⚙ Free Engines

In this repo, we've gathered a collection of powerful, free-to-use game engines that are ideal for indie developers.
Whether you're working on a 2D or 3D game, you'll find a variety of engines suited to different project needs. From popular engines like Unity, Unreal Engine and Godot to lesser-known gems, this collection will help you find the right tools to build your dream game.

Didn't find what you were looking for? Check out our other repos!

Table of Contents

Summary
🎨 Art and Animation
🔊 Audio
🕹 Game Design
🖥 General
⚒ Production
💻 Programming
🐞 QA - Quality Assurance

🎨 Art and Animation

2D Model

• Aseprite - A dedicated program for creating pixel art and animations.
• Blender - Free and open-source 3D creation suite for modeling, animation, simulation, rendering, and more.
• Canvas-Txt - Library for rendering multiline text on HTML5 Canvas.
• Gimp - Image editor offering powerful features for photo manipulation, illustration, and graphic design, similar to Adobe Photoshop.
• GlueIT - Open-source tool for merging pixel art sprite sheets.
• InkScape - Free and open-source vector graphics editor.
• Krita - Free and open-source digital painting software.
• Leshy Labs - HTML5 tool for creating, packing, and modifying sprite sheets and texture atlases.
• Map Editor - Online map editor for creating tile-based maps.
• Ogmo - Open-source level editor focused on 2D games.
• Piskel - A free, web-based tool for creating pixel art and basic animations.
• Pixel Art Converter - Online tool to convert images to pixel art.
• Pixel Art Maker - Online tool for creating pixel art, offering various features for pixel artists.
• Pixelorama - Open-source pixel art editor.
• Pixen - Pixel art creation software.
• Pixie engine - Game engine focused on pixel art graphics.
• Pixiliart - A web-based application for creating pixel art, commonly used for 2D game graphics.
• Shoe Box - Open-source tool for previewing and editing pixel art projects.
• Sprite Fusion - Platform for creating and sharing pixel art assets.
• Sprite Stack - Online tool for managing and animating pixel art sprites.
• Stitches - Open-source tool for generating and customizing pixel art patterns.
• Texture Packer - Software for creating sprite sheets.
• Tile Setter - Tool for creating tilesets and maps for games.
• Tiled - Open-source tile map editor for creating level maps in games.

3D Model

• ArmorPaint - A free and open-source 3D sculpting software for creating game characters and models.
• BoundingBoxSoftware - A tool that lets you create game materials directly from images.
• Clara.io - Web-based 3D modeling tool with cloud storage and collaboration features.
• Goxel - Open-source voxel editor for creating 3D models using a 3D sculpting approach.
• Quixel Mixer - A 3D texturing and material creation software for creating realistic textures for your game assets.
• TextureGenerator - Free online tool for creating basic textures.
• TexturePacker - Software program for creating sprite sheets from individual images.
• TinkerCard - Web-based platform for creating simple 3D models, often used for educational purposes.

🔊 Audio

• Audacity - Open-source, full-featured audio editor for recording, editing, and analyzing sound.
• Audio Kinetic - Industry-standard middleware for implementing sound and music in games.
• BeepBox - Web-based tool for creating chiptune music in the style of early video game consoles.
• Cakewalk - A free digital audio workstation (DAW) for creating and editing music and sound design for games.
• CakeWalk - Feature-rich DAW with a free trial available (subscription required for continued use).
• ChipTone - Free downloadable software for creating chiptune music on your computer.
• DigCCMixter - Platform offering free and paid music under Creative Commons licenses, allowing creators to remix and adapt music for their projects.
• FamiStudio - Free program designed specifically for creating music for the NES.
• FamiTracker - Free program for creating music specifically for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).
• Flat.io - Website description unclear, may or may not offer royalty-free sound effects.
• Fmod - Another popular middleware solution for game audio development.
• Jfxr - Generate retro game sound effects with these online tools.
• Jsfxr - Generate retro game sound effects with these online tools.
• Konkat - Free version of a powerful sampler instrument for creating and manipulating sounds (paid versions offer more features).
• MiniSoundEditor - Simple online audio editor for basic sound editing tasks.
• NewGrounds - Online community known for games and animation, also features a section for royalty-free music submissions.
• Soundbox - Web-based tool for creating sound effects with a variety of options.
• Unminus - Provides royalty-free music with a focus on subscription plans for creators.
• Waveform - A free and powerful DAW from Tracktion, offering features for composing and editing music for games.
• Waveform - Free version of a popular DAW offering basic audio recording and editing capabilities.
• YMCK - Free plug-in for creating chiptune music within other DAWs.
• Zapsplat - A website offering free sound effects for use in your games and other creative projects.
• ZzFX - Tool for creating sound effects with a focus on retro and chiptune sounds.

