doesn't Id still license their engine and isn't it used in some top level games ?

I can't think of any games that are using it, except for id games.

What about SOURCE? HL2, L4d, etc..

Slow news week huh?

By which criteria has this list been cobbled together?

Sales? Number of different titles using said engine? Ease of use? Cost?

Don't forget id's engine was used for Quake Wars which technically isn't an id game. There are many open source games using the id tech.

I think a top 10 list like this silly without some sort of ranking criteria. Or is it not a ranking, but just a listing of 10 engines? A survey of AAA game engines that doesn't include id Tech, Source, and HERO seems a little suspect, but again what is the criteria? If it's "quality shipped titles" you'd have to give the nod to Unreal.

It's not bizarre at all.

Firstly, all lists are subjective - remember that. But also, we write about these companies, the teams that invented them and/or talk to their users enough to have a fairly good grasp on whether a) the engine is any good, b) how popular it is, c) how innovative it is, d) what it's featureset is like, e) as Brett points out, quality of shipped titles, etc etc.

Secondly, the feature is clearly designed as a look at the engines **available to other developers**, not 'who has the best engine'. If that was the case, maybe Nintendo could have 'won' given that Wii Sports Resort looks so nice for that hardware's limitations, or Infinity Ward's tech, or Team Ninja's.

Thirdly, any such feature looking at third party engines has to take into account not just the prestige of its creator but the context of the moment. So to people crying out for id and Source, I ask: are they really viable concerns in the context of third-party tools? Yes, they have powered some great games, but their main users are still their owners. After years of availability they haven't really garnered the kind of reputation others have.

(Sure, Terminal Reality's Infernal Engine is on there - but with the Ghostbusters game just out and it only just on the market, we're giving it the benefit of the doubt. If it fails to catch on outside of its studio and we do this list in the next year or the year after, they probably won't be on there.)

So in total, if you're shopping around for an engine for your first project or your studio's next then we are confident that one of the ten listed are best for your needs, whatever it may be.

This is a really great top ten list, thanks for putting it together. Unreal Engine 3 looks incredible. Anyone can post their own list to our site toptentopten.com. The coolest feature is you can let other people vote on the rankings of your list.

Valve Source???
http://source.valvesoftware.com/

yes, id does license there engine(s) (id tech 2, and 3) also i think for 250,000 you can get id tech 4. (on there website)

I have the feeling, that there are some engines (good ones) missing. Like Chrome Engine.

Nothing beats source!

Regarding Michael French's post in defense of Will's article above: Will doesn't actually preface the list any parameters or qualifications, therefore, there's really no reason to pay attention to his list. Even for a quick list, I don't care how much or how little thought was put into it, a stated basis is important. Hey Will, here's an opportunity to issue a new list!

What about ShiVa 3D...It's far better then Torque or Unity...

I know Unreal and UDK front and back, and it is just not CAPABLE of a lot of different game types. It's souly a dungeon-based engine. All it can do is make things look pretty.
To be fair the best engines are one's made by a company specifically for their game, like uncharted and God of war.
Leadwerks isn't even on here, and i think it's CAPABLE of doing a lot...not that it's frequently used. I personally think Gambryo should be at the top though...just saying.

Hey, where the f*** does Source engine go?

wtf, those engines suck! unreal is good thogh, but one thing, WHERE is the source engine? thats one of the best engines in the world, ffs.. nothing can tip that!

I think this list would be considered an insult by the makers of some of the better engines out there that you totally neglected. For instance, C4 Engine, Esenthel, Shiva3D. And would people who come up with these lists please stop including Torque? Torque is the biggest piece of crap engine to ever be made. Not to mention they went out of business recently (as did the makers of Gamebryo). But then their lying marketing department managed to get some sucker to buy them, so they're back to steal more money from more unsuspecting amateurs.

Stew - With regards to your Gamebryo and Torque comment, it seems you missed the date this article was published (June 2009). Also, Gamebryo and Torque appear to be doing OK still: http://www.develop-online.net/news/37394/UK-studio-Supermassive-opts-for-Gamebryo and http://www.develop-online.net/news/36816/Torque-engine-saved-in-GarageGames-resurrection

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