Building next generation UIs in Flutter

1. Before you begin

Flutter is great at enabling developers to quickly create new user interfaces iteratively using the combination of hot reload and declarative UI. However, there comes a time when you need to add additional interactivity to an interface. These touches can be as simple as animating a button on hover or as dramatic as a shader that warps the user interface using the power of the GPU.

In this codelab, you will build a Flutter app that uses the power of animations, shaders, and particle fields to craft a user interface that evokes those science fiction movies and TV shows we all love watching when we aren't coding.

What you'll build

You'll build the initial menu page for a post apocalyptic sci-fi themed game. There is a title with a fragment shader that samples the text to visually animate it, a difficulty menu that changes the color theme of the page with animations galore, and an animated orb painted with a second fragment shader. If that isn't enough, at the end of the codelab you'll add a subtle particle effect to bring movement and interest to the page.

The following screenshots show the app you will build on the three supported desktop operating systems: Windows, Linux, and macOS. For completeness, a web browser version (also supported) is provided. Animations and fragment shaders everywhere!

Prerequisites

• Basic knowledge of Flutter development with Dart, as covered in the Your first Flutter app codelab

What you'll learn

• How to use flutter_animate to build expressive animations
• How to use Flutter's support for fragment shaders on desktop and the web
• How to add particle animations to your app with particle_field

What you'll need

• The Flutter SDK
• VS Code setup for Flutter and Dart
• Desktop support setup for Flutter for Windows, Linux, or macOS
• Web support setup for Flutter

Note: Although Flutter supports fragment shaders and animations on Android and iOS, this codelab's graphic layout was specifically designed for desktop and web form factors. This code runs on iOS and Android devices, but the layout isn't adaptive for mobile devices. However, you can use the techniques you learn in this codelab to spice up your mobile Flutter applications.

2. Get started

Download the starter code

1. Navigate to this GitHub repository.
2. Click Code > Download zip to download all the code for this codelab.
3. Unzip the downloaded zip file to unpack a codelabs-main root folder. You only need the next-gen-ui/ subdirectory, which contains the step_01 to step_06 folders, which contain the source code that you build upon for each step in this codelab.

Download the project dependencies

1. In VS Code, click File > Open folder > codelabs-main > next-gen-uis > step_01 to open the starter project.
2. If you see a VS Code dialog that prompts you to download the required packages for the starter app, click Get packages.

3. If you don't see a VS Code dialog that prompts you to download the required packages for the starter app, open your terminal, and then navigate to the step_01 folder and run the flutter pub get command.

Run the starter app

1. In VS Code, either select the desktop operating system you are running or Chrome if you want to test your app in a web browser.

For example, here's what you see when you use macOS as your deployment target:

Here's what you see when you use Chrome as your deployment target:

2. Open the lib/main.dart file and click Start debugging. The app launches on your desktop operating system or in a Chrome browser.

Explore the starter app

In the starter app, notice the following:

• The UI is ready for you to build.
• The assets directory has the art assets and two fragment shaders that you will use.
• The pubspec.yaml file already lists the assets and a collection of pub packages that you will be utilizing.
• The lib directory contains the obligatory main.dart file, an assets.dart file that lists the path of the art assets and fragment shaders, and a styles.dart file that lists the TextStyles and Colors you will use.
• The lib directory also contains a common directory, which holds a handful of useful utilities that you will use in this codelab, and the orb_shader directory, which contains a Widget that will be used to display the orb with a vertex shader.

Here is what you will see once you start the app.

3. Paint the scene

In this step you place all of the background art assets on the screen in layers. Expect it to appear oddly monochrome at first, but you add colors to the scene at the end of this step.

Add assets to the scene

1. Create a title_screen directory in your lib directory, and then add a title_screen.dart file. Add the following content to the file:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

import '../assets.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreen({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: Stack(
          children: [
            /// Bg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

            /// Bg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgReceive),

            /// Mg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgBase),

            /// Mg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgReceive),

            /// Mg-Emit
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgEmit),

            /// Fg-Rocks
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

            /// Fg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgReceive),

            /// Fg-Emit
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgEmit),
          ],
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

This widget contains the scene with assets stacked in layers. The background, midground, and foreground layers are each represented by a group of two or three images. These images will be lit with different colors to capture how light moves through the scene.

2. In the main.dart file, add the following content:

lib/main.dart

import 'dart:io' show Platform;

import 'package:flutter/foundation.dart' show kIsWeb;
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:window_size/window_size.dart';
                                                          // Remove 'styles.dart' import
import 'title_screen/title_screen.dart';                  // Add this import


void main() {
  if (!kIsWeb && (Platform.isWindows || Platform.isLinux || Platform.isMacOS)) {
    WidgetsFlutterBinding.ensureInitialized();
    setWindowMinSize(const Size(800, 500));
  }
  runApp(const NextGenApp());
}

class NextGenApp extends StatelessWidget {
  const NextGenApp({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return MaterialApp(
      themeMode: ThemeMode.dark,
      darkTheme: ThemeData(brightness: Brightness.dark),
      home: const TitleScreen(),                          // Replace with this widget
    );
  }
}

This replaces the app's UI with the monochrome scene that the art assets create. Next, you color each layer.

Add an image coloring utility

Add an image coloring utility by adding the following content to the title_screen.dart file:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

import '../assets.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreen({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: Stack(
          children: [
            /// Bg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

            /// Bg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgReceive),

            /// Mg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgBase),

            /// Mg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgReceive),

            /// Mg-Emit
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleMgEmit),

            /// Fg-Rocks
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

            /// Fg-Receive
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgReceive),

            /// Fg-Emit
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgEmit),
          ],
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

class _LitImage extends StatelessWidget {                 // Add from here...
  const _LitImage({
    required this.color,
    required this.imgSrc,
    required this.lightAmt,
  });
  final Color color;
  final String imgSrc;
  final double lightAmt;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final hsl = HSLColor.fromColor(color);
    return Image.asset(
      imgSrc,
      color: hsl.withLightness(hsl.lightness * lightAmt).toColor(),
      colorBlendMode: BlendMode.modulate,
    );
  }
}                                                         // to here.

