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Game Development · head to head

GameMaker Studio 2 vs Photon Engine

GameMaker Studio 2 logo

GameMaker Studio 2

Game Development

The fastest way to create games. For everyone.

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Photon Engine logo

Photon Engine

Game Development

Hosted multiplayer networking billed by concurrent users, not by seat or by player

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: GameMaker Studio 2 the free tier is a non-commercial licence; selling a game requires the Professional licence at $99.99; Photon Engine billing follows peak concurrent users, so a single stream or a launch weekend raises the bill immediately, and studios that cannot forecast concurrency cannot forecast the cost of their own launch.
  • They diverge on capability: GameMaker Studio 2 covers Drag-and-drop interface, Photon Engine covers Concurrent user billing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which GameMaker Studio 2 and Photon Engine actually diverge.

Attributes where GameMaker Studio 2 and Photon Engine differ
AttributeGameMaker Studio 2Photon Engine
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by peak concurrent users
PlatformsWindows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Playstation, Xbox, SwitchWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web, Console
Founded1999Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Game Development).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in GameMaker Studio 2

  • Drag-and-drop interface
  • GML programming language
  • Sprite editor
  • Animation frames
  • Sound editor
  • Room editor
  • Particle effects
  • Physics system

Only in Photon Engine

  • Concurrent user billing
  • Photon Fusion
  • Photon Quantum
  • Photon Voice and Chat
  • Global relay
  • Matchmaking and rooms

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

GameMaker Studio 2

  • Building 2D games for desktop, web and mobilenot Photon Engine
  • Indie game development with a drag and drop and GML scripting workflownot Photon Engine
  • Publishing to consoles under an Enterprise subscriptionnot Photon Engine

Photon Engine

  • Adding multiplayer to a Unity game without hiring a network engineernot GameMaker Studio 2
  • Competitive titles needing deterministic rollback rather than state synchronisationnot GameMaker Studio 2
  • Games with a large but thinly spread player base, where concurrency stays low and per player pricing would cost morenot GameMaker Studio 2
  • Training and simulation projects that need shared real-time state outside gamesnot GameMaker Studio 2

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

GameMaker Studio 2

  • The free tier is a non-commercial licence; selling a game requires the Professional licence at $99.99
  • Console exports are available only on the Enterprise subscription, which is billed at $79.49 per month
  • Source code access is limited to the Enterprise tier
  • Older Creator and Indie subscriptions are no longer renewed when the licence expires
  • Owners of a permanent GameMaker Studio 2 licence get no discount toward current licences

Photon Engine

  • Billing follows peak concurrent users, so a single stream or a launch weekend raises the bill immediately, and studios that cannot forecast concurrency cannot forecast the cost of their own launch.
  • Exceeding the band does not degrade gracefully; additional players are refused connections until concurrency falls or the plan is upgraded, which is a visible outage to your players at the worst possible moment.
  • PUN, the product most tutorials and courses still teach, is legacy, so a large share of the learning material available online points new projects at the wrong SDK.
  • Self-hosting is an enterprise arrangement rather than a purchasable licence, so a studio that wants its servers on its own infrastructure for cost or compliance reasons cannot simply buy that.
  • It is a networking layer only; accounts, persistence, leaderboards, inventories and anti-cheat all come from other services, so the multiplayer stack ends up as several vendors rather than one.

Pricing, plan by plan

GameMaker Studio 2

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Desktop game creation
    • Community support
    • Standard export options
  • Pro$99/year
    • All Free features
    • Advanced export modules
    • Mobile platforms

Photon Engine

Free
  • FreeFree
    • A small concurrent user allowance for development and early testing
    • All regions available
    • No time limit on the free tier
  • Entry band$9/month
    • Around one hundred concurrent users
    • Full SDK access
    • Regional server selection
  • Higher bands$undefined/month
    • Sold in steps up to tens of thousands of concurrent users
    • Price rises with each band rather than with total players
    • Enterprise and self-hosted arrangements handled directly by Exit Games

Which should you pick?

Choose GameMaker Studio 2 if

  • You need drag-and-drop interface.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Playstation, Xbox, Switch.
  • You also want gml programming language.
GameMaker Studio 2 review

Choose Photon Engine if

  • You need concurrent user billing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web, Console.
  • You also want photon fusion.
Photon Engine review

Questions people ask

Is GameMaker Studio 2 or Photon Engine better?
Neither clearly leads. GameMaker Studio 2 starts at Free and Photon Engine at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, GameMaker Studio 2 or Photon Engine?
GameMaker Studio 2 starts at Free and Photon Engine at Free.
Does GameMaker Studio 2 or Photon Engine run on more platforms?
GameMaker Studio 2 runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Playstation, Xbox, Switch. Photon Engine runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web, Console.
Can I use GameMaker Studio 2 for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is GameMaker Studio 2 best used for?
GameMaker Studio 2 is most often used for building 2d games for desktop, web and mobile, indie game development with a drag and drop and gml scripting workflow, publishing to consoles under an enterprise subscription. Of those, building 2d games for desktop, web and mobile and indie game development with a drag and drop and gml scripting workflow are not what Photon Engine is typically brought in for.
What can GameMaker Studio 2 do that Photon Engine cannot?
GameMaker Studio 2 covers Drag-and-drop interface, GML programming language, Sprite editor, Animation frames. Photon Engine covers Concurrent user billing, Photon Fusion, Photon Quantum, Photon Voice and Chat.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Photon Engine: What exactly is a concurrent user?

A player connected to Photon at that moment. Your plan is sized by the peak of that number, not by downloads, registered accounts or monthly actives.

Photon Engine: Which product should a new project use?

Fusion for most real-time games, Quantum where determinism matters such as fighting and competitive titles. PUN is legacy and should not start a new project despite the volume of tutorials.

Photon Engine: Does it work outside Unity?

Unity is the first-class target. Unreal and other engines are supported through Realtime SDKs with less coverage and slower feature parity.

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