Amazon Launches ‘Lumberyard’, Free AAA Game Engine With Much To Offer

E-commerce titan, Amazon has released a free cross-platform game engine for aspiring and existing developers which will easily link with existing Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud infrastructure and its own live streaming video platform, Twitch.

Lumberyard is intended to make developers’ lives easier, particularly connectivity work, which tends to require specialized engineers. It also has a CryEngine DNA with hard-wired Twitch functionality into the engine itself (including Twitch Plays commands).

Currently in beta, Lumberyard is available for developers using Windows PCs (from Windows Vista through to Windows 10) and will support development for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. Amazon said it will add development support for Oculus VR, iOS and Android devices in the near future, and OS X and Linux support following soon after. To run Lumberyard, you will need at least a 3Ghz quad-core processor, 8GB RAM, 200GB free space on your hard drive, and a high-end video card with 2GB VRAM and DX11 support.

As stated before that the software is ‘free’. i.e., there is no download fee, no royalties liable. Even its source code is free to tinker with. The catch is that developers have to use Amazon as their server infrastructure provider through Amazon Web Services and would also have to comply to their long list of terms and conditions.

Amazon Lumberyard is available as a beta version and is completely free to use, including the source. Download now if you have the skills and want to tinker.