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Leadwerks ( ) is a cross-platform game engine developed by Leadwerks Software that focuses on ease of use and learning. The software supports Windows and Linux, with OS X support in development. Leadwerks is currently on its fourth major version and is sold through the
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digital distribution platform.


Overview

Leadwerks is written in the C++ programming language and makes use of the
OpenGL OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a Language-independent specification, cross-language, cross-platform application programming interface (API) for rendering 2D computer graphics, 2D and 3D computer graphics, 3D vector graphics. The API is typic ...
4.0 graphics API. Newton Dynamics is used for physics. Scripting is provided by the Lua programming language, with LuaJIT employed for just-in-time compilation of scripts to machine code. An AI navigation system is included, based on the Recast library. OpenAL is used for audio. Leadwerks Game Engine is marketed as an easy to learn game development system, with three layers of development intended to ease the
learning curve A learning curve is a graphical representation of the relationship between how proficient people are at a task and the amount of experience they have. Proficiency (measured on the vertical axis) usually increases with increased experience (the ...
. The flowgraph system and visual editor allow simple games to be created without programming. Lua script allows more advanced game mechanics and custom behavior, while C++ can be used for low-level programming and importing external libraries.


Licenses

The standard version of Leadwerks Game Engine retails for $49.99 on Steam and supports Lua programming. The C++ SDK DLC adds support for C++ programming, with project templates for Visual Studio and the Code::Blocks IDE for Linux. Several model pack DLCs are also available, as well as a store for user-created 3D models, textures, scripts, and sounds, built on the Steam Workshop system. The end user license agreement allows any licensee to publish royalty-free commercial games. A splash screen is not required to be shown.


History

Leadwerks Game Engine began as a free companion to the BSP map editor 3D World Studio. Version 1.0 of Leadwerks Game Engine was released in 2007. The engine utilized OpenGL 2.1 and used a combination of texture-based lightmaps and per-vertex lighting. Version 2 was released in May 2008 and utilized shadow maps in a forward renderer. In version 2.1 the renderer was switched to a deferred renderer, making Leadwerks the second commercial game engine in the world to utilize this now-common technique (the first being the X-Ray Engine that powers the
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. ''S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'' is a first-person shooter survival horror video game franchise developed by Ukrainian game developer GSC Game World. The series is set in an Parallel universe (fiction), alternate version of the present-day Chernobyl Exclusio ...
series of games by
GSC Game World GSC Game World is a Ukrainian video game developer based in Kyiv with a second temporary office in Prague. Founded in Kyiv in 1995 by Sergiy Grygorovych, it is best known for the ''Cossacks (video games series), Cossacks'' and ''S.T.A.L.K.E.R.' ...
). Version 3 was released in April 2013 at the Game Developer's Conference. This was the first multiplatform version, with support for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android provided on day one. Support for mobile graphics hindered the capabilities of the renderer on PC, and the changes were poorly received by the existing user base. In June of the same year, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign for Linux support, raising $42,000 in six weeks. In January 2014, version 3.1 was launched on Steam with support for Windows and Linux, a new deferred renderer, and mobile support removed. During the 2014 Steam Winter Sale, Leadwerks Game Engine won the Community Choice Award and was featured on the front page of Steam. Version 4 was released in December 2015 with a new vegetation system for displaying large amounts of foliage with minimal memory usage. Around this time, it was announced that the software had attracted over 10,000 users.


References


External links

* * Steam Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/251810/Leadwerks_Game_Engine/ {{Video game engines Game engines for Linux Video game IDE Video game development software Video game engines Software that uses Scintilla Lua (programming language)-scriptable game engines Video game development software for Linux