List of game engines

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Many tools called game engines are available for game designers to code a game quickly and easily without building from the ground up.

Contents

[edit] Free and open source

Name Primary programming language Bindings Cross-platform SDL 2D/3D oriented Scripting Notable games License Notes and references
Aleph One C++ Yes Yes 3D Lua, Marathon markup language Aleph One (Marathon clone) GPL FPS engine
Allegro library C Ada, C++, C#, D, Lisp, Lua, Mercury, Pascal, Perl, Python, Scheme Yes No 2D zlib Graphics and audio
Ardor3D Java Yes No 2.5D zlib Fork of jMonkeyEngine 2.0
Axiom Engine C# Yes No 3D LGPL [1][2]
Blender Python Yes No 3D Python Yo Frankie!, ColorCube GPL 2D/3D game engine packaged in a 3D modeler for quick and intuitive use; fully integrated Bullet physics library
Build engine C No No 2.5D Duke Nukem 3D, Shadow Warrior, Blood Custom FPS engine, 2.5D (2D grid base geometry.)
BRGameEngine C++ and Lua No No 2.5D Trem de DOido GPL2 Adventure engine, 2.5D (3D Ogre, OpenGL, OpenAL, Bullet.)
Cafu Engine C++ Yes No 3D Lua GPL or proprietary Full game engine; graphics, audio, physics, scripting, networking, and map editor[3]
ClanLib C++ Yes Yes 2D Clanlib Self-described "toolkit", provides most game engine functionality and extensive GUI programming
Cocos2d Python, Objective-C Yes No 2D MIT Ported to Linux, Mac OS X, iOS, Windows. iOS port is written in Objective-C and integrated with Box2D and Chipmunk physics engines
Construct Classic Event Based No No 2D Minitroid GPL/BSD
Corona SDK Lua Yes No 2D Bubble Ball
Crystal Space C++ Java, Perl, Python Yes Yes 3D LGPL Graphics, audio, physics
Cube C++ Yes Yes 3D zlib Previous gen, 2d grid-based system, optimised for outdoor rather than indoor maps
Cube 2 C++ Yes Yes 3D Cubescript zlib Efficient 6 directional height-map based geometry (versus traditional Polygon soup model), hence the name Cube, FPS engine
Delta3d C++ Yes No 2.5D Python LGPL Uses modular libraries.
DimensioneX Multiplayer Engine Java Java, VBscript Yes No 2.5D VBscript GPL Produces browser games with pseudo-3D views,sounds,music. Games can be turned into Facebook Apps. Intended for beginners. Free support and hosting.
Env3D Java Yes No 3D GPL 3D game engine that creates a simple interface for dynamically adding EnvObjects. Built on jMonkeyEngine 2.0. Intended for educational use in teaching computer science.
Exult C++ Yes Yes 2D GPL Free software reimplementation of the Ultima VII game engine
Flexible Isometric Free Engine C++ Yes Yes 2D Python Unknown Horizons LGPL 2d game engine optimised for RTS or RPG games
Flixel ActionScript Yes No 2D Various games by Gregory Weir MIT Full boiler-plate code for flash games
GameKit (OgreKit) C++ Yes No 3D Lua MIT/zlib/BSD Has Blender integration similar to BGE. Fully integrated Bullet physics library
id Tech 1 C Yes No 3D ACS Doom, Doom II, HeXen, Heretic, Strife GPL 2D based geometry, sprite and particles, uses clever methods to emulate 3D graphics
id Tech 2 C Yes No 3D via DLLs Quake II GPL Full game engine, better known as the Quake II engine.
id Tech 3 C Game Data {PK3 } Yes No 3D via DLLs Quake III Arena GPL Full game engine, better known as the Quake III engine.
id Tech 4 C++ Game Data {PK4 } Yes No 3D Id Tech 4 Doom 3 GPL Full game engine, better known as the DooM 3 engine with a set of good tools and megatexture.
Indielib C++ No Yes 2D LGPL 2d game engine in C++. Includes entity system, sprite animations, collision detection, bitmap/TTF fonts, parallax scrolling, 3d objects, cameras, timers, alpha blending, shaders and image filters.
ioquake3 C Yes Yes 3D Urban Terror GPL
IwGame Engine C++ Yes No 2D GPL Seamless support for iPhone, iPad, Android (phone and tablet), Samsung Bada, Blackberry BBX (inc. Playbook), Symbian, WebOS, Windows Mobile, Mobile Linux, LG-TV, Windows Desktop and Mac OS. IwGame is built on top of the Marmalade SDK. IwGame Engine
Irrlicht C++ Yes No 3D zlib
Jake2 Java Yes No 3D GPL
JGame Java, Actionscript 3 Yes No 2D BSD Also runs on J2ME and Android
jMonkeyEngine Java Yes No 3D BSD
Jogre Java Yes No 2D GPL
Kobold2D Objective-C Yes No 2D Lua MIT Supports cross-development of iOS and Mac OS X apps. Based on Cocos2d with integrated Lua, Wax, cocos2d-iphone-extensions, cocos3d, Box2D, Chipmunk, Chipmunk SpaceManager, Google AdMob and ObjectAL libraries.
Lavgine C++ No No 3D Lua Script Free for Non-Commercial, Commercial 3D hardware acceleration, OpenAL 3D audio, multi-threaded, 2D animated physics objects, network module, automatically refreshes changed assets, no DLL dependencies*.
Lightweight Java Game Library Java Yes No 3D Minecraft, Spiral Knights BSD
Linderdaum Engine C++ C#, LinderScript Yes No 3D LinderScript Free for Non-Commercial, Commercial Android and Windows. Prototyping can be done on Windows. Supports advanced 3D features on Android (mesh skinning, raycasting)
LÖVE2d Lua Yes Yes 2D Lua Zlib/libpng
Maratis C++ Yes No 3D Lua Save Our Souls zlib/libpng/GPL Editor based environment. Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, iOS and Android support.
Moai SDK C++ Lua Yes Yes 2D Lua Crimson Steam Pirates CPAL iOS, Android, Windows, Mac OS X and Chrome browser compatible
Nebula Device C++ Java, Python Yes No 2.5D Lua, Tcl/Tk N/A
OpenSimulator C# Yes No 3D LSL BSD
ORX C/C++ Yes Yes 2D zlib 3D accelerated, supports Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, iPhone, iPad and Android
Panda3D Python C++ Yes No 3D Python Toontown Online, Pirates of the Caribbean Online BSD
PLIB C++ Yes Yes 3D LGPL
Quake engine C Yes No 3D QuakeC Quake GPL Full game engine, first true 3D id tech engine.
Retribution Engine C++ No No 3D GPL
Sge2d C Yes Yes 2D MIT
Sphere C++ Yes No 2D JavaScript N/A
Spring C++ C, C++, Java/JVM, Lua, Python Yes Yes 3D Lua Balanced Annihilation, Zero-K GPL RTS, simulated events, OpenGL
Storymoto JavaScript JavaScript Yes No 3D JavaScript Adslife MIT Runs on any JavaScript-enabled browser, client side. Full sources on GitHub
Stratagus C Yes Yes 2D Lua GPL
Eclipse Origins Visual Basic 6 Windows only No 2D Crystalshire GPL A free and stable 2D MMORPG engine with a very large community. Includes NPCs, maps, resources, dynamic sprites, animations, skills, a bank, player chat, items, and more.
URGE C++ Windows Only No 3D Free for Non-Commercial or Commercial A Free 3D Engine for very and fast creation of high quality Games. Includes Advanced features for rendering, physics simulation and TCP/UDP Connection.
WorldForge C++ Yes Yes 3D Lua(client), Python(server) GPL MMORPG framework consisting of Libraries, Server, Client, and Media.
Name Primary programming language Bindings Cross-platform SDL 2D/3D oriented Scripting Notable games License Notes and references