🕹 Game Design

• Architect of Games Youtube Playlist - Game design concepts and philosophies, learn the theory behind creating great games.
• Dundoc - Platform for creating interactive fiction and choice-based games.
• RapidQuest - Open-source visual scripting tool for creating interactive stories and games.
• Twine - Free and open-source tool specifically designed for creating interactive fiction.
• YarnSpinner - A tool used to build interactive dialogue in games.

🖥 General

• 7-zip - File archiver with high compression ratios, supporting various archive formats.
• OBS Studio - Software for recording and live streaming your screen, often used for capturing gameplay or creating tutorials.
• VideoLan - Media player supporting a wide range of video and audio formats.
• Win RAR - A file archiver with powerful compression and encryption features.
• HandBrake - Tool for ripping and converting DVDs and Blu-rays to various digital video formats.
• Oracle VirtualBox - Virtualization software for running virtual machines on your computer, allowing you to test different operating systems or software.
• TeamViewer - A popular software for remote desktop access, allowing you to connect to another computer and control it remotely.
• WinDirStat - Disk space visualization tool that helps you identify and manage large files or folders taking up space on your drive.
• GlassWire - Firewall software that monitors your network activity, displaying which applications are accessing the internet and allowing you to control their access.
• BleachBit - System cleaner that helps you delete temporary files, system logs, cache, and other clutter to free up disk space and potentially improve system performance.

⚒ Production

• Airtable - A spreadsheet-database hybrid that can be used for project management, CRM (Customer Relationship Management), and more.
• Asana - Platform for managing work, projects, and tasks.
• Basecamp - A project management platform focused on team communication and collaboration.
• Casual - Visual project management tool that is easy to learn and use and that offers a 360° view of projects.
• ClickUp - A comprehensive all-in-one project management tool with features for tasks, lists, chat, documents, and more.
• ClickUp - Project management tool that allows teams to collaborate on projects of all sizes. It has features such as time tracking, task management, and chat.
• Jira - A robust project management and issue tracking software used by many development teams.
• Microsoft Project Management - A traditional project management software by Microsoft, offering robust features for planning, scheduling, and resource management.
• Monday - A user-friendly project management platform offering customizable boards and views for team collaboration.
• Notion - A flexible workspace that can be used for note-taking, project management, and team collaboration.
• ProofHub - A project management tool with features for tasks, discussions, files, and proofing functionalities.
• Scoro - A work management platform combining project management, CRM, and business intelligence features.
• Smartsheet - A project management tool offering spreadsheet-like features with additional functionalities for task management and collaboration.
• Teamwork - A project management platform focused on project planning, communication, and client collaboration.
• Trello - A popular Kanban-style project management tool with boards, lists, and cards for organizing tasks and workflows.
• Wrike - A project management software with features for tasks, workflows, collaboration, and reporting.
• Zoho - A project management solution from Zoho offering features for tasks, discussions, files, and collaboration.

💻 Programming

Code

• Cinder - C++ libraries for creative coding and game development.
• JavaScript Performance Monitor - Tool for monitoring performance bottlenecks in JavaScript games.
• Microsoft Visual Studios - Popular code editor with features specifically for game development.
• Notepad++ - Versatile text editor suitable for writing game code.
• Sublime Text - Text editor with code highlighting, multiple selections, and customization options.

