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GZDoom VS Unreal Engine

Compare GZDoom VS Unreal Engine and see what are their differences

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GZDoom logo GZDoom

ZDoom is a family of enhanced ports of the Doom engine for running on modern operating systems.

Unreal Engine logo Unreal Engine

Unreal Engine 4 is a suite of integrated tools for game developers to design and build games, simulations, and visualizations.
  • GZDoom Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-20
  • Unreal Engine Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-23

GZDoom features and specs

  • Mod Support
    GZDoom offers extensive modding capabilities, allowing players to enjoy a wide variety of custom levels, gameplay modifications, and total conversions.
  • Advanced Graphics
    It provides enhanced graphical features such as dynamic lighting, high-resolution textures, and 3D floors, significantly improving the visual experience compared to the original Doom engine.
  • Cross-Platform
    GZDoom supports multiple operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to a broad audience.
  • Active Community
    There is an active community of developers and players who continuously contribute to its development and share custom content, ensuring that the source port remains fresh and lively.
  • Enhanced Controls
    It offers modern control schemes, such as mouse look and customizable key bindings, providing a smoother and more intuitive gameplay experience.

Possible disadvantages of GZDoom

  • Complex Setup
    For newcomers, setting up GZDoom with additional mods and custom content can be complex and might require a learning curve.
  • Performance Requirements
    Due to its advanced graphical features, GZDoom can have higher system requirements than the original Doom engine, potentially leading to performance issues on older hardware.
  • Compatibility
    While GZDoom aims to support a broad range of mods, not all existing mods might work perfectly, leading to potential compatibility issues.
  • Purists' Concerns
    Some Doom purists may feel that the enhancements and modifications available through GZDoom take away from the classic Doom experience.

Unreal Engine features and specs

  • High-Quality Graphics
    Unreal Engine is known for its ability to produce stunning, high-quality graphics and realistic environments, making it a preferred choice for AAA game development and high-fidelity visual projects.
  • Blueprint Visual Scripting
    Unreal Engine offers a visual scripting system called Blueprints, which allows designers to create complex game logic without any programming knowledge, streamlining the development process.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Unreal Engine provides robust support for multiple platforms, including PC, consoles, mobile devices, and VR/AR headsets, enabling developers to reach a wider audience with minimal hassle.
  • Large and Active Community
    The Unreal Engine community is large and active, offering extensive resources, tutorials, and forums which can be invaluable for troubleshooting and learning new techniques.
  • Regular Updates
    Epic Games frequently updates Unreal Engine, adding new features, improvements, and optimizations to keep developers equipped with the latest technology advancements.
  • Marketplace
    The Unreal Engine Marketplace offers a vast array of assets, ranging from 3D models to plugins, which can significantly speed up the development process by providing ready-to-use resources.

Possible disadvantages of Unreal Engine

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Due to its extensive features and capabilities, Unreal Engine can be challenging for beginners to master, requiring a significant investment of time and effort to learn.
  • High System Requirements
    Developing with Unreal Engine often requires a powerful computer with strong hardware specifications, which can be a barrier for developers with limited resources.
  • Large File Sizes
    Unreal Engine projects can result in large file sizes, which can be cumbersome to manage, particularly in terms of storage and transfer bandwidth.
  • Complexity for Simple Projects
    For smaller or simpler projects, the capabilities of Unreal Engine might be overkill, and using it can unnecessarily complicate development when compared to lighter engines.
  • Royalty Fees
    Unreal Engine imposes a royalty fee of 5% on gross revenue after the first $1 million USD per product per year, which can impact the profitability of commercial projects.
  • Less C++ Flexibility
    While Unreal Engine supports C++, the engine imposes certain constraints and abstractions that can limit the flexibility developers might need for highly customized or optimized code.

Analysis of Unreal Engine

Overall verdict

  • Unreal Engine is generally considered a top-tier game engine suitable for both beginners and experienced developers. Its high-quality rendering, extensive feature set, and flexibility make it a preferred choice for creating AAA games, architectural visualizations, and even film production.

Why this product is good

  • Unreal Engine is popular due to its powerful graphics capabilities, versatility, and comprehensive toolset. It provides real-time 3D creation tools, robust support for high-resolution graphics, and a plethora of resources and documentation for developers. It is also free to use up to a certain revenue threshold, making it accessible for indie developers and large studios alike. Additionally, its blueprint visual scripting system offers non-programmers an approachable way to prototype and develop gameplay elements.

Recommended for

    Unreal Engine is recommended for game developers who require cutting-edge graphics and performance, individuals interested in virtual production, architects looking for detailed visualizations, and anyone wanting to work on large-scale, high-fidelity projects.

