GDevelop vs UPBGE

GDevelop is an open-source game engine for creating and publishing games with visual, drag-and-drop tools that do not require code. JavaScript is available for scripting. It supports web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android, with publishing destinations including Google Play, Steam, desktop, web, iOS, and gd.games. Built-in multiplayer services include lobbies, leaderboards, and player accounts. The Free plan costs nothing and includes multiplayer and online services, thousands of Asset Store assets, and Android and desktop publishing once per day. Paid plans include full access to the mobile app, and the Pro plan supports project sharing with teammates. Support options include community resources, professional Discord channels, commercial troubleshooting, and custom development. Education plans provide anonymous student accounts, project access, and classroom resources. Subscriptions can be billed monthly or yearly, with annual savings of up to 40%, and can be canceled at any time; access ends after the paid period.

UPBGE is a free, open-source 3D game engine derived from the old Blender Game Engine and integrated with Blender. It supports real-time games, architectural presentations, robotics prototypes, physics simulations, and other interactive applications. Modeling and game functions remain in one Blender workflow, without importing or exporting assets between them. Projects can run in Blender’s viewport or as standalone executables. Logic Nodes provide visual programming with more than 300 nodes, alongside custom scripts and Logic Bricks. Python extends functionality, while GLSL supports custom shaders and post-processing. Rendering uses Blender’s EEVEE, with listed support for PBR shading, reflections, ambient occlusion, bloom, shadows, light probes, and volumetrics. Bullet supplies physics; Audaspace and OpenAL handle audio; Detour and Recast provide navigation. Runtime binaries export to Linux, macOS, and Windows. Compatibility is incomplete: Curves and Speakers are not rendered in-game. BGE games load and execute only partially, and UPBGE games may not run correctly in BGE. The project includes tutorials, examples, older releases, alpha builds, and a Discord community.