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Cocos2d VS CryENGINE

Compare Cocos2d VS CryENGINE and see what are their differences

Cocos2d logo Cocos2d

Cocos2d

CryENGINE logo CryENGINE

The most powerful game development platform is now available to everyone. Full engine source code.
  • Cocos2d Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-11-08
  • CryENGINE Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-04-18

Cocos2d features and specs

  • Open Source
    Cocos2d is open-source, which means developers can use it for free and contribute to its development. This fosters a large community and a wealth of shared resources.
  • Cross-Platform Development
    Cocos2d supports multiple platforms including iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows, allowing developers to write code once and deploy it across different devices.
  • Ease of Use
    The framework offers an easy-to-learn API, which is beneficial for beginners as well as experienced developers who want to create games efficiently.
  • Rich Set of Features
    Cocos2d provides a comprehensive set of features such as physics engines, particle systems, and skeletal animation, which are essential for game development.
  • Community Support
    A large community of developers contributes to Cocos2d, providing tutorials, forums, and plugins that enhance the framework's capabilities.

Possible disadvantages of Cocos2d

  • Limited 3D Capabilities
    Cocos2d is primarily a 2D game engine, and while it has some 3D capabilities, it is not as robust as other dedicated 3D engines such as Unity or Unreal Engine.
  • Performance Limitations
    Games made with Cocos2d might face performance issues, particularly on older devices, when dealing with complex scenes or high-resolution graphics.
  • Learning Curve
    Though easier than some other engines, developers still need to invest time in learning Cocos2d's specific architecture and coding practices.
  • Less Polished Tools
    Compared to commercial game engines, Cocos2d's development tools might seem less polished or feature-rich.
  • Fragmentation
    The existence of multiple versions and forks (like Cocos2d-x, Cocos2d-ObjC) can sometimes lead to confusion and fragmentation, making it harder for developers to pick the right tool for their needs.

CryENGINE features and specs

  • High-Quality Graphics
    CryENGINE is renowned for its cutting-edge graphics and rendering capabilities, enabling realistic environments and character models, which can significantly enhance visual appeal.
  • Real-Time Lighting
    The engine offers advanced real-time lighting features, including dynamic shadows and global illumination, which contribute to more immersive and visually stunning scenes.
  • Sandbox Editor
    CryENGINE’s Sandbox Editor is highly intuitive and user-friendly, offering a powerful WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) environment that speeds up the development process.
  • Integrated Physics Engine
    The engine comes with an integrated physics engine known for its realistic simulation of physical interactions, which is crucial for creating believable gameplay experiences.
  • Support for Multiple Platforms
    CryENGINE supports multiple platforms, including Windows, PlayStation, Xbox, and VR devices, making it versatile for various types of game development.
  • Strong Community and Resources
    There is a strong community of developers and comprehensive documentation available, providing ample resources for troubleshooting and learning.

Possible disadvantages of CryENGINE

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Despite the user-friendly interface, CryENGINE has a steep learning curve, particularly for beginners, which can make it challenging to fully leverage its capabilities without significant time investment.
  • Performance Requirements
    The high-quality graphics and advanced features demand substantial hardware resources, which can limit accessibility and increase development costs.
  • Less Popularity
    Compared to other engines like Unreal Engine and Unity, CryENGINE is less popular, which means fewer plugins, third-party tools, and a smaller talent pool of experienced developers.
  • License Costs
    While the engine offers a free tier, commercial use can incur significant licensing costs, especially for large projects, which can be a barrier for indie developers or small studios.
  • Sparse Updates
    Updates and new features are not as frequent as other engines, which can result in longer periods before bugs are fixed or new functionalities are introduced.
  • Complex Scripting
    The scripting in CryENGINE can be complex and less intuitive compared to other engines, which may slow down development for programmers not familiar with its architecture or programming languages.

Cocos2d videos

Cocos2D-x 4.0 Released

More videos:

  • Review - Corona vs Cocos2d vs Unity

CryENGINE videos

CryEngine 5.6 Released

More videos:

  • Review - The Future Of CryEngine
  • Review - CRYENGINE 5.6 Tech Trailer

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Cocos2d and CryENGINE)
Game Development
29 29%
71% 71
Game Engine
27 27%
73% 73
3D Game Engine
31 31%
69% 69
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Cocos2d and CryENGINE

Cocos2d Reviews

The Best Gaming Engines You Should Consider for 2023
All versions of Cocos2d work using the basic primitive known as a sprite. A sprite can be thought of as a simple 2D image, but can also be a container for other sprites. Sprites are arranged together to form a scene, like a game level or a menu. Sprites are then code-manipulated as per events, actions, or animations.
Top 10 Mobile Game Development Tools For Intellectual Games
Like Corona SDK, Cocos2D also has OpenGL as a rendering engine that allows it to interact with graphic processing units. Cocos2D uses C++ to build games along with support for Lua and JavaScript. It is open-source and used to build cross-platform GUI based interactive games.
Source: unaryteam.com

CryENGINE Reviews

Game Engines: A Comparative Analysis
CryEngine, developed by Crytek, is synonymous with cutting-edge graphics and realism. It has been the engine of choice for visually stunning games like the Crysis series. Offering real-time dynamic lighting and reflections, CryEngine is a powerhouse for developers aiming to create visually groundbreaking experiences.
Source: medium.com
The Best Gaming Engines You Should Consider for 2023
CryEngine also provides plenty of free learning resources, although their effectiveness is debatable. Gaming giant Ubisoft maintains an in-house modified version of CryEngine from the original Far Cry called the Dunia Engine, which is heavily used in their later iterations of the popular Far Cry series.
What Are the Best Game Engines?
CryEngine is a cross-platform engine. You can use it to create photorealistic first-person games, especially shooters. CryEngine is used in all games from CryTek, as well as other studios. As mentioned above, CryEngine was licensed and reworked to create Amazon Lumberyard.
The Top 10 Video Game Engines
In addition to the engine itself, CryEngine also provides plenty of free learning resources. Tutorials, forums, and documentation give you the tools you need to get started. Because of the power behind the engine, there’s a bit of a learning curve. YouTube and the official CryEngine resources are your friends, here.
11 tools to get you started making video games
Learning tools: CryEngine has a number of free tutorial videos that cover everything from installing the editor and walking you through making a simple Flappy Bird-like game to more complex things like compiling a custom configured version of the engine.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Cocos2d and CryENGINE, you can also consider the following products

Unity - The multiplatform game creation tools for everyone.

Unreal Engine - Unreal Engine 4 is a suite of integrated tools for game developers to design and build games, simulations, and visualizations.

Blender - Blender is the open source, cross platform suite of tools for 3D creation.

Godot Engine - Feature-packed 2D and 3D open source game engine.

Amazon Lumberyard - Amazon Lumberyard is a free AAA game engine deeply integrated with AWS and Twitch – with full...

Stencyl - Make iOS (iPhone/iPad), Android, Flash, Windows & Mac games without code using Stencyl.