Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Unity3D VS Panda3D

Compare Unity3D VS Panda3D and see what are their differences

Unity3D logo Unity3D

Unity is the ultimate game development platform. Use Unity to build high-quality 3D and 2D games, deploy them across mobile, desktop, VR/AR, consoles or the Web, and connect with loyal and enthusiastic players and customers.

Panda3D logo Panda3D

Panda3D is a video game development engine and rendering software. It is developed and maintained by the Carnegie Mellon University Entertainment Technology Center.
  • Unity3D Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25
  • Panda3D Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-12-22

Unity3D features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Compatibility
    Unity3D allows developers to build applications for a wide range of platforms, including iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, Linux, and gaming consoles. This cross-platform capability reduces the time and effort needed to port games across different systems.
  • Rich Asset Store
    Unity's Asset Store provides a vast library of assets, tools, and plugins, enabling developers to save time on creating elements from scratch and focus on their core game development tasks.
  • Intuitive Interface
    Unity3D features a user-friendly and intuitive interface, making it easier for developers to navigate and use the various tools provided by the platform.
  • Strong Community Support
    A large, active community provides extensive resources, tutorials, and forums for problem-solving and learning, which is especially helpful for beginners.
  • Real-time Rendering
    Unity's real-time 3D rendering capabilities provide developers with the ability to see changes on-the-fly, allowing for faster iterations and improvements in the creative process.

Possible disadvantages of Unity3D

  • Performance Overheads
    Games developed on Unity can sometimes experience performance overheads, especially on platforms with limited resources, which could lead to optimization challenges.
  • Licensing Costs
    While Unity offers a free version, its advanced features and services are locked behind subscription-based licensing, which could be a critical expense for small studios or indie developers.
  • Steep Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic features are easy to grasp, mastering advanced features like detailed graphics rendering and optimization might require more extensive learning and experience.
  • Not Ideal for 2D Games
    Although Unity supports 2D game development, it's often considered less efficient for 2D games compared to some specialized engines, since it's predominantly optimized for 3D.
  • Dependency on Third-Party Plugins
    Developers might find themselves relying on third-party plugins for certain functionalities, which can lead to compatibility and maintenance issues.

Panda3D features and specs

  • Open Source
    Panda3D is entirely open source, which means you can tweak the engine to fit your specific needs and contribute to its development.
  • Python Integration
    It is designed to be used with Python, making it an excellent choice for developers who prefer Python and benefit from its ease of use and quick prototyping.
  • C++ Support
    For performance-critical applications, Panda3D allows you to write parts of your code in C++, providing a good balance between ease of use and execution speed.
  • Extensive Documentation
    The engine comes with comprehensive documentation, tutorials, and a strong community, which can ease the learning curve for new users.
  • Complete Development Environment
    It includes everything needed to create a game, from rendering and physics to asset management and sound, providing a one-stop solution.
  • Toolchain Compatibility
    Compatible with many other tools and libraries, allowing for great flexibility in development workflows.

Possible disadvantages of Panda3D

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Despite the extensive documentation, beginners in game development might find it challenging to understand and use all of Panda3D's features.
  • Limited Graphics Capabilities
    Compared to more modern game engines like Unreal Engine or Unity, Panda3D's graphics capabilities are somewhat outdated and might not support cutting-edge visuals.
  • Smaller Community
    While Panda3D has an active community, it is smaller than those of more mainstream engines, possibly leading to fewer resources and third-party plugins.
  • Performance Overhead
    Being primarily Python-based can introduce performance overheads compared to engines built entirely in lower-level languages like C++.
  • Manual Resource Management
    Asset and resource management require more manual effort compared to some other engines that offer more automated solutions.

Unity3D videos

Trying out Odin Inspector in Unity3D - A mini review

More videos:

  • Review - Unity3D Code Review #5 Watch me Break a State Machine
  • Review - Unity3D Review

Panda3D videos

Panda3D Game Engine -- The Others Game Engine Series

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Unity3D and Panda3D)
Game Development
59 59%
41% 41
Game Engine
60 60%
40% 40
3D Game Engine
62 62%
38% 38
Java
47 47%
53% 53

User comments

Share your experience with using Unity3D and Panda3D. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Unity3D and Panda3D

Unity3D Reviews

We have no reviews of Unity3D yet.
Be the first one to post

Panda3D Reviews

Top 6 Python Framework for Game Development | by Ankur Kumar | unikaksha | Medium
Panda3D is a Python framework for 3D rendering and games that is open-source. It’s a free engine for real-time 3D games, simulations, visualizations, and experiments. Its extensive feature set is flexible enough to adapt to different processes and development requirements. All of the graphics card’s capabilities are apparent through an easy-to-use API. Panda3D combines the...
Source: medium.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Unity3D seems to be a lot more popular than Panda3D. While we know about 39 links to Unity3D, we've tracked only 2 mentions of Panda3D. 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.

Unity3D mentions (39)

  • Live Streaming from Unity with Amazon IVS - Part 1
    I should mention that whilst I've got 20 years of experience as a full-stack developer, I'm not a game developer. All of the things that we'll be building will be based on existing demo games that are available via Unity Hub. I've spent a lot of time building these demos, but there may be some concepts related to building a game with Unity that I'm less familiar with. I'll do my best to explain things, but... - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: How to teach a kid of 15 Linux and programming
    Https://unity.com/download For Linux, you have to think what the kids can gain by having a Linux box: A media center & streaming server, some home automation with a SBC (RPI, Arduino, etc.), your guess... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Game developer?
    Https://unity.com/download Unity engine is what I use at work as a professional dev, by the way, so I may be biased in its favor. It is a great, powerful engine that you can use to make pretty much anything, much like Unreal. If you have opened a code editor before and you really just want to dive into the deep end of youtube tutorials and documentation, Unity is the engine for you. It uses C#, which is a bit more... Source: almost 2 years ago
  • My First Game Finaly Launched
    Yes download unity free version Https://unity.com/download. Source: about 2 years ago
  • My IP got banned from accessing unity.com
    Any of you had a similar issue? When Accessing unity.com I get "Access Denied. You don't have permission to access "http://unity.com/download" on this server". It must have been my IP, because connecting via VPN works. Other subdomains seem to work. Source: about 2 years ago
View more

Panda3D mentions (2)

  • Pyxel: A retro game engine for Python
    Panda3D [0] (which is what Ursina uses under the hood) and Pygame can both run on the web due to PygBag [1]. Truth be told you can build a game on any tool, obviously the tool you choose will help shape the game you make - but it's more about keeping at it then the underlying technology. Personally I really like Panda3D and feel like it doesn't get enough attention. It's scene graph [3] is interesting because it... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Unity’s New Pricing: A Wake-Up Call on the Importance of Open Source in Gaming
    It's not as monolithic as you'd think. There are lots of engines out there but their communities aren't very vocal compared to Unity, Unreal, and especially Godot's community. Take a look at: https://itch.io/game-development/engines/most-projects And https://www.gamedeveloper.com/blogs/the-generous-space-of-alternative-game-engines-a-curation- If you look at both of these you'll see just how many engines there are... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Unity3D and Panda3D, you can also consider the following products

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

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

Construct 2 - Scirra Construct is a 2D game development engine with a focus on building games visually.

Unity - The multiplatform game creation tools for everyone.

BYOND - BYOND is the premier community for making and playing online multiplayer games.

Urho3D - Urho3D is a lightweight, cross-platform rendering and game engine implemented in C++ and released...