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Amazon Lumberyard

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Amazon Lumberyard
Developer(s)Amazon Game Tech
Preview release
beta 1.28 / May 19, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-05-19)[1]
Repositorygithub.com/aws/Lumberyard/
Written inC++[2] and Lua[3]
Operating systemMicrosoft Windows, Linux
Platform
PredecessorCryEngine
SuccessorOpen 3D Engine
LicenseProprietary (source-available)
Websiteaws.amazon.com/lumberyard

Amazon Lumberyard is a now-superseded freeware cross-platform game engine developed by Amazon and based on CryEngine (initially released in 2002), which was licensed from Crytek in 2015.[4][5][6] In July 2021, Amazon and the Linux Foundation announced that parts of the engine would be used to create a new open source game engine called Open 3D Engine, which would replace it. A new Open 3D Foundation, run by the Linux Foundation, will manage the new engine, which will be licensed under the open source Apache 2.0 license.[7] [8] The new engine is reportedly partially based on Lumberyard but with many parts rewritten, and is considered a new engine.[9][10][8]

Overview

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The Lumberyard engine features integration with Amazon Web Services to allow developers to build or host their games on Amazon's servers, as well as support for livestreaming via Twitch.[11] Additionally, the engine includes Twitch ChatPlay, allowing viewers of the Twitch stream to influence the game through the associated chat, a method of play inspired by the Twitch Plays Pokémon phenomenon.[12] The source code is available to end users with limitations: Users may not publicly release the Lumberyard engine source code or use it to release their own game engine.[13] Lumberyard launched on February 9, 2016 alongside GameLift, a fee-based managed service for deploying and hosting multiplayer games, intended to allow developers the easy development of games that attract "large and vibrant communities of fans."[14] As of March 2018, the software is currently in beta status and can be used to build games for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One,[15][14] with limited support for iOS and Android and support for macOS being planned for future releases.[13][16] Virtual reality integration was added in Beta 1.3, allowing developers to build games supporting devices like Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.[17][18]

Despite being based on the architecture of Crytek's CryEngine, the engine has been developed to use many of its own custom-developed systems, some of which are in a preview mode. A few of these systems include the Component Entity System, Fur Shader, Modular Gems (which allows developers to either create their own assets or add existing assets to their games), and the Script Canvas.[19][20]

History

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The audio solution Audiokinetic Wwise, which is used in many popular games, was added in Beta 1.0, released in February 2016.[21]

On March 14, 2016, Lumberyard received its first update, which included support for mobile devices such as A8-powered iOS devices and Nvidia Shield, an FBX importer, and integration with Allegorithmic's texturing software Substance.[16][22]

On August 16, 2017, the engine's source code was released under a source-available arrangement on GitHub, but remained under a proprietary license.[23][24]

On July 6, 2021, Amazon announced it was partnering with the Linux Foundation to form the Open 3D Foundation and would be releasing a new version of Lumberyard, rebranded as Open 3D Engine (O3DE), under the Apache-2.0 open source license.[25]

A heavily modified version of Lumberyard called StarEngine is used for the development of Star Citizen.[26][27][28] The game was originally developed on CryEngine before switching to Lumberyard in December 2016.[29][30][31] According to creative director Chris Roberts, the decision to switch to Lumberyard was based on its online services such as deep back-end cloud integration on Amazon Web Services and its social component with live-streaming platform Twitch.[32][33][34]

Games using Amazon Lumberyard

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Release date Title Genre Platform Developer Publisher
September 8, 2022 Shatterline First-person shooter Microsoft Windows Frag Lab LLC Frag Lab LLC
TBA Squadron 42 Space combat, first-person shooter Microsoft Windows Cloud Imperium Games, Foundry 42 Cloud Imperium Games
TBA Star Citizen MMO, Space trading and combat, first-person shooter Microsoft Windows Cloud Imperium Games, Foundry 42 Cloud Imperium Games
Cancelled The DRG Initiative[35] Third-person shooter TBA Slingshot Cartel TBA
September 28, 2021[36] New World[37] MMO Microsoft Windows Amazon Games Orange County Amazon Games
TBA (changed engine) Deadhaus Sonata[a][39] Action role-playing game Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 Apocalypse Studios Apocalypse Studios
January 15, 2019 The Grand Tour Game Racing PlayStation 4, Xbox One Amazon Game Studios Seattle Amazon Game Studios
October 25, 2018 Coffence Fighting game Microsoft Windows Sweet Bandits Studios Sweet Bandits Studios
Cancelled[40] Crucible Third-person shooter Microsoft Windows Relentless Studios Amazon Game Studios
Cancelled Breakaway MOBA Microsoft Windows Amazon Game Studios Amazon Game Studios

