> The single-header libraries that are popular in the game programming space (stb_* [2], cgltf [3], etc) as well as of course Dear ImGui have been some of the most pleasant ones I've ever worked with.
The mainstream game programming doesn't use C at all. (Source: I had been a gamedev for almost a decade, and I mostly dealt with C# and sometimes C++ for low-level stuffs.) Even C++ is now out of fashion for at least a decade, anyone claiming that C++ is necessary for game programming is likely either an engine developer---a required, but very small portion of all gamedevs---or whoever haven't done significant game programming recently.
Also, the reason that single-header libraries are rather popular in C is that otherwise they will be so, SO painful to use by the modern standard. As a result, those libraries have to be much more carefully designed than normal libraries either in C or other languages and contribute to their seemingly higher qualities. (Source: Again, I have written sizable single-header libraries in C and am aware of many issues from doing so.) I don't think this approach is scalable in general.
Most libraries mentioned in the GP are less than 10 years old, except for perhaps stb libraries (dates back to early 2000s). Single-header libraries are definitely a recent phenomenon, possibly inspired by stb libraries after all.
The mainstream game programming doesn't use C at all. (Source: I had been a gamedev for almost a decade, and I mostly dealt with C# and sometimes C++ for low-level stuffs.) Even C++ is now out of fashion for at least a decade, anyone claiming that C++ is necessary for game programming is likely either an engine developer---a required, but very small portion of all gamedevs---or whoever haven't done significant game programming recently.
Also, the reason that single-header libraries are rather popular in C is that otherwise they will be so, SO painful to use by the modern standard. As a result, those libraries have to be much more carefully designed than normal libraries either in C or other languages and contribute to their seemingly higher qualities. (Source: Again, I have written sizable single-header libraries in C and am aware of many issues from doing so.) I don't think this approach is scalable in general.