GZDoom videos

+ Add

GZDoom is better than the official re-release. Linux.

Unreal Engine videos

+ Add

Why I switched over to Unreal Engine 4 From Unity 5

More videos:

  • Review - Unity vs Unreal Engine | Graphics, Workflow, Price, Level Design and More! (2017-2018)
  • Review - Game Development | Intro to Unreal Engine 4 | No Prior Programming Knowledge

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to GZDoom and Unreal Engine)

GZDoom

Unreal Engine

Games
100 100%
Games
0% 0
Game Development
0 0%
Game Development
100% 100
Data Dashboard
100 100%
Data Dashboard
0% 0
Game Engine
0 0%
Game Engine
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare GZDoom and Unreal Engine

GZDoom Reviews

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Unreal Engine Reviews

Top 13 Picks for Maxon Cinema 4D Alternatives in 2024
Designed by Epic Games, Unreal Engine is a comprehensive 3D graphics engine initially developed for PC gaming. Since its inception in 1998, it supports a wide array of platforms, including mobile, console, and VR. It is known for its versatility and power in a broad spectrum of industries like film and television.
Source: aircada.com
Game Engines: A Comparative Analysis
Developed by Epic Games, Unreal Engine stands as a titan in the industry, renowned for its stunning graphics and realistic visual effects. It excels in AAA game development, with a powerful rendering engine and an intuitive visual scripting system called Blueprints. Unreal Engine’s prowess lies in its ability to deliver top-notch graphics and cinematic experiences.
Source: medium.com
Best Unity alternatives for game development
Unreal Engine has become one of the most popular engines to date; it's one of the top-of-the-line gaming engines that produces high graphical fidelity and realism for many games. In fact, many mobile games (Injustice 2, Life is Strange) that look incredible are likely using the Unreal Engine. It's a number one choice that often goes head-to-head with Unity due to its great...
Source: www.androidpolice.com
Best Game Engines for 2023 – Which Should You Use?
However, many game developers do report that Unreal Engine is better suited for larger projects and projects you intend to work on as a team. Additionally, as the program is heavy on the graphics end, many people will find it requires a more powerful computer compared to other engines like Unity. Beyond this, it is also noteworthy that while Unreal Engine can create 2D games...
Source: gamedevacademy.org
The Best Gaming Engines You Should Consider for 2023
2022 saw the official launch of Unreal Engine 5, and it’s already shaping up to be a game changer for game development. Most next-gen consoles, including PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are already using it, and its powerful tools such as Lumen and Nanite (an engine that imports high-detailed photographic source material – taking advantage of its past acquisition of Quixel)...
Source: www.incredibuild.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, GZDoom seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 9 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

GZDoom mentions (9)

  • Diffusion Models Are Real-Time Game Engines
    This is quite impressive, especially considering the speed. But there's still a ton of room for improvement. It seems it didn't even memorize the game despite having the capacity to do so hundreds of times over. So we definitely have lots of instead for optimization methods. Though who knows how such things would affect existing tech since the goal here is to memorize. What's also interesting about this work is... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Is there anything that proprietary software can do and has no open alternative?
    GZDoom for Doom and many other games running on the same engine. Source: over 2 years ago
  • John Romero has released a new Doom 2 level for a €5 donation. 100% of the proceeds go Ukraine relief efforts.
    For modern source port check GZDoom https://zdoom.org/index or Chocolate Doom (for higher framerates and stuff) - https://www.chocolate-doom.org/wiki/index.php/Chocolate_Doom. Source: over 3 years ago
  • How to I get the ID Build engine?
    Also, if you want to make a shooter like those, you don't really want the original Build engine. What you want is a modern open source implementation of those engines. For Duke-like games you can try https://www.eduke32.com/ (Ion Fury was made on this) , for Doom try https://zdoom.org/index or https://dengine.net/. Source: over 3 years ago
  • O3DE: Open 3D Foundation announces first major release of Open 3D Engine
    I don't know, but if you want a retro game you might as well use a retro-engine. Ion Fury (2019) used the EDuke32 engine and there are also modern versions of the original Doom engine, like GZDoom - with modern games like Brutal Doom or SIGIL (2019). Source: over 3 years ago
View more

Unreal Engine mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Unreal Engine yet. Tracking of Unreal Engine recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing GZDoom and Unreal Engine, you can also consider the following products

Doom - Doom is a science fiction horror-themed first-person shooter video game in which players assume the...

Unity - The multiplatform game creation tools for everyone.

Freedoom - Freedoom is a WIP a complete free content game based on the Doom engine.

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

Zandronum - Leading the way in newschool multiplayer Doom online.

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

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