head to head · open source
raylib vs Terasology
raylib has 35,133 GitHub stars, 3,326 forks, 16 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Terasology has 3,898 stars, 1,376 forks, 462 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. raylib leads on adoption by 801% (35,133 vs 3,898 stars). raylib is written in C under Zlib; Terasology is written in Java under Apache-2.0. raylib has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, Terasology 35%. raylib was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (game-development, game-engine, gamedev), 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
| raylib | Terasology | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 35K | ★ 3.9K |
| License | Zlib | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | C | Java |
| Last push | 2026-10-09 | 2026-10-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.3K | ⑂ 1.4K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick raylib if
- You weight community size — 35K stars and counting
- You want the Zlib license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Terasology if
- You want the Terasology feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and Terasology fits your workflow better
About raylib
raylib is an open source, Zlib licensed C programming library for building videogames and graphical applications, aimed at programmers who would rather write code directly than work inside a visual game engine editor.
read the full raylib overview →
About Terasology
Terasology is an open source voxel world game engine written in Java for players, modders, and developers who want a Minecraft inspired platform they can build on, host, and modify themselves.
read the full Terasology overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is raylib or Terasology more popular?
raylib has 35,133 GitHub stars and Terasology has 3,898. raylib has the larger community by that measure.
Are raylib and Terasology free?
Both are open source. raylib is licensed under Zlib and Terasology under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between raylib and Terasology?
raylib is written in C and Terasology in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, raylib or Terasology?
Choose raylib if you want the larger community (35,133 stars) or its Zlib licence terms. Choose Terasology if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.