Top 10 Video Game Engines used by Game Developers

In this article, we are going to list the top 10 game engines which help to make video games magnificent and enjoyable to play.

Scroll down below to know the list of the top 10 Video Game Engines used by most game developers. If you want to add up some extra knowledge about video game development software (i.e. Game Engines), you can start reading from here.

A game engine is a framework used to develop video games.

In general, a game engine provides the architecture of the games and helps to run the game. Therefore game engine is a game development platform, by using this platform a game developer (whether they are beginners or professionals) attempts to develop a game.

The best thing about the game engines is you do not require any prior knowledge of programming languages to create some basic games.

If you are a video game player then it might be possible you had heard about “Game Engines”, but you have not known, what actually a game engine does.

In this very article, I will try to give you every possible detail briefly regarding the game engine such as

  • What are game engines?
  • Why games developer uses the game engine?
  • What are the features a game engine provides?
  • What are the most popular game engines?
  • Best open-source game engines
  • Types of game development software
  • Best online courses to learn how to use game engines

The Game Engine Benefits

The game engine is a helpful (life-saving) tool for a game developer because it saves lots of time. Thereby you do not have to write a program for every single asset.

In the case of using a game engine, developers have more time to focus on the other core elements such as game characters, storyline, gameplay style, effects, impact on the object, and the environment of the games.

That means a developer has plenty of time to think about other necessary things so it might be possible he would be able to create a good video game in a short period of time.

It is hard for everyone to make a game from the scratch without taking any help from the game’s engine.

I will say if you have the option to use a game engine and it also fulfills most requirements, then why you are not using it? Whereas, some of the game engines are available in the market for free. Don’t worry I have also listed some of the best open-source game engines which are free to use and anyone can use them.

To leverage the game engines you must know how to use them, therefore I have listed some of the best online courses along with the list of top 10 game engines.

If you really want to learn how to leverage game engines. Those online courses will provide you with concrete guidance that’ll have you build better video games in no time.

>> Specialization Course: Game Design and Development Specialization by Michigan State University

Why I am leaner towards using game engines because it is a difficult task to build your own game engine. Building a game engine takes lots of time which means a delay in your game development.

Especially for the new game developer or an entrepreneur, who wants to build their own games? For those people, the game engine is nothing less than a treasure.

 

Types of Video Game Engines

Numerous types of game engines are available in the market to develop the different genres (Mobile, PC, PlayStation, VR) of games. So you can choose a game engine based on your requirements.

A game engine could belong to the following categories 

  • 2D game development engine
  • 3D game development engine
  • JavaScript game development engine
  • Android game development engine
  • VR (Virtual Reality) game engine
  • Mobile game development engine
  • MacOS game development engine
  • iOS game development engine
  • Windows game development engine
  • PlayStation game development engine
  • PC game development engine

It is also possible a game development framework (Game Engine) can support multiple platforms and categories.

 

The Features of Game Engine

Game Engine provides a necessary foundation (Framework) to build a video game. You can leverage the following features of a game engine in your video games to create a better experience for the users.

  • Animation
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Collision detection and response
  • Graph
  • Input
  • Networking
  • Physics
  • Rendering engine
  • Scripting

Creating a game development framework is not an easy task for a developer. It takes a whole bunch of time to create a unique game engine.

However, sometimes it is necessary for the game developer to build a new game engine. Because no existing game engine in the market is able to fulfill your game’s demand.

 

Top 10 Video Game Engines used by Game Developers

Choosing the best video game engine according to your requirements is really a tough job nowadays. Because in this competitive market, there are many games engine available.

Find Career Info provides a list of the top 10 game engines, which are recommended by many game developers. In this list, we also added some of the open-source game development tools, which would be indeed helpful for beginners.

You can choose any of the game engines among the list based on your experience and easy to use. All game engines are best in their own category and are used by many expert game developers.

[1]  Unreal Engine

  • Developed by Epic Games.
  • This Game Engine is one of the most popular and widely used game engines among game developers.
  • Unreal Engine support many platforms such as Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, HTML5 Playstation, Xbox, SteamOS, Oculus, Google VR Daydream, Samsung Gear VR, and PlayStation VR.
  • The popular games developed by using Unreal Engine are Batman: Arkham, Gears of War, Mass Effect, Bioshock and Dishonored.
  • Written in Programming Language: C++

Best Online Course to learn Unreal Game Engine: Unreal Engine: The Complete Beginner’s Course

