While Google and Apple SDKs are firmly entrenched among the top Gaming and Game Engine SDKs for their respective platforms, they’re by no means the leading players. Indeed, Unity3D and FMOD are easily the most popular overall offerings based on total installations.
Welcome to the first edition of our monthly roundup of the top SDKs for mobile games! Each month, we’ll cover trends among the top Gaming SDKs and Game Engine SDKs. Come here for monthly updates on the top performing SDKs, leading SDK developers, installation trends, and more!
Here’s where things stand this month (click the links to jump to the corresponding section):
- Cross-Platform Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: Unity3D Dominates
- Android-Only Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: FMOD Surpasses Google’s Home-Grown SDKs
- iOS-Only Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: Apple Takes the Top Two Spots
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Cross-Platform Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: Unity3D Dominates
First up, let’s look at how things stand among SDKs available to both iOS and Android apps. Currently, the top cross-platform SDK that falls into the “Gaming and Game Engine” category is Unity3D, which is installed on 505,249 iOS and Android apps. This makes it far and away the most popular cross-platform offering for mobile game developers.
Here’s how the rest of the list looks:
- GameAnalytics: 66,770 installations
- Cocos2D-X: 53,435 installations
- Solar2D Corona Labs: 7,541 installations
- Prime31: 5,673 installations
Android-Only Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: FMOD Surpasses Google’s Home-Grown SDKs
Now, let’s refine our focus a bit. Here, we’ve identified the most popular SDKs in the “Gaming and Game Engine” category that are available for Android apps only. While Google makes two appearances in the top five, the overall leader of the pack is FMOD, which is currently installed on 357,027 Android apps. That’s more than double the next closest competitor.
Here’s the rest of the list:
- Google Play Game Services: 153,108 installations
- Google Play Games plugin for Unity: 33,894 installations
- LibGDX: 10,290 installations
- AndEngine: 1,820 installations
iOS-Only Gaming and Game Engine SDKs: Apple Takes the Top Two Spots
To wrap up, let’s turn our attention to the top iOS-only SDKs! Unsurprisingly, Apple dominates the competition. While Apple GameKit takes the overall crown with 74,685 total iOS installations, Apple SpriteKit comes in second. Check it out…
These SDKs round out the list:
- Apple SpriteKit: 21,602 installations
- Ejecta: 5,062 installations
- GameCenterManager: 959 installations
- Chipmunk2d: 593 installations
Final Thoughts
Unity3D's overwhelming dominance in the cross-platform arena is indicative of the emphasis placed by developers on seamless multi-platform integration. However, the drop off from Unity3D to second ranked GameAnalytics (505,249 installations versus 66,770 installations) suggests that the attractiveness of cross-platform solutions may ultimately be limited by the depth of insight provided by the solutions.
Indeed, FMOD's success among Android apps is surprising not only because it managed to top Google's native SDKs, but also because it’s vastly more popular than all cross-platform solutions not named Unity3D.
In any event, we’ll be keeping an eye on changes in this space in the months to come. So, be sure to look for future iterations of our Gaming and Game Engine SDK roundup!
