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CryEngine
Build worlds, break limits. Professional game development engine.
As of 30 August 2026, CryEngine is free to use. CryEngine is a powerful game engine used for AAA and indie games. Softwr lists it under Game Development. CryEngine is made by Crytek, launched in 1999, available on Windows, TV and console, Linux.
Overview
What CryEngine does
CryEngine is a powerful game engine used for AAA and indie games. It features stunning graphics, modular architecture, and support for multiple platforms.
What people use it for
- Game engine for indie and professional game development
- Real-time 3D rendering and visualization
- VR and immersive experience creation
- Environmental and industrial simulation
Related searches
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about CryEngine.
- A royalty of 5% of Gross Receipts is payable to Crytek on every game built with CRYENGINE
- Royalties are waived only on the first USD 5,000.00 of Gross Receipts per year per game
- Royalties are calculated at source on gross receipts before any publisher or platform deductions, so a developer receiving 70% of USD 100,000 still owes USD 4,750
- Military projects, gambling, simulation, science, architecture and serious games are excluded from the standard licence and are not covered as Games
- The licence forbids combining CRYENGINE with code from other game engine providers
- Supported platforms are limited to those Crytek announces at its sole discretion, listed in the agreement as Windows, Linux, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One
- Support is only provided against payment of a separate Support Fee that Crytek may change at its sole discretion
- Crytek may modify the licence agreement at any time, with the only remedy for disagreement being to stop using CRYENGINE
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of CryEngine
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
- CryEnginevsUnity
Unity: Create beautiful interactive content with the world's leading real-time engine
- CryEnginevsAseprite
Aseprite: Animated sprite editor and pixel art tool
- CryEnginevsGodot Engine
Godot Engine: Free and open-source 2D and 3D game engine
Pricing
What CryEngine costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
Free CRYENGINE
Free
- Free download and use in development
- 5% royalty on revenue after shipping
- First $5,000 annual revenue per project royalty-free
- Full source code access
- All engine features included
- Access to all supported platforms
Capabilities
Features
Advanced graphics
Physics engine
AI system
Animation tools
Flow Graph visual scripting
C++ and Lua support
Entity component system
Sandbox editor
Visual Studio
Integration with Visual Studio
Perforce
Integration with Perforce
Wwise
Integration with Wwise
Nvidia PhysX
Integration with Nvidia PhysX
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
Does CRYENGINE have a free version?
Yes, CRYENGINE is free to download and use for development. When you ship a project, a 5% royalty applies to revenue, but the first $5,000 annual revenue per project is royalty-free.
SourceHow much does CRYENGINE cost after launch?
CRYENGINE charges 5% royalty on revenue after your project ships. The first $5,000 in annual revenue per project is royalty-free; royalties apply only to revenue above that threshold.
SourceWhat does CRYENGINE free tier include?
Free CRYENGINE access includes full source code, all engine features, and access to all supported platforms. No payment required for development; only per-revenue royalties apply after shipping.
SourceDoes CRYENGINE offer custom enterprise licensing?
Yes, CRYENGINE offers custom-tailored enterprise licensing built around individual needs. Specific pricing is not disclosed and requires contacting the vendor.
SourceBehind it
Who makes CryEngine
- Company
- Crytek
- Based in
- Frankfurt, Germany
Keep looking
Where to go from CryEngine
- CryEngine alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- CryEngine pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- CryEngine badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Game Development softwareThe full category
- Best Game Development softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Game Development software for
Compare CryEngine with
- Unity
- Godot Engine
- DragonBones
- Aseprite
- Lumberyard
- O3DE
- Wwise
- Cocos Creator
- Clickteam Fusion
- FMOD
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- Cocos2d-x
- Stride
- Tiled
- Bevy
- Buildbox
- Wwise
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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for CryEngine, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
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