This _LitImage utility widget recolors each of the art assets, depending on whether they are emitting or receiving light. It might trigger a linter warning, since you aren't yet using this new widget.

Paint in color

Paint in color by modifying the title_screen.dart file, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../styles.dart';                                  // Add this import

class TitleScreen extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreen({super.key});

  final _finalReceiveLightAmt = 0.7;                      // Add this attribute
  final _finalEmitLightAmt = 0.5;                         // And this attribute

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final orbColor = AppColors.orbColors[0];              // Add this final variable
    final emitColor = AppColors.emitColors[0];            // And this one

    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: Stack(
          children: [
            /// Bg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

            /// Bg-Receive
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              color: orbColor,
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.

            /// Mg-Base
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.

            /// Mg-Receive
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.

            /// Mg-Emit
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
              color: emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.

            /// Fg-Rocks
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

            /// Fg-Receive
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.

            /// Fg-Emit
            _LitImage(                                    // Modify from here...
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
              color: emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),                                            // to here.
          ],
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

class _LitImage extends StatelessWidget {
  const _LitImage({
    required this.color,
    required this.imgSrc,
    required this.lightAmt,
  });
  final Color color;
  final String imgSrc;
  final double lightAmt;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final hsl = HSLColor.fromColor(color);
    return Image.asset(
      imgSrc,
      color: hsl.withLightness(hsl.lightness * lightAmt).toColor(),
      colorBlendMode: BlendMode.modulate,
    );
  }
}

Note: Modifying the const TitleScreen widget requires a hot restart, instead of just a hot reload.

Here is the app again, this time with the art assets tinted green.

4. Add a UI

In this step you place a user interface over the scene created in the previous step. This includes the title, the difficulty-selector buttons, and the all-important Start button.

Add a title

1. Create a title_screen_ui.dart file inside of the lib/title_screen directory and add the following content to the file:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

import 'package:extra_alignments/extra_alignments.dart';
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:gap/gap.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../common/ui_scaler.dart';
import '../styles.dart';

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreenUi({
    super.key,
  });
  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return const Padding(
      padding: EdgeInsets.symmetric(vertical: 40, horizontal: 50),
      child: Stack(
        children: [
          /// Title Text
          TopLeft(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.topLeft,
              child: _TitleText(),
            ),
          ),
        ],
      ),
    );
  }
}

class _TitleText extends StatelessWidget {
  const _TitleText();

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Column(
      mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
      crossAxisAlignment: CrossAxisAlignment.start,
      children: [
        const Gap(20),
        Row(
          mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
          children: [
            Transform.translate(
              offset: Offset(-(TextStyles.h1.letterSpacing! * .5), 0),
              child: Text('OUTPOST', style: TextStyles.h1),
            ),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedLeft, height: 65),
            Text('57', style: TextStyles.h2),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedRight, height: 65),
          ],
        ),
        Text('INTO THE UNKNOWN', style: TextStyles.h3),
      ],
    );
  }
}

This widget contains the title and all the buttons that make up the user interface for this app.

2. Update the lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart file, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../styles.dart';
import 'title_screen_ui.dart';                            // Add this import

class TitleScreen extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreen({super.key});

  final _finalReceiveLightAmt = 0.7;
  final _finalEmitLightAmt = 0.5;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final orbColor = AppColors.orbColors[0];
    final emitColor = AppColors.emitColors[0];

    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: Stack(
          children: [
            /// Bg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

            /// Bg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              color: orbColor,
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Base
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Emit
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
              color: emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Fg-Rocks
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

            /// Fg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
              color: orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Fg-Emit
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
              color: emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),

            /// UI
            const Positioned.fill(                        // Add from here...
              child: TitleScreenUi(),
            ),                                            // to here.
          ],
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

class _LitImage extends StatelessWidget {
  const _LitImage({
    required this.color,
    required this.imgSrc,
    required this.lightAmt,
  });
  final Color color;
  final String imgSrc;
  final double lightAmt;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final hsl = HSLColor.fromColor(color);
    return Image.asset(
      imgSrc,
      color: hsl.withLightness(hsl.lightness * lightAmt).toColor(),
      colorBlendMode: BlendMode.modulate,
    );
  }
}

Running this code reveals the title, which is the beginning of the user interface.

Add the difficulty buttons

1. Update title_screen_ui.dart by adding a new import for the focusable_control_builder package:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

import 'package:extra_alignments/extra_alignments.dart';
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:focusable_control_builder/focusable_control_builder.dart'; // Add import
import 'package:gap/gap.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../common/ui_scaler.dart';
import '../styles.dart';

2. To the TitleScreenUi widget, add the following:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreenUi({
    super.key,
    required this.difficulty,                            // Edit from here...
    required this.onDifficultyPressed,
    required this.onDifficultyFocused,
  });

  final int difficulty;
  final void Function(int difficulty) onDifficultyPressed;
  final void Function(int? difficulty) onDifficultyFocused; // to here.

