Looking to create your own video games? Explore the 10 best game creation software options for beginners and experienced developers to bring your gaming ideas to life.
Best Game Creation Software.
If you have the desire and free time, anyone can “get into” gamedev. Fortunately, today there is a huge amount of software for both beginners and experts in this field. We have collected the most popular programs.
Unity 3D
- Developer: Unity Technologies
- Official website
One of the most popular and flexible tools for developing projects of any “weight category”, from modest indie games to full-scale AAA titles. Both Ori and the Blind Forest and Genshin Impact were created on it.
| Pros | Cons |
| A huge selection of plugins that allow you to speed up and simplify the development process. | It has high system requirements, which may make it difficult to run on low-powered computers. |
| A powerful toolkit that allows you to perform any operations with the engine, including animations and scripts. | For beginners, Unity 3D may seem too complicated. |
| An active community of developers who can offer support and share their own experiences. | Some versions of the engine may seem too expensive for small development teams or beginners. |
Unreal Engine
- Developer: Epic Games
- Official website
One of the favorites among professional game developers. It has a high entry threshold, but justifies itself with its functionality. The most advanced and technically advanced projects are developed on it.
| Pros | Cons |
| Offers advanced tools for creating realistic graphics, making it an ideal choice for developers who want to create games with a high level of detail. | High system requirements, which may make it difficult to run on low-powered computers. |
| Significantly simplifies your lighting workflow with Nanite and Lumen technologies, reducing the time it takes to create highly detailed lighting scenes. | While Unreal Engine 5 is free to use, licensing restrictions may affect the commercial use of the games you create. |
| It features a powerful editor that allows you to create levels and animate objects. | It will take some time to get used to the program, especially for those who have no experience in game development. |
CryEngine
- Developer: CryTek
- Official website
The brainchild of the German studio CryTek, which once gave the world such projects as Far Cry, as well as the Crysis& trilogy. Until its release, Unreal Engine was considered one of the most technologically advanced engines. It has high hardware requirements (as do the games created on it), but the result justifies the means in the form of a realistic picture.
| Pros | Cons |
| A powerful editor that allows you to create levels, animate objects and control artificial intelligence without deep programming knowledge. | It will take some time to get used to the program, especially for those who have no experience in game development. |
| Offers advanced physics simulation tools, allowing you to create games with realistic behavior of objects and characters | Has limitations compared to the more flexible tools of Unity or Unreal Engine. |
| Supports multiple platforms including PC, consoles and mobile devices. | Lack of support for some programming languages. |
Amazon Lumberyard
- Developer: Amazon
- Official website
Technically, Amazon Lumberyard has proven its capabilities with a cutting-edge engine after the release of New World, an MMORPG released in 2021. Based on an advanced version of the CryEngine, which has proven its suitability in the Crysis series. Professional tools that allow you to create large-scale games.
| Pros | Cons |
| Its toolset is enough to create a full-fledged game, including animations, scripts and everything else necessary. | Less advanced game creation tools, which limits the functionality of the software. |
| It is a free cross-platform game engine. | Has a smaller template base, which can make the learning process more challenging. |
| Built-in support for Amazon Web Services, allowing developers to create and run games in the cloud with ease. | Low level of interest from other developers. |
Clickteam Fusion
- Developer: Clickteam
- Official website
Allows you to develop video games or applications for Windows PCs without programming skills. Has a large database of training materials. Facilitates development thanks to a large number of ready-made templates. Supports export to mobile platforms.
| Pros | Cons |
| Clickteam Fusion 2.5 comes with a large number of examples and templates to help you get started with your projects faster. | Clickteam Fusion 2.5 is a paid program and license prices can be high. |
| Allows you to expand the functionality of the program using plugins and scripts, which gives them the ability to customize the tool for specific needs. | The Clickteam Fusion 2.5 interface may seem complicated to newbies and it may take some time to get used to the program. |
| Allows you to create games and applications without deep knowledge of programming. | It has some limitations compared to more advanced development tools. For example, it is not as flexible in terms of code customization as some other programs. |
Game Editor
- Developer: Makslane Rodrigues
- Official website
Another constructor that allows you to create games without programming knowledge. A convenient tool for creating 2D games regardless of their genre. Many will recognize the functionality of Macromedia Flash MX in it.
| Pros | Cons |
| It is free software, making it accessible to anyone who wants to try their hand at game development. | Does not have an active developer community, which can make the program difficult to use. |
| Intuitive interface that will simplify working with the software. | Doesn’t offer professional tools like game testing, debugging, and optimization tools that are available in more expensive programs. |
| With Game Editor you can create games for various platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iOS. | The free version is not intended for commercial use. |
Godot Engine
- Developer: Epic Games
- Official website
A powerful and free engine that is suitable for developers who want to create games with limited resources or prefer open source. However, it also has some limitations that you need to consider if you want to choose it as your main toolkit.
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| Pros | Cons |
| Godot Engine is completely free and open source. | Compared to Unity or Unreal Engine, Godot Engine has a smaller base of examples and templates. |
| It has low system requirements, making it a good choice for creating games with limited resources. | Supports C#, which may be a problem for developers who prefer other programming languages. |
| An active community of developers offering support and sharing experiences. | Fewer plugins and tools. |
Kodu Game Lab
Source YouTube
- Developer: Fuse Lab
- Official website
Kodu Game Lab is a visual game designer developed by Microsoft Research as an educational tool for teaching children programming through game creation.
| Pros | Cons |
| It is free software, making it accessible to everyone. | May cause difficulties when scaling projects, as it has limited capabilities in terms of code customization. |
| Offers a large number of examples and templates that can help beginners get started with their projects faster. | Does not have an active developer community or official support. |
| Supports multiple platforms including PC, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. | Does not support release on mobile devices, which limits the possibilities for distributing created games. |
RPG Maker
- Developer: Gotcha Gotcha Games, KADOKAWA, Yoji Ojima
- Official website
Unites a whole series of software for creating role-playing games (and more) under one name. The toolkit is popular among novice game developers. Allows you to create games from scratch without having deep knowledge of programming.
| Pros | Cons |
| RPG Maker has a lot of free resources, including maps, sprites, and music, that you can use in your games. | Has limited customization and customizability compared to more sophisticated game creation tools. |
| There is no need to learn programming languages. | It is not possible to create a project with high-tech graphics in RPG Maker. |
| Does not require large expenses for licensing or equipment rental. | Not suitable for creating 3D games. |
Defold
- Developer: King Digital, Defold Foundation
- Official website
Another cross-platform engine, Free, and also has an open source code. Suitable for beginner game developers and has a low entry threshold for those who want to try themselves in gamedev.
| Pros | Cons |
| It is completely free and open source software, making it available to anyone who wants to create games without licensing restrictions. | Fewer plugins compared to more popular engines. |
| Not a bad and functional editor for an engine of this level. | Low support from developers and community. |
| Allows you to create games for multiple platforms, including mobile. | It has a simplified toolkit, which may affect the ability to implement more complex ideas. |