Engine

• AFrame - Web framework for creating VR experiences with JavaScript.
• Bevy - Open-source Rust game engine for building performant games.
• Bladecoder - Engine specifically designed for creating interactive fiction and adventure games.
• Cocos - Popular game engine with versions for 2D, 3D, and mobile development.
• Defold - Cross-platform game engine known for its visual scripting capabilities.
• EasyRPG - Open-source engine for creating 2D RPGs.
• Evergine - Open-source 3D game engine with a focus on scalability and performance.
• Floppy - Minimalistic JavaScript game framework.
• Game Maker - Game engine known for its user-friendly interface and drag-and-drop functionality, ideal for beginners and 2D game development.
• Glide - Framework for building 2D games in Objective-C or Swift (iOS).
• Godot - Open-source, feature-rich 2D and 3D game engine.
• HaxeFlixel - Open-source game framework using Haxe programming language.
• Heaps - Cloud-based game development platform with a visual editor.
• Jabo - Micro game engine focused on simplicity and ease of use.
• JMonkeyEngine - Open-source Java game engine for creating 3D games.
• LittleJS - Lightweight JavaScript game library for building small games.
• MonoGame - Open-source framework for creating cross-platform 2D games.
• Ogre - Open-source 3D graphics rendering engine commonly used in game development.
• OpenFL - Open-source framework for building games using Haxe or JavaScript.
• ORX - Open-source game engine with a focus on performance and scalability.
• Panda3D - Open-source 3D game engine known for its flexibility and cross-platform compatibility.
• Phaser - Open-source 2D game framework for HTML5 game development.
• Piston - Open-source game engine built on the Rust programming language.
• PlayCanvas - Lightweight 3D game engine with a focus on web-based development.
• PYGames - Popular Python library for creating multimedia applications and games.
• Raylib - Simple and easy-to-use 2D and 3D game programming library.
• RenPy - Visual novel engine for creating interactive fiction games.
• Solar2D - Framework for building mobile games using Lua.
• Solarus - Open-source engine for creating 2D adventure games.
• Stencyl - Drag-and-drop game creation tool with a focus on ease of use.
• Stride - Open-source 3D game engine specifically designed for mobile development.
• TileEngine - Open-source framework for creating 2D tile-based games.
• Unity - Popular and powerful game engine for creating 2D, 3D, VR, AR, and mobile games.
• Unreal Editor - A powerful and versatile game engine from Epic Games, used for creating high-fidelity 3D games.
• Unreal Engine - Industry-standard game engine capable of creating high-fidelity games.

🐞 QA - Quality Assurance

• Appium - An open-source framework for automating mobile app testing across various platforms like iOS and Android. It allows using native testing frameworks and interacting with mobile apps on simulators or real devices.
• Bugzilla - An open-source bug tracking system for logging, managing, and resolving software defects.
• Charles Proxy - A web debugging proxy similar to Fiddler, but specifically designed for macOS. It allows intercepting and analyzing HTTP(S) traffic, debugging web requests, and testing mobile apps.
• Cypress - A modern JavaScript end-to-end testing framework for web applications. It runs tests directly in the browser and offers features like time travel debugging and automatic waiting.
• Jenkins - An open-source automation server for building, testing, and deploying software projects. It automates tasks and pipelines for continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD).
• Katalon - An automated testing platform for web, mobile, API, and desktop applications. It supports various testing frameworks and offers record-and-playback functionalities for test case creation.
• Postman - A collaboration platform for building and testing APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). It allows sending API requests, inspecting responses, and managing different environments.
• Selenium - A popular open-source suite of tools for automated web browser testing across various browsers and operating systems.
• Sentry - A real-time application monitoring and error reporting platform. It helps identify, troubleshoot, and fix errors in software applications.
• SonarQube - A platform for continuous code inspection and code quality analysis. It identifies bugs, code smells, vulnerabilities, and security issues.
• Telerik Fiddler - A web debugging proxy tool for inspecting HTTP(S) traffic between your computer and the internet. It allows analyzing requests and responses, modifying traffic data, and debugging web applications.
• TestRail - A test case management tool for planning, tracking, and executing test cases. It helps organize test suites, manage defects, and generate reports.
• Xdebug - A PHP extension that allows debugging PHP code by stepping through executions, inspecting variables, and profiling performance.