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Padding(                                      // Move this const...
      padding: const EdgeInsets.symmetric(vertical: 40, horizontal: 50), // to here.
      child: Stack(
        children: [
          /// Title Text
          const TopLeft(                                 // Add a const here, as well
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.topLeft,
              child: _TitleText(),
            ),
          ),

          /// Difficulty Btns
          BottomLeft(                                    // Add from here...
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.bottomLeft,
              child: _DifficultyBtns(
                difficulty: difficulty,
                onDifficultyPressed: onDifficultyPressed,
                onDifficultyFocused: onDifficultyFocused,
              ),
            ),
          ),                                             // to here.
        ],
      ),
    );
  }
}

3. Add the following two widgets to implement the difficulty buttons:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _DifficultyBtns extends StatelessWidget {
  const _DifficultyBtns({
    required this.difficulty,
    required this.onDifficultyPressed,
    required this.onDifficultyFocused,
  });

  final int difficulty;
  final void Function(int difficulty) onDifficultyPressed;
  final void Function(int? difficulty) onDifficultyFocused;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Column(
      mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
      children: [
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Casual',
          selected: difficulty == 0,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(0),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 0 : null),
        ),
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Normal',
          selected: difficulty == 1,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(1),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 1 : null),
        ),
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Hardcore',
          selected: difficulty == 2,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(2),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 2 : null),
        ),
        const Gap(20),
      ],
    );
  }
}

class _DifficultyBtn extends StatelessWidget {
  const _DifficultyBtn({
    required this.selected,
    required this.onPressed,
    required this.onHover,
    required this.label,
  });
  final String label;
  final bool selected;
  final VoidCallback onPressed;
  final void Function(bool hasFocus) onHover;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return FocusableControlBuilder(
      onPressed: onPressed,
      onHoverChanged: (_, state) => onHover.call(state.isHovered),
      builder: (_, state) {
        return Padding(
          padding: const EdgeInsets.all(8.0),
          child: SizedBox(
            width: 250,
            height: 60,
            child: Stack(
              children: [
                /// Bg with fill and outline
                Container(
                  decoration: BoxDecoration(
                    color: const Color(0xFF00D1FF).withOpacity(.1),
                    border: Border.all(color: Colors.white, width: 5),
                  ),
                ),

                if (state.isHovered || state.isFocused) ...[
                  Container(
                    decoration: BoxDecoration(
                      color: const Color(0xFF00D1FF).withOpacity(.1),
                    ),
                  ),
                ],

                /// cross-hairs (selected state)
                if (selected) ...[
                  CenterLeft(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedLeft),
                  ),
                  CenterRight(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedRight),
                  ),
                ],

                /// Label
                Center(
                  child: Text(label.toUpperCase(), style: TextStyles.btn),
                ),
              ],
            ),
          ),
        );
      },
    );
  }
}

4. Convert the TitleScreen widget from stateless to stateful, and add state to enable changing the color scheme based on difficulty:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../styles.dart';
import 'title_screen_ui.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatefulWidget {
  const TitleScreen({super.key});

  @override
  State<TitleScreen> createState() => _TitleScreenState();
}

class _TitleScreenState extends State<TitleScreen> {
  Color get _emitColor =>
      AppColors.emitColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];
  Color get _orbColor =>
      AppColors.orbColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];

  /// Currently selected difficulty
  int _difficulty = 0;

  /// Currently focused difficulty (if any)
  int? _difficultyOverride;

  void _handleDifficultyPressed(int value) {
    setState(() => _difficulty = value);
  }

  void _handleDifficultyFocused(int? value) {
    setState(() => _difficultyOverride = value);
  }

  final _finalReceiveLightAmt = 0.7;
  final _finalEmitLightAmt = 0.5;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: Stack(
          children: [
            /// Bg-Base
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

            /// Bg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              color: _orbColor,
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Base
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
              color: _orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
              color: _orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Mg-Emit
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
              color: _emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Fg-Rocks
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

            /// Fg-Receive
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
              color: _orbColor,
              lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
            ),

            /// Fg-Emit
            _LitImage(
              imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
              color: _emitColor,
              lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
            ),

            /// UI
            Positioned.fill(
              child: TitleScreenUi(
                difficulty: _difficulty,
                onDifficultyFocused: _handleDifficultyFocused,
                onDifficultyPressed: _handleDifficultyPressed,
              ),
            ),
          ],
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

class _LitImage extends StatelessWidget {
  const _LitImage({
    required this.color,
    required this.imgSrc,
    required this.lightAmt,
  });
  final Color color;
  final String imgSrc;
  final double lightAmt;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final hsl = HSLColor.fromColor(color);
    return Image.asset(
      imgSrc,
      color: hsl.withLightness(hsl.lightness * lightAmt).toColor(),
      colorBlendMode: BlendMode.modulate,
    );
  }
}

Note: Modifying the const TitleScreen and TitleScreenUi widgets requires a hot restart, instead of just a hot reload.

Here is the UI at two different difficulty settings. Notice that the difficulty colors applied as masks to grayscale images creates a realistic, reflective effect!

Add the start button

1. Update the title_screen_ui.dart file. To the TitleScreenUi widget, add the following:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreenUi({
    super.key,
    required this.difficulty,
    required this.onDifficultyPressed,
    required this.onDifficultyFocused,
  });

  final int difficulty;
  final void Function(int difficulty) onDifficultyPressed;
  final void Function(int? difficulty) onDifficultyFocused;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Padding(
      padding: const EdgeInsets.symmetric(vertical: 40, horizontal: 50),
      child: Stack(
        children: [
          /// Title Text
          const TopLeft(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.topLeft,
              child: _TitleText(),
            ),
          ),

          /// Difficulty Btns
          BottomLeft(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.bottomLeft,
              child: _DifficultyBtns(
                difficulty: difficulty,
                onDifficultyPressed: onDifficultyPressed,
                onDifficultyFocused: onDifficultyFocused,
              ),
            ),
          ),

          /// StartBtn
          BottomRight(                                    // Add from here...
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.bottomRight,
              child: Padding(
                padding: const EdgeInsets.only(bottom: 20, right: 40),
                child: _StartBtn(onPressed: () {}),
              ),
            ),
          ),                                              // to here.
        ],
      ),
    );
  }
}

2. Add the following widget to implement the start button:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _StartBtn extends StatefulWidget {
  const _StartBtn({required this.onPressed});
  final VoidCallback onPressed;

