head to head · open source
GDevelop vs JoltPhysics
GDevelop has 28,773 GitHub stars, 1,654 forks, 633 open issues and last shipped yesterday. JoltPhysics has 12,276 stars, 1,015 forks, 14 open issues and last shipped yesterday. GDevelop leads on adoption by 134% (28,773 vs 12,276 stars). GDevelop is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence; JoltPhysics is written in C++ under MIT. GDevelop has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, JoltPhysics 8%. JoltPhysics was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (game-development, game-engine), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| GDevelop | JoltPhysics | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 29K | ★ 12K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-12 | 2026-11-12 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.7K | ⑂ 1.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick GDevelop if
- You weight community size — 29K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick JoltPhysics if
- You want the JoltPhysics feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and JoltPhysics fits your workflow better
About GDevelop
GDevelop is a full featured, no code, open source game development software. You can build 2D, 3D and multiplayer games for mobile (iOS, Android), desktop and the web. GDevelop is designed to be fast and incredibly intuitive: make games using an easy to understand yet powerful event based system and modular behaviors. Create with AI that assists or builds alongside you. Getting started Are you interested in contributing to GDevelop for the first time? Take a look at the list of good first issues , good first contributions or the "🏐 not too hard" cards on the Roadmap. Games made with GDevelop Find GDevelop games…
read the full GDevelop overview →
About JoltPhysics
Jolt Physics A multi core friendly rigid body physics and collision detection library. Suitable for games and VR applications. Used by Horizon Forbidden West and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. For more demos and videos go to the Samples section. Design considerations Why create yet another physics engine? Firstly, it has been a personal learning project. Secondly, I wanted to address some issues that I had with existing physics engines: Games do more than simulating physics. These things happen across multiple threads. We emphasize on concurrently accessing physics data outside of the main simulation update…
read the full JoltPhysics overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is GDevelop or JoltPhysics more popular?
GDevelop has 28,773 GitHub stars and JoltPhysics has 12,276. GDevelop has the larger community by that measure.
Are GDevelop and JoltPhysics free?
Both are open source. GDevelop has no licence declared in this registry, and JoltPhysics is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between GDevelop and JoltPhysics?
GDevelop is written in JavaScript and JoltPhysics in C++. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, GDevelop or JoltPhysics?
Choose GDevelop if you want the larger community (28,773 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose JoltPhysics if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.