data-serialization

name	data-serialization
description	Efficient data serialization for game networking including Protobuf, FlatBuffers, and custom binary
sasmp_version	1.3.0
version	2.0.0
bonded_agent	02-networking-specialist
bond_type	SECONDARY_BOND
parameters	{"required":["format"],"optional":["compression","schema_validation"],"validation":{"format":{"type":"string","enum":["protobuf","flatbuffers","msgpack","json","custom_binary"]},"compression":{"type":"string","enum":["none","lz4","zstd"],"default":"none"},"schema_validation":{"type":"boolean","default":true}}}
retry_config	{"max_attempts":1,"fallback":"json"}
observability	{"logging":{"level":"debug","fields":["format","size_bytes","compression_ratio"]},"metrics":[{"name":"serialization_duration_ms","type":"histogram"},{"name":"serialized_bytes","type":"counter"}]}

Data Serialization for Games

Implement efficient serialization for low-latency game networking.

Format Comparison

Format	Size	Speed	Schema	Use Case
Protobuf	Small	Fast	Required	Most games
FlatBuffers	Small	Fastest	Required	Real-time
MsgPack	Small	Fast	Optional	Flexible
JSON	Large	Slow	None	Debug
Custom Binary	Smallest	Fastest	Custom	Ultra-low latency

Protocol Buffers

syntax = "proto3";

message PlayerState {
    uint32 player_id = 1;
    float x = 2;
    float y = 3;
    float z = 4;
    uint32 health = 5;
}

message GameUpdate {
    uint64 tick = 1;
    repeated PlayerState players = 2;
}

GameUpdate update;
update.set_tick(current_tick);
auto* player = update.add_players();
player->set_player_id(1);
player->set_x(pos.x);

std::string serialized;
update.SerializeToString(&serialized);

Custom Binary Format

struct PacketHeader {
    uint16_t type;
    uint16_t length;
    uint32_t sequence;
};

struct PlayerUpdate {
    uint32_t player_id;
    float position[3];
    uint16_t angle;  // Compressed rotation
    uint8_t flags;
};

void serialize {
    buf.((p.player_id));
     ( i = ; i < ; i++)
        buf.(p.position[i]);
    buf.((p.angle));
    buf.(p.flags);
}