  @override
  State<_StartBtn> createState() => _StartBtnState();
}

class _StartBtnState extends State<_StartBtn> {
  AnimationController? _btnAnim;
  bool _wasHovered = false;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return FocusableControlBuilder(
      cursor: SystemMouseCursors.click,
      onPressed: widget.onPressed,
      builder: (_, state) {
        if ((state.isHovered || state.isFocused) &&
            !_wasHovered &&
            _btnAnim?.status != AnimationStatus.forward) {
          _btnAnim?.forward(from: 0);
        }
        _wasHovered = (state.isHovered || state.isFocused);
        return SizedBox(
          width: 520,
          height: 100,
          child: Stack(
            children: [
              Positioned.fill(child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleStartBtn)),
              if (state.isHovered || state.isFocused) ...[
                Positioned.fill(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleStartBtnHover)),
              ],
              Center(
                child: Row(
                  mainAxisAlignment: MainAxisAlignment.end,
                  children: [
                    Text('START MISSION',
                        style: TextStyles.btn
                            .copyWith(fontSize: 24, letterSpacing: 18)),
                  ],
                ),
              ),
            ],
          ),
        );
      },
    );
  }
}

And here is the app running with a full collection of buttons.

5. Add animation

In this step you animate the user interface and the color transitions for the art assets.

Fade in the title

In this step, you use multiple approaches to animate a Flutter app. One of the approaches is to use flutter_animate. Animations powered by this package can automatically replay whenever you hot reload your app in order to speed up development iterations.

1. Modify the code in lib/main.dart, as follows:

lib/main.dart

import 'dart:io' show Platform;

import 'package:flutter/foundation.dart' show kIsWeb;
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';   // Add this import
import 'package:window_size/window_size.dart';

import 'title_screen/title_screen.dart';

void main() {
  if (!kIsWeb && (Platform.isWindows || Platform.isLinux || Platform.isMacOS)) {
    WidgetsFlutterBinding.ensureInitialized();
    setWindowMinSize(const Size(800, 500));
  }
  Animate.restartOnHotReload = true;                     // Add this line
  runApp(const NextGenApp());
}

class NextGenApp extends StatelessWidget {
  const NextGenApp({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return MaterialApp(
      themeMode: ThemeMode.dark,
      darkTheme: ThemeData(brightness: Brightness.dark),
      home: const TitleScreen(),
    );
  }
}

Note: You edited the contents of the main method, which requires a hot restart of the application to see the change. A hot reload is insufficient in this case.

2. To take advantage of the flutter_animate package, you must import it. Add the import in lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

import 'package:extra_alignments/extra_alignments.dart';
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';   // Add this import
import 'package:focusable_control_builder/focusable_control_builder.dart';
import 'package:gap/gap.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../common/ui_scaler.dart';
import '../styles.dart';

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {

3. Add animation to the title by editing the _TitleText widget, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _TitleText extends StatelessWidget {
  const _TitleText();

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Column(
      mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
      crossAxisAlignment: CrossAxisAlignment.start,
      children: [
        const Gap(20),
        Row(
          mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
          children: [
            Transform.translate(
              offset: Offset(-(TextStyles.h1.letterSpacing! * .5), 0),
              child: Text('OUTPOST', style: TextStyles.h1),
            ),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedLeft, height: 65),
            Text('57', style: TextStyles.h2),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedRight, height: 65),
          ],                                             // Edit from here...
        ).animate().fadeIn(delay: .8.seconds, duration: .7.seconds),
        Text('INTO THE UNKNOWN', style: TextStyles.h3)
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 1.seconds, duration: .7.seconds),
      ],                                                 // to here.
    );
  }
}

4. Press Reload to see the title fade in.

Fade in the difficulty buttons

1. Add animation to the initial appearance of the difficulty buttons by editing the _DifficultyBtns widget, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _DifficultyBtns extends StatelessWidget {
  const _DifficultyBtns({
    required this.difficulty,
    required this.onDifficultyPressed,
    required this.onDifficultyFocused,
  });

  final int difficulty;
  final void Function(int difficulty) onDifficultyPressed;
  final void Function(int? difficulty) onDifficultyFocused;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Column(
      mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
      children: [
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Casual',
          selected: difficulty == 0,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(0),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 0 : null),
        )                                                // Add from here...
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 1.3.seconds, duration: .35.seconds)
            .slide(begin: const Offset(0, .2)),          // to here
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Normal',
          selected: difficulty == 1,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(1),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 1 : null),
        )                                                // Add from here...
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 1.5.seconds, duration: .35.seconds)
            .slide(begin: const Offset(0, .2)),          // to here
        _DifficultyBtn(
          label: 'Hardcore',
          selected: difficulty == 2,
          onPressed: () => onDifficultyPressed(2),
          onHover: (over) => onDifficultyFocused(over ? 2 : null),
        )                                                // Add from here...
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 1.7.seconds, duration: .35.seconds)
            .slide(begin: const Offset(0, .2)),          // to here
        const Gap(20),
      ],
    );
  }
}

2. Press Reload to see the difficulty buttons appear in order with a subtle slide up as a bonus.

Fade in the start button

1. Add animation to the start button by editing the _StartBtnState state class, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _StartBtnState extends State<_StartBtn> {
  AnimationController? _btnAnim;
  bool _wasHovered = false;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return FocusableControlBuilder(
      cursor: SystemMouseCursors.click,
      onPressed: widget.onPressed,
      builder: (_, state) {
        if ((state.isHovered || state.isFocused) &&
            !_wasHovered &&
            _btnAnim?.status != AnimationStatus.forward) {
          _btnAnim?.forward(from: 0);
        }
        _wasHovered = (state.isHovered || state.isFocused);
        return SizedBox(
          width: 520,
          height: 100,
          child: Stack(
            children: [
              Positioned.fill(child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleStartBtn)),
              if (state.isHovered || state.isFocused) ...[
                Positioned.fill(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleStartBtnHover)),
              ],
              Center(
                child: Row(
                  mainAxisAlignment: MainAxisAlignment.end,
                  children: [
                    Text('START MISSION',
                        style: TextStyles.btn
                            .copyWith(fontSize: 24, letterSpacing: 18)),
                  ],
                ),
              ),
            ],
          )                                              // Edit from here...
              .animate(autoPlay: false, onInit: (c) => _btnAnim = c)
              .shimmer(duration: .7.seconds, color: Colors.black),
        )
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 2.3.seconds)
            .slide(begin: const Offset(0, .2));
      },                                                 // to here.
    );
  }
}

