LDtkvs
DragonBones
DragonBones: Free 2D skeletal animation solution
LDtk
Modern 2D level editor from the creator of Dead Cells
As of 30 August 2026, LDtk is free to use. LDtk (Level Designer Toolkit) is a modern, open-source 2D level editor created by the developer of Dead Cells. Softwr lists it under Game Development. LDtk is made by Sebastien Benard, launched in 2020, available on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Overview
What LDtk does
LDtk (Level Designer Toolkit) is a modern, open-source 2D level editor created by the developer of Dead Cells. It features an intuitive interface and powerful auto-tiling.
What people use it for
- 2D platformer and top-down level building
- Placing customizable entities such as spawns, enemies, items, and triggers
- Auto-tiling and auto-rendering via a visual rule system
- Multi-level 'worlds' with seamless level transitions
- Native Aseprite (.aseprite) import with live reloading
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 LDtk.
- No web, iOS, or Android build; it is an Electron desktop app for Windows/macOS/Linux only
- Native format is JSON; use with other formats such as Tiled TMX requires a separate importer or custom parsing
- Engine integration depends on separate official importers/libraries per engine (Unity, Godot, MonoGame, Bevy, GameMaker, Haxe, Playdate)
- dev-x.y.z branches on GitHub are explicitly flagged as potentially unstable and not for production
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of LDtk
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.
- LDtkvsUnity
Unity: Create beautiful interactive content with the world's leading real-time engine
- LDtkvsAseprite
Aseprite: Animated sprite editor and pixel art tool
- LDtkvsGodot Engine
Godot Engine: Free and open-source 2D and 3D game engine
Capabilities
Features
Auto-layers
IntGrid layers
Entity system
Enums
World map
Rule-based tiling
JSON export
Hot reloading
Unity
Integration with Unity
Godot
Integration with Godot
GameMaker
Integration with GameMaker
Haxe
Integration with Haxe
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 LDtk cost anything to use?
LDtk is completely free to use without any limitations. The license is Apache 2.0 open source.
SourceCan I support LDtk development?
LDtk operates on a pay-what-you-want basis. Users can optionally purchase or become a direct sponsor to support the developer's work, but payment is not required.
SourceBehind it
Who makes LDtk
- Company
- Sebastien Benard
- Based in
- France
- Founders
- Sebastien Benard
Timeline
LDtk over time
Keep looking
Where to go from LDtk
- LDtk alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- LDtk pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- LDtk 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 LDtk with
- Godot Engine
- DragonBones
- Aseprite
- Unity
- Tiled
- Flax Engine
- Quixel Mixer
- Mixamo
- Adventure Game Studio
- AppGameKit
- Ren'Py
- Stencyl
- FMOD
- Fyrox
- Gamesparks
- GDevelop
- jMonkeyEngine
- Flax Engine
Other Game Development software
Create beautiful interactive content with the world's leading real-time engine
Free plan15 researched notes
Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for LDtk, 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.
More on LDtk
LDtk alternatives
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