
• strategy: 'throw' | 'skip' | 'retry' — default 'throw'. 'skip' resolves with any successful assets; 'retry' reattempts the failed ones.
• retryCount — default 3, retries per asset when strategy is 'retry'.
• retryDelay — default 250 ms between retries.

Global defaults live on Loader.defaultOptions, or pass loadOptions to Assets.init().

data options (per asset)

Each loader parser reads its own options from the data field on the asset descriptor. Use the table below to pick the right options for each asset type:

Example combining LoadOptions and data:

await Assets.load(
  {
    alias: "hero",
    src: "hero.png",
    data: { scaleMode: "nearest", resolution: 2 },
  },
  { strategy: "retry", retryCount: 3 },
);

Inside a manifest or bundle, every entry can carry its own data:

await Assets.init({
  manifest: {
    bundles: [
      {
        name: "level1",
        assets: [
          { alias: "tiles", src: "tiles.png", data: { scaleMode: "nearest" } },
          { alias: "font", src: "hero.woff2", data: { family: "Hero" } },
          {
            alias: "clip",
            src: "intro.mp4",
            data: { autoPlay: false, muted: true },
          },
        ],
      },
    ],
  },
});

Runtime configuration

Assets.init(options) accepts, alongside basePath and manifest:

• defaultSearchParams — string or Record<string, any> appended to every resolved URL. Useful for cache busting.
• skipDetections: boolean — bypass browser format detection for faster init. Requires explicit texturePreference.format.
• bundleIdentifier: BundleIdentifierOptions — customize how bundle keys resolve so the same alias can live in multiple bundles.
• loadOptions: Partial<LoadOptions> — set the default strategy, retryCount, retryDelay, and callbacks for every subsequent Assets.load call.
• preferences: Partial<AssetsPreferences> — crossOrigin, preferWorkers, preferCreateImageBitmap, parseAsGraphicsContext.

After init, preferences can still be tuned:

Assets.setPreferences({
  crossOrigin: "anonymous",
  preferCreateImageBitmap: false,
});

for (const detection of Assets.detections) {
  console.log(detection.extension);
}

Assets.reset();

• Assets.setPreferences(preferences) — push new preferences to every parser that supports them.
• Assets.detections — getter exposing the registered FormatDetectionParser list; use when inspecting what formats the current environment advertises.
• Assets.reset() — internal full reset (resolver + loader + cache). Intended for tests so a fresh Assets.init can run.

Common Mistakes

[CRITICAL] Using Texture.from(url) to load

Wrong:

const texture = Texture.from("https://example.com/image.png");

Correct:

const texture = await Assets.load("https://example.com/image.png");

In v8, Texture.from() only reads the cache. It does not fetch from a URL. Use Assets.load() first; the return value is the texture itself.

[HIGH] Using positional Assets.add signature

Wrong:

Assets.add("bunny", "bunny.png");

Correct:

Assets.add({ alias: "bunny", src: "bunny.png" });

The positional Assets.add(key, url) form was removed in v8. Use the options object with alias and src properties.

[HIGH] Not unloading textures between levels

Assets.load() caches textures indefinitely. For level-based games or screens with distinct asset sets, call Assets.unloadBundle() when transitioning to release GPU memory.

API Reference

• Assets
• Loader
• Resolver
• Cache
• LoadOptions
• AssetInitOptions
• AssetsManifest
• AssetsBundle
• BackgroundLoader
• Spritesheet