We present to you our website’s attempt to create a comprehensive list of game engines that will be of interest to indie developers, convenient for initial engine selection, and help you take the next step toward creating your own computer game. Everything is simple, concise, categorized, and color-coded according to relevance.
Select a game engine category:
| The best | 2D (PC) | 3D (PC) | Cross | MMO + Web | Mobile |
Game engines for creating 2D games
| Name | Description, advantages | Platforms | Language | Genres | Price |
| 001 Game Creator (2013) |
An engine built on the Game Maker platform. It allows you to create game scripts in a convenient graphical format. Numerous pre-made game templates are available. Website: engine001.com |
Windows, iPhone, Android | — | 2D, 3D games of any genre | Free, $10/Month |
| Andorra2D v.0.451 (2009) |
A direct successor to DelphiX, a 2D engine with new features. Supports DirectX and OpenGL. Website: andorra.sourceforge.net |
Windows | Object Pascal | 2D strategy, side-scrolling, arcade, platformer | For free |
| Box2D v.2.3 (2013) |
Not a full-fledged game engine, but a real-time physics engine designed for working with 2D physical objects. The engine is used in the following games: Angry Birds, Limbo, and Crayon Physics Deluxe. Website: box2d.org |
— | C++ | 2D games of any genre | For free |
| DGD (Dworkin’s Game Driver) v.1.4.18 (2010) |
An object-oriented MUD engine. MUDs are text-based games played via a client-server system. Website: dworkin.nl |
Windows, Mac, Unix | C, Java | MUD games | For free |
| Exult v.1.2 (2004) |
A free reincarnation of the Ultima VII game engine from 1990. Website: exult.sourceforge.net |
Windows, Mac, Linux | — | 2D RPG | For free |
| FIFE (Flexible Isometric Free Engine) v.0.3.5 (2013) |
A free engine for creating 2D isometric games. Supports assets from Fallout and Fallout 2. It also includes many developments for strategy games. Disadvantages: Difficult to master. Website: fifengine.net |
Windows, Mac, Linux | C++, Python, ActivePython | 2D games, RPGs, RTS | For free |
| HGE (Haaf’s Game Engine) v.1.81 (2008) |
A simple and easy-to-use engine for creating 2D games. It comes with an SDK. The engine has very user-friendly documentation and clear tutorials demonstrating its main capabilities. Website: hge.relishgames.com |
Windows | C++ | 2D games of any genre | For free |
| Game Maker v.8.1.140 (2013) |
The game engine is designed for creating 2D games without programming languages, suitable for beginners. Lines of code are replaced with pre-defined character actions. This program is excellent for top-down games and side-scrolling platformers. Website: gamemaker.io/ru |
Windows | drag-and-drop interface, C++ scripting language | 2D games of any genre | Free, $49.99, $799.99 |
| LOVE v.0.9.0 (2013) |
A popular free 2D engine. Open source. The following games were created using this engine: Mari0, Duck Marines, Mr. Rescue, Sienna, and Super Catacombs. Website: love2d.org |
Windows, Mac, Linux | Lua | 2D games of any genre | For free |
| MUGEN v.1.1 (2013) |
A highly specialized 2D fighting game engine. It includes working fighter models from most popular 2D fighting games of the 1990s. Website: elecbyte.com/mugen (unavailable) |
Windows, MS-DOS, Linux | C | 2D fighting game | For free |
| OpenBOR v.3.0 (2010) |
A 2D engine from Senile Team. 4-player support. Memory management. The following games were created using this engine: OpenBor Doom, Beast of Rage (a remake of the legendary Street of Rage/Bare Knuckle). Website: senileteam.com |
Windows, Dreamcast, PSP, PS2, Xbox, GP2X | C++, C# | Beat ’em up (fights to complete) | For free |
| OMEGA Engine v.1.15 (2007) |
Game development engine. Uses DirectX or OpenGL API, depending on the version. The engine is fairly easy to learn. Website: andru-kun.inf.ua/omega |
Windows | Delphi (Object Pascal), C++ | 2D games of any genre | For free |
| Pentagram (2007) |
A project creating the game engine used in the released game Ultima VIII: Pagan. Website: pentagram.sourceforge.net |
Windows, Mac, Linux | — | 2D RPG | For free |
| QSP (Quest Soft Player) (AeroQSP) (2010) |
A popular cross-platform Russian engine for creating Interactive Fiction (text-based) games. QSP’s author and lead developer is Valery Argunov, aka Byte. Website: qsp.su |
Windows, Mac, Linux, Windows Mobile, Android, PSP | Visual Basic, C | Quests, Interactive Fiction | For free |
| RPG Maker VX Ace (2013) |
Simple enough for a kid, powerful enough for a developer—that’s the motto of this engine. RPG Maker VX Ace improves every aspect of RPG creation. Website: rpgmakerweb.com |
— | — | 2D RPG | — |
| Scrupp v.0.4 |
The engine’s creators’ primary goal is to make the core as small and simple as possible. It uses several SDL libraries and OpenGL. Website: scrupp.sourceforge.net |
Windows, Mac, Linux | Lua | 2D games of any genre | For free |
| Stratagus v.2.2.7 (2012) |
A cross-platform game engine for real-time strategy games like Warcraft 2, with source code and sprites. Support for playing over a local network or the internet. Website: stratagus.com |
Windows, AmigaOS 4, BSD, Linux, Mac, MorphOS, AROS | — | RTS strategies | For free |
| URQ | A popular Russian engine for creating Interactive Fiction games (text-based games, simplified quests). Website: questtext.narod.ru |
— | — | Quests, Interactive Fiction | For free |
| Zero Engine v.3.1 (2009) |
The Zero Engine is a set of ready-made game functions for the Game Maker engine. In addition to core engine systems, RPG systems, automata, and universal input systems, it also includes many scenarios. Website: zeroengine0.digipen.edu |
Windows | Python | 2D platformers, 2D RPG | For free |
