/public_source_engines

Game Engines with Source: Learning from the best

Game Engines with Source: Learning from the best


As a game developer, I'm always intrigued by how other people do things and what solutions have been developed to some problem. As well as the big ones, many smaller engines are being worked on and I find myself downloading repositories, compiling, tinkering and marveling at what's available. This is a non-exhaustive list of game engines whose source code you can freely inspect, compile, run and learn from.

NB: When I say game engine I am referring to a conglomerate of technologies that generally has an editor, a scene description, input/output, etc. If the scope is more limited we would be talking about a rendering or a physics engine.

NB2: Notice I say public source, and not open or free or anything that suggests that you can arbitrarily make use of the code. Every entry in the list has its own licensing terms, commercial options and/or conditions that you need to abide by.

Team Engines

Engines that are being developed by teams of individuals, generally are well established and have commercial products behind them.

Engine Source Screenshot
ue4 Unreal Engine https://github.com/EpicGames/UnrealEngine
cryengine CryEngine https://github.com/CRYTEK/CRYENGINE_ReadMe
godot Godot https://github.com/godotengine/godot
the_forge The Forge https://github.com/ConfettiFX/The-Forge
torque Torque 3D https://github.com/GarageGames/Torque3D
flax Flax Engine https://github.com/FlaxEngine/FlaxEngine
panda3d Panda 3D https://github.com/panda3d/panda3d
armory3d Armory 3D https://github.com/armory3d/armory
neoaxis NeoAxis Engine https://github.com/NeoAxis/NeoAxisEngine
urho3d Urho3D https://github.com/urho3d/Urho3D
playcanvas PlayCanvas Engine https://github.com/playcanvas/engine
lumberyard Lumberyard https://github.com/aws/lumberyard
o3de O3DE https://github.com/o3de/o3de
ez ezEngine https://github.com/ezEngine/ezEngine
defold Defold https://github.com/defold/defold
cocos Cocos Creator https://github.com/cocos/cocos-engine
stride Stride https://github.com/stride3d/stride
dagor Dagor https://github.com/GaijinEntertainment/DagorEngine

Solo Engines

Engines that are being developed generally by a single individual or at most a handful. Some are commercial products, others are often either experimental or toy pieces of tech.

Engine Source Screenshot
raylib Raylib https://github.com/raysan5/raylib
wicked Wicked Engine https://github.com/turanszkij/WickedEngine
hazel Hazel https://github.com/TheCherno/Hazel
spartan Spartan Engine https://github.com/PanosK92/SpartanEngine
paxengine Pax Engine https://github.com/pmbittner/PaxEngine3
acid Acid Engine https://github.com/EQMG/Acid
rbfx rbfx https://github.com/rokups/rbfx
nCine nCine https://github.com/nCine/nCine
lina Lina Engine https://github.com/inanevin/LinaEngine
vq VQE https://github.com/vilbeyli/VQE
et ET Engine https://github.com/Illation/ETEngine
overload Overload https://github.com/adriengivry/Overload
mocha Mocha https://github.com/mocha-engine/mocha
esoterica Esoterica https://github.com/BobbyAnguelov/Esoterica
rbdoom3bfg RBDoom3BFG https://github.com/RobertBeckebans/RBDOOM-3-BFG
Lumix Engine https://github.com/nem0/LumixEngine
Ethereal Engine https://github.com/volcoma/EtherealEngine
Lumos Engine https://github.com/jmorton06/Lumos
Sir Engine https://github.com/giordi91/SirEngineThe3rd
PathFinder Engine https://github.com/man-in-black382/PathFinder
Thunder https://github.com/thunder-engine/thunder
Crown Engine https://github.com/crownengine/crown
Hyperion https://github.com/krait-games/hyperion-engine
VXR https://github.com/avilapa/vxr
AdriaDX12 https://github.com/mateeeeeee/Adria-DX12
Hybrid https://github.com/Angelo1211/HybridRenderingEngine
Equilibrium Engine https://github.com/clibequilibrium/EquilibriumEngine
koala Koala Engine https://github.com/phisko/kengine
halley Halley Engine https://github.com/amzeratul/halley
explosion Explosion Engine https://github.com/ExplosionEngine/Explosion
Banshee Engine https://github.com/ValtoGameEngines/Banshee-Engine
LiteFX https://github.com/crud89/LiteFX

Rendering Engines

These are only the graphics part of an engine but mature enough and well developed that their code is worthwhile to learn from.

Engine Source
diligent Diligent Engine https://github.com/DiligentGraphics/DiligentEngine
bgfx bgfx https://github.com/bkaradzic/bgfx
ogre Ogre 3D Next https://github.com/OGRECave/ogre-next
methane Methane Kit https://github.com/egorodet/MethaneKit
magnum Magnum https://github.com/mosra/magnum
vultaik Vultaik https://github.com/FaberSanZ/Vultaik
Veldrid https://github.com/mellinoe/veldrid