REFramework.NET

REFramework.NET is a C# scripting API that lets you build mods and plugins for RE Engine games. It provides direct access to the engine's type system, managed objects, and native functions through a generated typed proxy layer, with performance 3-7x faster than Lua (single-threaded) and up to 80x faster in multi-threaded scenarios.

Features

Runtime compilation — Place a .cs file in reframework/plugins/source/ and it compiles automatically. Edit, save, and the plugin hot-reloads without restarting the game.
Typed proxy generation — Reference assemblies are auto-generated from the game's type database (TDB). Every game type becomes a C# interface with properties, methods, and enums. Full IDE autocomplete.
Method hooking — Intercept any game method before or after execution. Inspect/modify arguments, skip the original, or replace return values. Non-blocking: hooks run on multiple threads simultaneously.
Engine callbacks — Register for per-frame updates, draw events, and other engine lifecycle points.
Pre-compiled assembly support — Ship .dll plugins for production, use .cs source files for development.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

.NET 10.0 runtime installed on your system
REFramework nightly build with .NET support
csharp-api.zip from the same releases page, extracted into your game's root directory.

Source Plugins (recommended for development)

Write a single .cs file and place it in reframework/plugins/source/. REFramework compiles and loads it automatically:

using REFrameworkNET;
using REFrameworkNET.Attributes;

public class MyPlugin {
    [PluginEntryPoint]
    public static void Main() {
        API.LogInfo("Hello from C#!");
    }
}

Source plugins always compile against the latest generated reference assemblies, so they have the highest compatibility with future API versions.

For IDE autocomplete, create a class library project referencing:

reframework/plugins/REFramework.NET.dll
reframework/plugins/managed/dependencies/*.dll (generated reference assemblies)

Then symlink or copy your .cs file to the source/ folder when ready to test.

Pre-compiled Plugins

For distribution, compile to a .dll targeting x64 and place it in reframework/plugins/managed/. The plugin manager loads it automatically.

Copy any additional dependencies to reframework/plugins/managed/dependencies/.

Plugin Lifecycle

REFramework loads the .NET runtime
Reference assemblies are generated from the game's TDB → reframework/plugins/managed/generated/
Dependencies loaded from reframework/plugins/managed/dependencies/
Source files compiled from reframework/plugins/source/
Pre-compiled assemblies loaded from reframework/plugins/managed/
[PluginEntryPoint] methods called on each plugin
On hot-reload or exit: [PluginExitPoint] methods called, then cycle restarts

API Overview

Component	Purpose
Attributes	`[PluginEntryPoint]`, `[PluginExitPoint]`, `[MethodHook]`, `[Callback]`
Method Hooks	Intercept game methods, inspect/modify args and return values
Typed Proxies	Generated interfaces for game types: property access, method calls, enums
ManagedObject & IObject	Low-level object access, reflection fallback, lifetime management
Arrays	`_System.Array`, creating/resizing managed arrays
Threading	Multi-threading in hooks, explicit threads, `LocalFrameGC()`
Benchmarks	Performance comparisons vs Lua

Key Types

Type	Namespace	Purpose
`API`	`REFrameworkNET`	Main entry point: logging, singletons, TDB access
`ManagedObject`	`REFrameworkNET`	Represents a GC-managed engine object
`NativeObject`	`REFrameworkNET`	Represents a native engine object
`TypeDefinition`	`REFrameworkNET`	Type metadata: methods, fields, create instances
`IObject`	`REFrameworkNET`	Common interface for reflection-style field/method access
`PreHookResult`	`REFrameworkNET`	Hook return value: `Continue` or `Skip`

Example

See Walkthrough: RE9 Additional Save Slots for a complete real-world plugin demonstrating hooks, typed proxies, callbacks, arrays, and more.