[edit] Proprietary

[edit] Commercial

[edit] Freeware

These engines are available for free use, but without the source code being available under an open source license. Many of these engines are commercial products which have a free edition available for them:

  • Adventure Game Studio — Mostly used to develop third-person pre-rendered adventure games, this engine is one of the most popular for developing amateur adventure games.
  • BYOND — A free 2D engine for making top-down, isometric, or side scroller games for Windows.
  • dim3 — Freeware 3D javascript engine for the Mac (although finished games are cross platform).
  • DX Studio — A freeware 3D game engine with complete tools for 3D video game development. Upgrading to paid licenses would unlock extra features.
  • Game Maker — A free game engine oriented towards beginners and people that do not want to learn how to program. A paid upgrade unlocks 3D Direct 3D support along with the ability to run Native Code.
  • Polygon Movie Maker / MikuMikuDance — A proprietary freeware 3D animation program written by Japanese developer Yu Higuchi. Notable for including several models of Vocaloid characters, but lacking any features to create new models.
  • Unity — An open-ended 3D game/interactive software engine for web, Windows, and Mac OS X. Upgrading to paid licenses can additionally enable support for the iPhone, Android, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, and the Xbox 360.
  • Unreal Engine — Considered one of the most popular game engines in the top market. The free edition, called UDK (a binary release of the engine), allows you to use the engine for commercial purposes under specific terms.[7]
  • CryEngine 3 — CryEngine 3 is a new generation engine developed by Crytek to create the FPS game Crysis 2. The engine has been released recently, with a license model that is similar as offered by the UDK engine.
  • Visual Pinball - A pinball game engine.
  • World Builder — A classic Mac OS game engine.
  • Wintermute Engine — A runtime and development tools for creating 2D and 2.5D point'n'click adventure games (Windows) . A "lite" Version is also available, but without the 3D Actor function (Windows, MAC, Linux)[8][9]

