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combine an editor, engine, and Bob build tool to ship 2D and 3D games across desktop, mobile, web, and consoles

OSS scale score 241.2OSS health 100Update pace 185 commits/30d
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Stars
6,346
Primary language
C++
License
Not determined
Repository last updated
Oct 3, 2026
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Overview

Defold develops its game engine, editor, and command-line tooling in one cross-platform game-development repository. Stable 1.13.2 ships editor artifacts and the Bob build tool, while host-specific platform SDKs support build workflows for desktop, mobile, HTML5, and console targets.

Features and best fit

Based on official documentation; not hands-on tested · Content checked:

Key features

Use one stack for the engine, editor, and command-line tools

The repository contains the engine, editor, and Bob command-line build system, covering project authoring and build automation within the same Defold toolchain.

Sources: [1][3]

Build desktop, mobile, HTML5, and console targets from supported hosts

The setup guide documents macOS, Linux, and Windows host matrices for desktop, Android, iOS, HTML5, PlayStation, Switch, Xbox, and related targets, with platform SDKs required for each target.

Sources: [2]

Use the released Bob artifact for CI-oriented build workflows

The 1.13.2 release publishes bob.jar, and Bob is the Defold project build system intended for command-line project builds and automation.

Sources: [4][3]

Best fit

Fits teams shipping one game project across several platforms

Defold is useful when teams want editor-driven authoring and Bob-based CI automation while targeting desktop, mobile, web, and consoles from one toolchain.

Sources: [1][2][4]

Before adoption

The Defold License is not a standard OSS license and restricts game-engine commercialization

LICENSE.txt makes redistribution conditional on not selling or otherwise commercializing the Work or Derivative Works as a Game Engine Product. Shipping games and reselling a Defold-derived engine product therefore require different licensing analysis.

Sources: [5]

Source builds require JDK 25, Python 3.12+, and platform SDKs

The 1.13.2 setup guide requires JDK 25, 64-bit Python 3.12+, Git, and host/target SDKs. Using a packaged editor is materially simpler than building and modifying the engine from source.

Sources: [2]

Pin a stable release and validate editor, Bob, and SDK changes together

Use stable 1.13.2 as a reproducible baseline and validate editor, Bob, and platform-SDK changes as one toolchain update.

Sources: [4]

Official sources

  1. [1]Defold 1.13.2 README(2026-10-04)
  2. [2]Defold 1.13.2 engine setup(2026-10-04)
  3. [3]Defold Bob build system README(2026-10-04)
  4. [4]Defold 1.13.2 stable release(2026-10-04)
  5. [5]Defold License 1.0(2026-10-04)
Supplemental curator note

Game development with Defold is free to use, but the repository is not under a standard OSI-style license. The Defold License prohibits selling or otherwise commercializing the Work or Derivative Works as a Game Engine Product, so review LICENSE.txt before redistributing engine source or offering a derivative engine.

Try it in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Download the Bob build tool from Defold 1.13.2

    Pin the Bob artifact from stable release 1.13.2. The JAR is over 200 MB, so consider caching it in CI.

    curl -L -o bob.jar https://github.com/defold/defold/releases/download/1.13.2/bob.jar
  2. 2

    Confirm the Bob release version

    Use the --version option implemented by Bob to verify that the intended Defold release is running.

    java -jar bob.jar --version
  3. 3

    Inspect available build options and commands

    Review platform, variant, bundle, and other CLI options before running a real build from a Defold project root.

    java -jar bob.jar --help
Check the official README

Growth

Growth trends · Last 30 days

6,346 Stars

Trend data is still being collected.

Development activity

Last 90 days · weekly

Commits (last 30 days)
185
Open PRs
43

Development activity is still being collected.

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GitHub data

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GitHub Topics

  • defold
  • game-engine
  • c-plus-plus
  • clojure
  • game-development
  • multi-platform
  • gamedev
  • hacktoberfest
  • lua
Stars
6,346
Forks
455
Watchers
63
Open issues
915
Contributors
121
Owner type
Organization
Primary language
C++
License
Not determined
Repository last updated
Oct 3, 2026
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