2. Press Reload to see the difficulty buttons appear in order with a subtle slide up as a bonus.

Animate the difficulty hover effect

Add animation to the difficulty buttons' hover state by editing the _DifficultyBtn state class, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _DifficultyBtn extends StatelessWidget {
  const _DifficultyBtn({
    required this.selected,
    required this.onPressed,
    required this.onHover,
    required this.label,
  });
  final String label;
  final bool selected;
  final VoidCallback onPressed;
  final void Function(bool hasFocus) onHover;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return FocusableControlBuilder(
      onPressed: onPressed,
      onHoverChanged: (_, state) => onHover.call(state.isHovered),
      builder: (_, state) {
        return Padding(
          padding: const EdgeInsets.all(8.0),
          child: SizedBox(
            width: 250,
            height: 60,
            child: Stack(
              children: [
                /// Bg with fill and outline
                AnimatedOpacity(                         // Edit from here
                  opacity: (!selected && (state.isHovered || state.isFocused))
                      ? 1
                      : 0,
                  duration: .3.seconds,
                  child: Container(
                    decoration: BoxDecoration(
                      color: const Color(0xFF00D1FF).withOpacity(.1),
                      border: Border.all(color: Colors.white, width: 5),
                    ),
                  ),
                ),                                       // to here.

                if (state.isHovered || state.isFocused) ...[
                  Container(
                    decoration: BoxDecoration(
                      color: const Color(0xFF00D1FF).withOpacity(.1),
                    ),
                  ),
                ],

                /// cross-hairs (selected state)
                if (selected) ...[
                  CenterLeft(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedLeft),
                  ),
                  CenterRight(
                    child: Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedRight),
                  ),
                ],

                /// Label
                Center(
                  child: Text(label.toUpperCase(), style: TextStyles.btn),
                ),
              ],
            ),
          ),
        );
      },
    );
  }
}

The difficulty buttons now show the BoxDecoration when the mouse hovers over a button that hasn't been selected.

Animate the color change

1. The background color change is instantaneous and harsh. It's better to animate the lit images between color schemes. Add flutter_animate to lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';    // Add this import

import '../assets.dart';
import '../styles.dart';
import 'title_screen_ui.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatefulWidget {

2. Add an _AnimatedColors widget in lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

class _AnimatedColors extends StatelessWidget {
  const _AnimatedColors({
    required this.emitColor,
    required this.orbColor,
    required this.builder,
  });

  final Color emitColor;
  final Color orbColor;

  final Widget Function(BuildContext context, Color orbColor, Color emitColor)
      builder;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final duration = .5.seconds;
    return TweenAnimationBuilder(
      tween: ColorTween(begin: emitColor, end: emitColor),
      duration: duration,
      builder: (_, emitColor, __) {
        return TweenAnimationBuilder(
          tween: ColorTween(begin: orbColor, end: orbColor),
          duration: duration,
          builder: (context, orbColor, __) {
            return builder(context, orbColor!, emitColor!);
          },
        );
      },
    );
  }
}

3. Use the widget you just created to animate the colors of the lit images by updating the build method in _TitleScreenState, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

class _TitleScreenState extends State<TitleScreen> {
  Color get _emitColor =>
      AppColors.emitColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];
  Color get _orbColor =>
      AppColors.orbColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];

  /// Currently selected difficulty
  int _difficulty = 0;

  /// Currently focused difficulty (if any)
  int? _difficultyOverride;

  void _handleDifficultyPressed(int value) {
    setState(() => _difficulty = value);
  }

  void _handleDifficultyFocused(int? value) {
    setState(() => _difficultyOverride = value);
  }

  final _finalReceiveLightAmt = 0.7;
  final _finalEmitLightAmt = 0.5;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: _AnimatedColors(                           // Edit from here...
          orbColor: _orbColor,
          emitColor: _emitColor,
          builder: (_, orbColor, emitColor) {
            return Stack(
              children: [
                /// Bg-Base
                Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

                /// Bg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  color: orbColor,
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Mg-Base
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
                  color: orbColor,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Mg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
                  color: orbColor,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Mg-Emit
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
                  color: emitColor,
                  lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Fg-Rocks
                Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

                /// Fg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
                  color: orbColor,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Fg-Emit
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
                  color: emitColor,
                  lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                ),

                /// UI
                Positioned.fill(
                  child: TitleScreenUi(
                    difficulty: _difficulty,
                    onDifficultyFocused: _handleDifficultyFocused,
                    onDifficultyPressed: _handleDifficultyPressed,
                  ),
                ),
              ],
            ).animate().fadeIn(duration: 1.seconds, delay: .3.seconds);
          },
        ),                                                // to here.
      ),
    );
  }
}

With this final edit, you added animations to every element on the screen, and it looks so much better!

6. Add fragment shaders

In this step you add fragment shaders to the app. First, you use a shader to modify the title to give it a more dystopian feel. Then, you add a second shader to create an orb that serves as the central focal point of the page.

Distorting the title with a fragment shader

With this change you introduce the provider package, which enables passing the compiled shaders down the widget tree. If you are interested in how the shaders are loaded, see the implementation in lib/assets.dart.

