head to head · open source
GDevelop vs macroquad
GDevelop has 27,242 GitHub stars, 1,570 forks, 633 open issues and last shipped yesterday. macroquad has 4,652 stars, 426 forks, 340 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. GDevelop leads on adoption by 486% (27,242 vs 4,652 stars). GDevelop is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence; macroquad is written in Rust under Apache-2.0. GDevelop has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, macroquad 9%. GDevelop was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (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 | macroquad | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 27K | ★ 4.7K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-10-07 | 2026-08-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.6K | ⑂ 426 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick GDevelop if
- You weight community size — 27K 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 macroquad if
- You want the macroquad feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and macroquad fits your workflow better
About GDevelop
GDevelop is an open source, cross platform game engine and editor for creating 2D, 3D, and multiplayer games without writing code. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, and targets mobile (iOS, Android), desktop, and web platforms. Built with JavaScript, React, Electron, PixiJS, and Three.js, it combines a visual event based system with AI assisted development to lower the barrier to entry for game creation.
read the full GDevelop overview →
About macroquad
macroquad is a cross platform game library for Rust, aimed at developers who want to write one codebase and ship it to Windows, Linux, macOS, HTML5, Android, and iOS.
read the full macroquad overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is GDevelop or macroquad more popular?
GDevelop has 27,242 GitHub stars and macroquad has 4,652. GDevelop has the larger community by that measure.
Are GDevelop and macroquad free?
Both are open source. GDevelop has no licence declared in this registry, and macroquad is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between GDevelop and macroquad?
GDevelop is written in JavaScript and macroquad in Rust. 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 macroquad?
Choose GDevelop if you want the larger community (27,242 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose macroquad if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.