Loading Resources with Pygame: Addressing "FileNotFoundError"

When attempting to load external resources such as images or sounds in Pygame, you may encounter the "FileNotFoundError: No such file or directory" error. This issue commonly arises due to incorrect resource file paths, particularly when the path is relative to the current working directory.

Solution: Setting the Working Directory or Creating an Absolute File Path

To resolve this error, ensure that the working directory is set to the location where your resource files reside. This can be achieved with the os module:

import os

os.chdir(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))

Alternatively, you can create an absolute file path by combining the file's directory path and the filename:

filePath = os.path.join(sourceFileDir, 'test_bg.jpg')
surface = pygame.image.load(filePath)

Alternative Solution Using pathlib

The pathlib module offers another approach for setting the working directory or creating absolute file paths:

Setting the Working Directory:

import os, pathlib

os.chdir(pathlib.Path(__file__).resolve().parent)

Creating an Absolute File Path:

import pathlib

filePath = pathlib.Path(__file__).resolve().parent / 'test_bg.jpg'
surface = pygame.image.load(filePath)