1. Modify the code in lib/main.dart, as follows:

lib/main.dart

import 'dart:io' show Platform;

import 'package:flutter/foundation.dart' show kIsWeb;
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';
import 'package:provider/provider.dart';                 // Add this import
import 'package:window_size/window_size.dart';

import 'assets.dart';                                    // Add this import
import 'title_screen/title_screen.dart';

void main() {
  if (!kIsWeb && (Platform.isWindows || Platform.isLinux || Platform.isMacOS)) {
    WidgetsFlutterBinding.ensureInitialized();
    setWindowMinSize(const Size(800, 500));
  }
  Animate.restartOnHotReload = true;
  runApp(                                                // Edit from here...
    FutureProvider<FragmentPrograms?>(
      create: (context) => loadFragmentPrograms(),
      initialData: null,
      child: const NextGenApp(),
    ),
  );                                                     // to here.
}

class NextGenApp extends StatelessWidget {
  const NextGenApp({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return MaterialApp(
      themeMode: ThemeMode.dark,
      darkTheme: ThemeData(brightness: Brightness.dark),
      home: const TitleScreen(),
    );
  }
}

Note: You edited the contents of the main method again, which requires a full reload of the application in order to see the change.

2. To take advantage of the provider package, and the shader utilities included in step_01, you need to import them. Add new imports in lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

import 'package:extra_alignments/extra_alignments.dart';
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';
import 'package:focusable_control_builder/focusable_control_builder.dart';
import 'package:gap/gap.dart';
import 'package:provider/provider.dart';                 // Add this import

import '../assets.dart';
import '../common/shader_effect.dart';                   // And this import
import '../common/ticking_builder.dart';                 // And this import
import '../common/ui_scaler.dart';
import '../styles.dart';

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {

3. Distort the title with the shader by editing the _TitleText widget, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class _TitleText extends StatelessWidget {
  const _TitleText();

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    Widget content = Column(                             // Modify this line
      mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
      crossAxisAlignment: CrossAxisAlignment.start,
      children: [
        const Gap(20),
        Row(
          mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
          children: [
            Transform.translate(
              offset: Offset(-(TextStyles.h1.letterSpacing! * .5), 0),
              child: Text('OUTPOST', style: TextStyles.h1),
            ),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedLeft, height: 65),
            Text('57', style: TextStyles.h2),
            Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleSelectedRight, height: 65),
          ],
        ).animate().fadeIn(delay: .8.seconds, duration: .7.seconds),
        Text('INTO THE UNKNOWN', style: TextStyles.h3)
            .animate()
            .fadeIn(delay: 1.seconds, duration: .7.seconds),
      ],
    );
    return Consumer<FragmentPrograms?>(                  // Add from here...
      builder: (context, fragmentPrograms, _) {
        if (fragmentPrograms == null) return content;
        return TickingBuilder(
          builder: (context, time) {
            return AnimatedSampler(
              (image, size, canvas) {
                const double overdrawPx = 30;
                final shader = fragmentPrograms.ui.fragmentShader();
                shader
                  ..setFloat(0, size.width)
                  ..setFloat(1, size.height)
                  ..setFloat(2, time)
                  ..setImageSampler(0, image);
                Rect rect = Rect.fromLTWH(-overdrawPx, -overdrawPx,
                    size.width + overdrawPx, size.height + overdrawPx);
                canvas.drawRect(rect, Paint()..shader = shader);
              },
              child: content,
            );
          },
        );
      },
    );                                                   // to here.
  }
}

You should see the title distort—as you might expect in a dystopian future.

Add the orb

Now add the orb at the center of the window. You need to add an onPressed callback to the start button.

1. In lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart, modify TitleScreenUi as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen_ui.dart

class TitleScreenUi extends StatelessWidget {
  const TitleScreenUi({
    super.key,
    required this.difficulty,
    required this.onDifficultyPressed,
    required this.onDifficultyFocused,
    required this.onStartPressed,                         // Add this argument
  });

  final int difficulty;
  final void Function(int difficulty) onDifficultyPressed;
  final void Function(int? difficulty) onDifficultyFocused;
  final VoidCallback onStartPressed;                      // Add this attribute

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Padding(
      padding: const EdgeInsets.symmetric(vertical: 40, horizontal: 50),
      child: Stack(
        children: [
          /// Title Text
          const TopLeft(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.topLeft,
              child: _TitleText(),
            ),
          ),

          /// Difficulty Btns
          BottomLeft(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.bottomLeft,
              child: _DifficultyBtns(
                difficulty: difficulty,
                onDifficultyPressed: onDifficultyPressed,
                onDifficultyFocused: onDifficultyFocused,
              ),
            ),
          ),

          /// StartBtn
          BottomRight(
            child: UiScaler(
              alignment: Alignment.bottomRight,
              child: Padding(
                padding: const EdgeInsets.only(bottom: 20, right: 40),
                child: _StartBtn(onPressed: onStartPressed),  // Edit this line
              ),
            ),
          ),
        ],
      ),
    );
  }
}

Now that you have modified the start button with a callback, you need to make massive modifications to the lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart file.

2. Modify the imports, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'dart:math';                                       // Add this import
import 'dart:ui';                                         // And this import

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter/services.dart';                   // Add this import
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../orb_shader/orb_shader_config.dart';            // And this import
import '../orb_shader/orb_shader_widget.dart';            // And this import too
import '../styles.dart';
import 'title_screen_ui.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatefulWidget {

3. Modify _TitleScreenState to match the following. Almost every part of the class is modified in some way.

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

class _TitleScreenState extends State<TitleScreen>
    with SingleTickerProviderStateMixin {
  final _orbKey = GlobalKey<OrbShaderWidgetState>();

  /// Editable Settings
  /// 0-1, receive lighting strength
  final _minReceiveLightAmt = .35;
  final _maxReceiveLightAmt = .7;

  /// 0-1, emit lighting strength
  final _minEmitLightAmt = .5;
  final _maxEmitLightAmt = 1;

  /// Internal
  var _mousePos = Offset.zero;

  Color get _emitColor =>
      AppColors.emitColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];
  Color get _orbColor =>
      AppColors.orbColors[_difficultyOverride ?? _difficulty];

  /// Currently selected difficulty
  int _difficulty = 0;

