AVA
A tiny, unlicensed 3D game engine written in C with C++ and Lua interfaces, emphasizing simplicity and embeddability.
What is AVA?
AVA is a tiny, unlicensed 3D game engine written primarily in C, with additional interfaces for C++ and Lua. It provides a complete toolkit for building games, including a runtime engine, a generic 3D editor, and an asset pipeline, all designed with simplicity and fast compilation in mind. The engine solves the need for a lightweight, embeddable alternative to larger, more complex game engines.
Game developers and hobbyists looking for a minimalistic, data-oriented engine that offers direct control over performance and memory, without licensing fees or heavy dependencies.
Developers choose AVA for its emphasis on simplicity, fast build times, and embeddability. Its unique selling point is being a completely unlicensed, small-footprint engine that follows data-oriented design principles, making it ideal for projects where control and minimalism are priorities.
Overview
A tiny unlicensed 3D game engine in C; with C++ and Lua interfaces. Written in 32 random ̷d̷a̷y̷s̷ m̷o̷n̷t̷h̷s̷ years.
Use Cases
Best For
- Building small-scale 3D games with minimal dependencies
- Educational projects to learn game engine architecture
- Prototyping game ideas quickly with fast compilation
- Embedding a game engine within another application
- Developing games with a data-oriented design approach
- Creating cross-platform games with C, C++, or Lua scripting
Not Ideal For
- Teams building AAA-quality 3D games requiring advanced rendering, physics, and AI systems
- Developers who need extensive official documentation, tutorials, or active community support
- Projects on tight deadlines that depend on fully-featured engine components like networked multiplayer or complex animation systems
Pros & Cons
Pros
The engine can be compiled as a single amalgamated C file and used as a library or standalone executable, making it highly portable and easy to integrate without heavy dependencies, as shown in the build instructions.
Emphasizes Data-Oriented Design (DOD) and Entity-Component-System (ECS) principles with controlled heap allocations, aiming for better cache performance and efficiency, per the rationale section.
Provides C, C++, and Lua bindings for game logic, allowing developers to choose their preferred language for implementation, as noted in the key features.
Requires no installation or complex makefiles, leading to quick build times, which is a core part of the philosophy and rationale.
Cons
Many essential features like audio, networking, advanced rendering, and AI are marked as in progress on the roadmap, limiting out-of-the-box functionality for production-ready games.
Relies on 'browsable sources' instead of comprehensive documentation, which can increase the learning curve and hinder quick onboarding, as admitted in the features list.
Being a minimalistic, unlicensed engine with a small community, it lacks the extensive asset stores, plugins, and third-party support found in larger engines like Unity or Godot.
Frequently Asked Questions
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