[edit] With related games

Game engine Games Company
Nel
3D MMORPG Game Engine
Ryzom
The Saga of Ryzom
Nevrax
Alamo Empire at War
Forces of Corruption
Universe at War: Earth Assault
Petroglyph
Adventure Game Studio Chzo Mythos
Soviet Unterzoegersdorf
The Blackwell Series
Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator
Ben Croshaw
monochrom
Wadjet Eye Games
Anvil Assassin's Creed II
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Ubisoft
BigWorld Twin Skies
Stargate Worlds
Meteor Games
Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment
CPAL3D Memento Mori
Numen: Contest of Heroes
Pound of Ground
Alternativa
Centauri Production
First Reality
CINEMAX, Ltd.
CryEngine Far Cry
Aion: The Tower of Eternity
Crytek
NCsoft
CryEngine 2 Crysis
Crysis Warhead
Blue Mars
Entropia Universe
Merchants of Brooklyn
The Day
Crytek
MindArk
Avatar Reality
Paleo Entertainment
Reloaded Studios
CryEngine 3 Crysis 2
ASTA: The War of Tears and Winds
ArcheAge
Cabal 2
Class 3
Forged by Chaos
Nexuiz
Ryse
Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2
Tour Golf Online
Warface
Crytek
Polygon Games
XL Games
ESTsoft
Undead Labs
Panzar Studio
Xaviant
IllFonic
City Interactive
OnNet
Crystal Tools Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy Versus XIII
Final Fantasy Agito XIII
Final Fantasy XIV
Square Enix
Dunia Engine Far Cry 2
James Cameron's Avatar: The Game
Ubisoft Montreal
Essence Engine Company of Heroes
Opposing Fronts
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2
Relic Entertainment
Europa Engine Europa Universalis
Hearts of Iron
Paradox Entertainment
Gamebryo Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga
Dark Age of Camelot
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Fallout 3
Fallout: New Vegas
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Larian Studios
Mythic Entertainment
Bethesda Softworks
Bethesda Game Studios
Obsidian Entertainment
Bethesda Game Studios
GoldSrc Half-Life
Gunman Chronicles
Valve
Rewolf Software
HeroEngine Hero's Journey (video game)
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Simutronics
Bioware
HPL Engine Penumbra: Overture
Penumbra: Black Plague
Penumbra: Requiem
Amnesia: The Dark Descent
Frictional Games
id Tech 4 Doom 3
Quake 4
Prey
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
Wolfenstein
id software
Raven Software
Human Head Studios
Splash Damage
Infernal Engine Ghostbusters: The Video Game
Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars
Bass Pro Shops: The Strike
Roogoo: Twisted Towers
Terminal Reality
Threewave Software
Escalation Studios
Streamline Studios
Namco Bandai Games
Red Fly Studio
Wideload Games
Piranha Games
SpiderMonk Entertainment
High Voltage Software
Infinity Engine Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
Planescape: Torment
Icewind Dale
Icewind Dale II
Bioware
Black Isle Studios
Iron Engine Sins of a Solar Empire Ironclad Games
Jade engine Beyond Good & Evil
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones
Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie
Rayman Raving Rabbids
TMNT
Rayman Raving Rabbids 2
Naruto: Rise of a Ninja
Naruto: The Broken Bond
James Cameron's Avatar: The Game (Wii version)
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (Wii and PSP versions)
Ubisoft
K2 Engine Savage 2
Heroes of Newerth
S2 Games
M.U.G.E.N Battle Killer Fighter
Battle Killer Fighter Ultimate
WhItE HaCkEr Community
Cartoon Picture Studio Indo (Lord of D-Geims)
Nebula Device 3 Drakensang: The Dark Eye
Neon Engine Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising
Race Driver Grid
Codemasters
Panda3D Toontown Online
Pirates of the Caribbean Online
Code3D
MSA's Thermal Enforcer
Full list
Disney
Disney
Sim Ops Studios
MSA, Sim Ops Studios
Many
PhyreEngine Full list on main entry
Many
Many
RAGE Midnight Club: Los Angeles
Grand Theft Auto IV
Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis
Red Dead Redemption
Rockstar Games
Riot Engine Drakan: Order of the Flame
Drakan: The Ancients' Gates
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
The Suffering
The Suffering: Ties That Bind
Surreal Software
RPG Maker VX Eternal Eden Blossomsoft
RPG Maker XP Aveyond
Amaranth Games
S2Engine HD Power of Destruction
I'm Not Alone
Profenix
SAGE engine Red Alert 3
Generals
Tiberium Wars
The Battle for Middle-earth II
EA Los Angeles
Scimitar Assassin's Creed
Prince of Persia
Shaun White Snowboarding
Ubisoft
ShiVa3D Voodoo Dice
Pinball Yeah!
Texting Of The Bread
Pirate Wings
Graviton
Stonetrip
Silent Storm engine Silent Storm
Silent Storm: Sentinels
Hammer & Sickle
Night Watch
Day Watch
Heroes of Might and Magic V
Jagged Alliance 3 (in development)
Nival Interactive
Source engine Half Life 2, Team Fortress 2, Portal, Portal 2, Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, Counter-Strike: Source, Day of Defeat: Source, Alien Swarm
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines
Sin Episodes
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic
Zeno Clash
Vindictus / Mabinogi: Heroes
KOS Secret Operations
Valve
Troika Games
Ritual Entertainment
Arkane Studios
ACE Team
devCat (Nexon)
SunBurn[10] Salty Jim's Putt Putt Island[11]
AvaGlide[12]
UpAway[13]
Synapse Gaming
Haiku Interactive
Munomic
TGEA Marble Blast Ultra
Fallen Empire: Legions
Dreamlords
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness
GarageGames
Lockpick Entertainment
Hothead Games