[2]  Unity

  • Developed by Unity Technologies.
  • Unity allows you to create and develop interactive 2D, 3D, VR and Augmented Reality Games. The best thing is you can run those games on any platform.
  • The popular games developed by using Unity are Lara Croft, Satellite Reign, Rust, Pillars of Eternity, Wasteland 2, and Temple Run.
  • Unity3D is one of the best 3D game development frameworks.
  • Support programming Language: C#, JavaScript

Best Online Course to learn Unity Game Engine: Complete C# Unity Developer 3D: Learn to Code Making Games

>> Specialization Course: Game Design and Development Specialization by Michigan State University

[3]  CRYENGINE

  • Developed by Crytek
  • Platforms supported by CryEngine are Android, iOS, PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Wii U, and VR
  • The popular games developed by using CryEngine are Crysis, Ryse: Son of Rome, Far Cry, and State of  Decay.
  • This game development framework is written in Programming Languages: C++, Lua, C#
  • CryEngine graphics visibility power is on a different level as compared to others game engines.
  • CryEngine is one of the most powerful game engines available in the industry.

Best Online Course to learn CryEngine: Learn the basics of building levels with CryEngine

[4]  Game Maker Studio

  • Developed by YoYo Games
  • The popular games developed by using GameMaker Studio are Spelunky, Nuclear Throne, Super Crate Bo, Gunpoint, and Hotline Miami
  • GameMaker Studio is a great help for gaming aspirants, who does not have knowledge about programming languages. GameMaker allows you to create 2D games using many available tools.
  • Best game development engine for beginners.
  • This game engine is simple to use and user-friendly.
  • The drawback of using GameMaker is that you cannot create and develop very advanced games.

Best Online Course to learn Game Maker Studio: How to Make Games in Gamemaker Studio

[5]  Lumberyard

  • Developed by Amazon
  • Support in many platforms such as Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, iOS, and Android
  • The games developed by using Lumberyard are: Star Citizen, Everywhere, Breakaway
  • Written in Programming Language: C++, Lua
  • I include Amazon Lumberyard because it does not cost you a single penny. This video game engine could be a great choice for beginners, who want to make a career in gaming.
  • Lumberyard has a lot more features and supports on many platforms.

Best Online Course to learn Lumberyard: Amazon Lumberyard Course

[6]  RAGE (Rockstar Advanced Game Engine)

  • Developed by RAGE Technology Group
  • RAGE covers many platforms such as MAC, Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Wii U
  • The games developed by using this powerful engine are GTA, Max Payne, and Red Dead Redemption
  • The downside of using RAGE is you will have a limited amount of resources to design games as compared to the other game engines. So if you want to use this game engine, then make sure it fulfills your requirement.

[7]  HeroEngine 

  • Developed by Simutronics
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic and faxion online used HeroEngine
  • This video game development software is written in Programming Language: C++, C#
  • This game engine is highly popular with developers to design multiplayer and online games.
  • HeroEngine gives an online creation feature for developers to work from different locations.

[8]  Construct

  • Developed by Scirra
  • Construct is one of the most popular game engines to design 2D-based HTML5 games.
  • Construct is easy to use and gives you a drag-and-drop feature for game creation.
  • Written in a programming language: C++, JavaScript
  • For beginners, it is one of the best options to choose from. Construct is highly recommended by many developers.

Best Online Course to learn Construct: Construct – From Beginner to Advanced – Ultimate Course!

[9]  Cocos2d

  • Cocos2d is an open-source game engine
  • It supports multiple platforms such as iOS, Android, Mac OS, Windows and HTML5
  • The games developed by using Cocos2d are Badland, Hill Climb Racing, 2048, Castle Crash, Geometry Dash, etc.
  • Easy to use and simple to troubleshoot the errors. You can use skeleton animation.
  • Cocos2d is a great platform to start your gaming career.
  • Best free game engine for beginners
  • For download, Cocos2d click here.

Best Online Course to learn Cocos2d Game Engine: Cocos2d-x v3 JavaScript – Game Development Series

[10]  Panda3D

  • It is an open-source framework game engine, written in C++ and Python.
  • Panda3D gives lots of features to develop your games.
  • This game engine is a choice for many game developers.
  • One of the best free engines for game development.
  • For more details and download Panda3D, you can click here.

 

Bonus: Other 10 Most Popular Game Engines

You can also use these Game Engines to develop your video games.

  1. App Game Kit
  2. GameSalad
  3. Torque
  4. Stencyl
  5. Anvil
  6. ShiVa
  7. RPG Maker
  8. Buildbox
  9. Godot
  10. Frostbite

Always choose your game engine based on your game requirements.

 

What do you think about my top 10 game engines list? You can disagree with my opinion. Share your opinions and experiences in the comments below!