The open source ecosystem has reached an extraordinary level of maturity in recent years, making it possible to create professional video games without spending a single cent on software licenses.
From Godot to Blender, it is now possible to build a complete open source game development pipeline. These free tools have already powered multiple Steam bestsellers, offering zero licensing costs and maximum creative freedom.
Game engines
Godot Engine
Godot is the primary choice for developers who want to work entirely with open source tools. Created in 2014 by Juan Linietsky and Ariel Manzur, Godot has grown rapidly thanks to its community. With the 4.x releases—especially from version 4.3 onward—it now offers stability and features comparable to commercial engines.
Key strengths include full 2D and 3D support with advanced rendering, GDScript (a Python-like scripting language), support for C# and C++, a flexible node-based architecture, multi-platform exports (desktop, mobile, and web), and strong documentation backed by an active community.
Godot is particularly well suited for 2D games, indie 3D titles, rapid prototyping, and developers who prefer a scene-based workflow.
Games built with Godot
Several successful commercial games demonstrate Godot’s production readiness.
Brotato is a top-down roguelike shooter that generated over $10 million on Steam, handling hundreds of enemies on screen with ease.
Buckshot Roulette became a viral horror hit among streamers, earning nearly $7 million in revenue.
Dome Keeper blends survival, mining, and tower defense mechanics and has surpassed $6 million in sales.
Other notable titles include Cassette Beasts, Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy, Cruelty Squad, Halls of Torment, and Backpack Battles.
Other open source engines
Bevy is a modern, high-performance engine written in Rust, built around an ECS architecture and ideal for technical or simulation-heavy projects.
Stride (formerly Xenko) is a C#-based open source 3D engine well suited to developers with a .NET background.
Defold focuses on 2D and mobile games, offering excellent performance and a streamlined editor.
Graphics and 3D modeling
Blender
Blender is the de facto standard for open source 3D content creation. Since version 2.8, its interface has become significantly more accessible, and the 4.x series provides a highly optimized workflow.
Blender supports polygonal modeling, sculpting, retopology, rigging, animation, node-based materials, real-time and ray-traced rendering, physics simulations, video editing, and Python scripting for automation.
In game development, Blender is used for characters, environments, props, texture baking, animations, and even pre-rendered sprites.
Games and projects using Blender
Blender has been used to create assets for visually demanding games such as ULTRAKILL, as well as long-running open source projects like SuperTuxKart. It was also the foundation for early experimental titles like Big Buck Bunny: The Game and Dead Cyborg.
More recent examples include Sintel: The Game, Dogwalk (a Blender + Godot showcase project), and the visual assets for Dome Keeper.
Complementary tools
Krita is widely used for concept art, texture painting, and 2D assets.
GIMP handles photo editing, texture manipulation, and UI elements.
Inkscape is ideal for vector graphics such as icons, logos, and scalable UI components.
For pixel art, Aseprite is popular, with LibreSprite as a fully open source alternative.
Audio and music
- MuseScore provides a professional environment for composers working with traditional notation, with support for MIDI and audio export.
- LMMS is a full-featured DAW suitable for electronic music and soundtracks.
- Ardour offers studio-grade audio recording and mixing capabilities.
- Audacity remains an essential tool for sound editing and effects processing.
- Sfxr and ChipTone are perfect for generating retro-style sound effects.
Programming and development
VS Code, with the Godot extension, is the most common editor choice, supporting GDScript, C#, and many other languages.
Vim and Neovim remain popular among keyboard-focused developers, while Kate and KWrite offer lightweight alternatives.
Version control is handled with Git, often paired with graphical tools such as GitKraken (free tier) or Git Cola.
Video editing and marketing
Kdenlive is a solid open source choice for trailers, devlogs, and promotional videos.
Shotcut offers a more minimal and stable alternative, while Olive is an emerging editor with a modern interface.
DaVinci Resolve (free version) is often used for professional color grading, despite not being fully open source.
2D maps and sprites
Tiled Map Editor is the industry standard for tile-based 2D games and integrates cleanly with engines like Godot.
Piskel provides a simple interface for pixel art and sprite animation.
Supporting tools
For project management, tools like Trello (free tier) or OpenProject are commonly used.
Obsidian, often combined with a Kanban plugin, is well suited for game design notes and documentation.
Free asset repositories include OpenGameArt, Freesound, and Poly Pizza.
A complete open source game development pipeline
A typical workflow might involve Krita and Inkscape for concept art and UI design, Blender for 3D assets, Godot for development, MuseScore or LMMS for music, Audacity for sound effects, and Kdenlive for marketing materials. Distribution can happen through platforms like Itch.io, Steam, or Google Play.
Practical considerations
The open source approach offers zero licensing costs, creative freedom, strong community support, transparency, and long-term stability. However, developers should be aware of steeper learning curves, uneven documentation quality, occasional compatibility issues, and varying levels of performance and stability.
The future is open source
The open source game development ecosystem continues to evolve rapidly. Godot and Blender are adding increasingly professional features, and new tools appear every year.
Today, it is entirely possible to build commercially viable games using only free and open source software. While this stack may not suit every AAA production, it is more than sufficient for most indie, mobile, and mid-sized games.
The barrier to entry has never been lower. The tools are powerful, free, and readily available. What remains is creativity, dedication, and the willingness to learn.