  /// Currently focused difficulty (if any)
  int? _difficultyOverride;
  double _orbEnergy = 0;
  double _minOrbEnergy = 0;

  double get _finalReceiveLightAmt {
    final light =
        lerpDouble(_minReceiveLightAmt, _maxReceiveLightAmt, _orbEnergy) ?? 0;
    return light + _pulseEffect.value * .05 * _orbEnergy;
  }

  double get _finalEmitLightAmt {
    return lerpDouble(_minEmitLightAmt, _maxEmitLightAmt, _orbEnergy) ?? 0;
  }

  late final _pulseEffect = AnimationController(
    vsync: this,
    duration: _getRndPulseDuration(),
    lowerBound: -1,
    upperBound: 1,
  );

  Duration _getRndPulseDuration() => 100.ms + 200.ms * Random().nextDouble();

  double _getMinEnergyForDifficulty(int difficulty) => switch (difficulty) {
        1 => 0.3,
        2 => 0.6,
        _ => 0,
      };


  @override
  void initState() {
    super.initState();
    _pulseEffect.forward();
    _pulseEffect.addListener(_handlePulseEffectUpdate);
  }

  void _handlePulseEffectUpdate() {
    if (_pulseEffect.status == AnimationStatus.completed) {
      _pulseEffect.reverse();
      _pulseEffect.duration = _getRndPulseDuration();
    } else if (_pulseEffect.status == AnimationStatus.dismissed) {
      _pulseEffect.duration = _getRndPulseDuration();
      _pulseEffect.forward();
    }
  }

  void _handleDifficultyPressed(int value) {
    setState(() => _difficulty = value);
    _bumpMinEnergy();
  }

  Future<void> _bumpMinEnergy([double amount = 0.1]) async {
    setState(() {
      _minOrbEnergy = _getMinEnergyForDifficulty(_difficulty) + amount;
    });
    await Future<void>.delayed(.2.seconds);
    setState(() {
      _minOrbEnergy = _getMinEnergyForDifficulty(_difficulty);
    });
  }

  void _handleStartPressed() => _bumpMinEnergy(0.3);

  void _handleDifficultyFocused(int? value) {
    setState(() {
      _difficultyOverride = value;
      if (value == null) {
        _minOrbEnergy = _getMinEnergyForDifficulty(_difficulty);
      } else {
        _minOrbEnergy = _getMinEnergyForDifficulty(value);
      }
    });
  }

  /// Update mouse position so the orbWidget can use it, doing it here prevents
  /// btns from blocking the mouse-move events in the widget itself.
  void _handleMouseMove(PointerHoverEvent e) {
    setState(() {
      _mousePos = e.localPosition;
    });
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      backgroundColor: Colors.black,
      body: Center(
        child: MouseRegion(
          onHover: _handleMouseMove,
          child: _AnimatedColors(
            orbColor: _orbColor,
            emitColor: _emitColor,
            builder: (_, orbColor, emitColor) {
              return Stack(
                children: [
                  /// Bg-Base
                  Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

                  /// Bg-Receive
                  _LitImage(
                    color: orbColor,
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// Orb
                  Positioned.fill(
                    child: Stack(
                      children: [
                        // Orb
                        OrbShaderWidget(
                          key: _orbKey,
                          mousePos: _mousePos,
                          minEnergy: _minOrbEnergy,
                          config: OrbShaderConfig(
                            ambientLightColor: orbColor,
                            materialColor: orbColor,
                            lightColor: orbColor,
                          ),
                          onUpdate: (energy) => setState(() {
                            _orbEnergy = energy;
                          }),
                        ),
                      ],
                    ),
                  ),

                  /// Mg-Base
                  _LitImage(
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
                    color: orbColor,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// Mg-Receive
                  _LitImage(
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
                    color: orbColor,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// Mg-Emit
                  _LitImage(
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
                    color: emitColor,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// Fg-Rocks
                  Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

                  /// Fg-Receive
                  _LitImage(
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
                    color: orbColor,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// Fg-Emit
                  _LitImage(
                    imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
                    color: emitColor,
                    pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                    lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                  ),

                  /// UI
                  Positioned.fill(
                    child: TitleScreenUi(
                      difficulty: _difficulty,
                      onDifficultyFocused: _handleDifficultyFocused,
                      onDifficultyPressed: _handleDifficultyPressed,
                      onStartPressed: _handleStartPressed,
                    ),
                  ),
                ],
              ).animate().fadeIn(duration: 1.seconds, delay: .3.seconds);
            },
          ),
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

4. Modify _LitImage, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

class _LitImage extends StatelessWidget {
  const _LitImage({
    required this.color,
    required this.imgSrc,
    required this.pulseEffect,                            // Add this parameter
    required this.lightAmt,
  });
  final Color color;
  final String imgSrc;
  final AnimationController pulseEffect;                  // Add this attribute
  final double lightAmt;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    final hsl = HSLColor.fromColor(color);
    return ListenableBuilder(                             // Edit from here...
      listenable: pulseEffect,
      builder: (context, child) {
        return Image.asset(
          imgSrc,
          color: hsl.withLightness(hsl.lightness * lightAmt).toColor(),
          colorBlendMode: BlendMode.modulate,
        );
      },
    );                                                    // to here.
  }
}

This is the result of this addition.

7. Add particle animations

In this step, you add particle animations to create a subtle pulsing movement to the app.