FXLabs Studios
Unigine OilRush
Syndicates of Arkon
Dilogus - The Winds of War
Unigine Corp
MCM Online
Digital Arrow
Unity Cartoon Network Universe: FusionFall
Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online
GooBall
Global Conflicts: Palestine
Off-Road Velociraptor Safari
WolfQuest
Dead Frontier
Battlestar Galactica Online
Cartoon Network
Electronic Arts
Over The Edge Entertainment
Serious Games Interactive
Flashbang Studios
Eduweb
Mikesgames Productions
Bigpoint and Artplant
Unreal Engine 2.x[14] America's Army
BioShock
Exteel
Lineage II
Killing Floor
The Chronicles of Spellborn
Unreal Tournament 2004
Ragnarok Online 2


2K Games
NCsoft
Tripwire Interactive
Spellborn International
Epic Games
Gravity Corporation
Unreal Engine 3.x[14] America's Army 3
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Borderlands
Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway
BlackSite: Area 51
Gears of War
Gears of War 2
Gears of War 3
Unreal Tournament 3
Rainbow Six Vegas
Lost Odyssey
Mass Effect
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 3
The Last Remnant
Medal of Honor: Airborne
Blade & Soul
Bulletstorm
Eidos Interactive
Gearbox Software
Midway Games
Epic Games
Ubisoft
Mistwalker
BioWare
Square-Enix
NCsoft
People Can Fly
Vision Engine 8 Arcania: A Gothic Tale
The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom
DIZZEL
Dungeon Hero
Arena Morte
Cutthroat
JoWood, Spellbound
Ubisoft-Blue Byte Studio
Neowiz Corp.
Firefly Studios
Frontline Studios
Nitro Games
X-Ray Engine S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat
GSC Game World
4A Engine Metro 2033 4A Games

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.blender.org/development/coding-guides/installation-policy/
  2. ^ http://www.blender.org/features-gallery/features/#c883
  3. ^ http://www.cafu.de/features
  4. ^ http://www.computerworld.dk/art/37193?a=related&i=38760&bottom
  5. ^ Aihoshi, Richard (2003-12-09). "SpellForce - The Order of Dawn Interview, Part 2, Page 2" (in English). RPG Vault. http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/448/448289p2.html. Retrieved 2011-01-16. 
  6. ^ McDermott, Wes (2009). "Creating Real-time Assets". Real-world modo: in the trenches with modo. Focus Press. pp. 291–292. ISBN 978-0240811994. 
  7. ^ Epic Games, Inc.. "UDK Commercial Terms". http://www.udk.com/licensing. Retrieved 2011-06-05. 
  8. ^ Marsh, David (February 26, 2008). "Nine Paths To Indie Game Greatness". Gamasutra. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3547/nine_paths_to_indie_game_greatness.php?page=3. Retrieved 2009-12-21. 
  9. ^ Broekhuis, Erwin. "A word with Steve Ince". Adventure Developers. http://www.adventuredevelopers.com/featuredetail.php?action=view&featureid=36&showpage=3. Retrieved 2009-12-21. 
  10. ^ http://www.gamedev.net/page/news/index.html/_/engine-news/sunburn-game-engine-full-windows-phone-7-support-r11885
  11. ^ http://www.smartkeitai.com/salty-jims-putt-putt-minigolf-game-for-windows-phone-7/
  12. ^ http://www.dealspwn.com/xbox-live-indie-game-week-avahang-ophidian-wars-air-forte/
  13. ^ http://www.munomic.com/games/up-away/
  14. ^ a b http://www.unrealengine.com/showcase
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