Add particles everywhere

1. Create a new lib/title_screen/particle_overlay.dart file, and then add the following code:

lib/title_screen/particle_overlay.dart

import 'dart:math';

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:particle_field/particle_field.dart';
import 'package:rnd/rnd.dart';

class ParticleOverlay extends StatelessWidget {
  const ParticleOverlay({super.key, required this.color, required this.energy});

  final Color color;
  final double energy;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return ParticleField(
      spriteSheet: SpriteSheet(
        image: const AssetImage('assets/images/particle-wave.png'),
      ),
      // blend the image's alpha with the specified color:
      blendMode: BlendMode.dstIn,

      // this runs every tick:
      onTick: (controller, _, size) {
        List<Particle> particles = controller.particles;

        // add a new particle with random angle, distance & velocity:
        double a = rnd(pi * 2);
        double dist = rnd(1, 4) * 35 + 150 * energy;
        double vel = rnd(1, 2) * (1 + energy * 1.8);
        particles.add(Particle(
          // how many ticks this particle will live:
          lifespan: rnd(1, 2) * 20 + energy * 15,
          // starting distance from center:
          x: cos(a) * dist,
          y: sin(a) * dist,
          // starting velocity:
          vx: cos(a) * vel,
          vy: sin(a) * vel,
          // other starting values:
          rotation: a,
          scale: rnd(1, 2) * 0.6 + energy * 0.5,
        ));

        // update all of the particles:
        for (int i = particles.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
          Particle p = particles[i];
          if (p.lifespan <= 0) {
            // particle is expired, remove it:
            particles.removeAt(i);
            continue;
          }
          p.update(
            scale: p.scale * 1.025,
            vx: p.vx * 1.025,
            vy: p.vy * 1.025,
            color: color.withOpacity(p.lifespan * 0.001 + 0.01),
            lifespan: p.lifespan - 1,
          );
        }
      },
    );
  }
}

2. Modify the imports for lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

import 'dart:math';
import 'dart:ui';

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter/services.dart';
import 'package:flutter_animate/flutter_animate.dart';

import '../assets.dart';
import '../orb_shader/orb_shader_config.dart';
import '../orb_shader/orb_shader_widget.dart';
import '../styles.dart';
import 'particle_overlay.dart';                          // Add this import
import 'title_screen_ui.dart';

class TitleScreen extends StatefulWidget {

3. Add the ParticleOverlay to the UI by modifying the build method of _TitleScreenState, as follows:

lib/title_screen/title_screen.dart

@override
Widget build(BuildContext context) {
  return Scaffold(
    backgroundColor: Colors.black,
    body: Center(
      child: MouseRegion(
        onHover: _handleMouseMove,
        child: _AnimatedColors(
          orbColor: _orbColor,
          emitColor: _emitColor,
          builder: (_, orbColor, emitColor) {
            return Stack(
              children: [
                /// Bg-Base
                Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleBgBase),

                /// Bg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  color: orbColor,
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleBgReceive,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Orb
                Positioned.fill(
                  child: Stack(
                    children: [
                      // Orb
                      OrbShaderWidget(
                        key: _orbKey,
                        mousePos: _mousePos,
                        minEnergy: _minOrbEnergy,
                        config: OrbShaderConfig(
                          ambientLightColor: orbColor,
                          materialColor: orbColor,
                          lightColor: orbColor,
                        ),
                        onUpdate: (energy) => setState(() {
                          _orbEnergy = energy;
                        }),
                      ),
                    ],
                  ),
                ),

                /// Mg-Base
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgBase,
                  color: orbColor,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Mg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgReceive,
                  color: orbColor,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Mg-Emit
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleMgEmit,
                  color: emitColor,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Particle Field
                Positioned.fill(                          // Add from here...
                  child: IgnorePointer(
                    child: ParticleOverlay(
                      color: orbColor,
                      energy: _orbEnergy,
                    ),
                  ),
                ),                                        // to here.

                /// Fg-Rocks
                Image.asset(AssetPaths.titleFgBase),

                /// Fg-Receive
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgReceive,
                  color: orbColor,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalReceiveLightAmt,
                ),

                /// Fg-Emit
                _LitImage(
                  imgSrc: AssetPaths.titleFgEmit,
                  color: emitColor,
                  pulseEffect: _pulseEffect,
                  lightAmt: _finalEmitLightAmt,
                ),

                /// UI
                Positioned.fill(
                  child: TitleScreenUi(
                    difficulty: _difficulty,
                    onDifficultyFocused: _handleDifficultyFocused,
                    onDifficultyPressed: _handleDifficultyPressed,
                    onStartPressed: _handleStartPressed,
                  ),
                ),
              ],
            ).animate().fadeIn(duration: 1.seconds, delay: .3.seconds);
          },
        ),
      ),
    ),
  );
}

The final result includes animations, fragment shaders, and particle effects—on multiple platforms!

Add particles everywhere—even the web

There is one slight problem with the code as it stands. When Flutter runs on the web, there are two alternate rendering engines that can be used: the CanvasKit engine, which is used by default on desktop class browsers, and an HTML DOM renderer, which is used by default for mobile devices. The issue is that the HTML DOM renderer doesn't support fragment shaders.

The fix is to build for the web using only the CanvasKit renderer. To do this, add a flag to the build command as follows:

$ flutter build web --web-renderer canvaskit
Font asset "MaterialIcons-Regular.otf" was tree-shaken, reducing it from 1645184 to 7692 bytes (99.5% reduction). Tree-shaking can be disabled by providing the --no-tree-shake-icons flag
when building your app.
Font asset "CupertinoIcons.ttf" was tree-shaken, reducing it from 257628 to 1172 bytes (99.5% reduction). Tree-shaking can be disabled by providing the --no-tree-shake-icons flag when
building your app.
Compiling lib/main.dart for the Web...                             15.6s
✓ Built build/web

Note: If you are running your app interactively in a browser by running flutter run -d chrome you automatically get the CanvasKit renderer. For more detail, please see the Flutter documentation on Web renderers.

Here is all of your hard work, shown this time in a Chrome browser.

8. Congratulations

You built a full-featured game intro screen with animations, fragment shaders, and particle animations! You can now use these techniques on all platforms that Flutter supports.

Learn more

• Check out the flutter_animate package
• Review the Flutter support for Fragment Shaders documentation
• The Book of Shaders by Patricio Gonzalez Vivo and Jen Lowe
• Shader toy, a collaborative shader playground
• simple_shader, a simple Flutter fragment shaders sample project