See also

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References

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Footnotes

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  1. ^ Apocalypse Studios initially developed Deadhaus Sonata using Amazon Lumberyard,[38][39] but later switched to Open 3D Engine because of its professional graphics quality and support for customizations that improve the game's capabilities.[38]

Citations

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  1. ^ "Announcing Amazon Lumberyard 1.28". Amazon. May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  2. ^ "Lumberyard Details". Amazon. Retrieved February 20, 2016. Lumberyard provides free access to its native C++ source code.
  3. ^ "Lua Scripting - Lumberyard". Lumberyard Developer Guide. Amazon. Archived from the original on December 29, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  4. ^ Morrison, Angus (February 9, 2016). "Amazon launches free 'triple-A' Lumberyard engine". PC Gamer. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  5. ^ Makuch, Eddie (April 6, 2015). "Amazon and Crytek Agree to Licensing Deal Worth $50-$70 Million - Report". GameSpot. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  6. ^ Takahashi, Dean (February 12, 2016). "Inside Amazon's decision to make a video game engine". VentureBeat. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  7. ^ "Linux Foundation to Form New Open 3D Foundation". Linux Foundation. July 6, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Built for Builders: The Story of AWS and Open 3D Engine – Developer Preview". Amazon Web Services. July 6, 2021. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  9. ^ Reese, Derek [@derekreese] (July 6, 2021). "@IkDusWel @misslivirose @godotengine Well, for starters, O3DE is not CryEngine/Lumberyard. It continues some of the best features and code from Lumberyard, but is its own full rewrite and independent engine. I'd also say O3DE and Godot seem to target different audiences - AAA, vs small studio & indie" (Tweet). Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  10. ^ Reese, Derek [@derekreese] (July 6, 2021). "Different engine than Lumberyard, but we appreciate the mention! https://t.co/GU4n9P83tF" (Tweet). Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  11. ^ Good, Owen S. (February 9, 2016). "Amazon rolls out Lumberyard, an entirely free game development engine". Polygon. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  12. ^ Good, Owen (February 9, 2016). "Amazon rolls out Lumberyard, an entirely free game development engine". Polygon. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  13. ^ a b "Amazon Lumberyard FAQ". Amazon Web Services, Inc. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  14. ^ a b Nutt, Christian (February 9, 2016). "Amazon launches new, free, high-quality game engine: Lumberyard". Gamasutra. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  15. ^ Neltz, András (February 9, 2016). "Amazon Releases Its Own Game Engine For Free". Kotaku. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  16. ^ a b Connors, J.C. (March 14, 2016). "Now Available – Lumberyard Beta 1.1". Amazon GameDev Blog. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  17. ^ Chen, Hao (June 28, 2016). "VR, HDR, and more in Lumberyard Beta 1.3 – Available Now". Amazon GameDev Blog. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  18. ^ Feltham, Jamie (June 6, 2016). "Amazon Lumberyard's 1.3 Update is All About VR". UploadVR. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  19. ^ "Lumberyard Release Notes – Beta 1.12 (December 2017) - Lumberyard Release Notes". Archived from the original on December 19, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
  20. ^ "Amazon Lumberyard: Features".
  21. ^ "Lumberyard Release Notes – Beta 1.0 (February 2016) - Lumberyard Release Notes". Archived from the original on November 20, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
  22. ^ Jarvis, Matthew (March 16, 2016). "First Amazon Lumberyard update brings mobile support, Substance integration". Develop. NewBay Media. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  23. ^ Lumberyard & Amazon GameLift: Now Available – Lumberyard on GitHub by Todd Gilbertsen on 15 August 2017
  24. ^ license on github.com/aws/Lumberyard
  25. ^ "Built for Builders: The Story of AWS and Open 3D Engine – Developer Preview". Amazon Web Services. July 6, 2021. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  26. ^ "Cloud Imperium shows an impressive StarEngine Tech Demo". DSOGaming. October 22, 2023.
  27. ^ "Star Citizen's new StarEngine tech demo is one of the most impressive we've ever seen". TweakTown. October 24, 2023.
  28. ^ "The tech underpinning Star Citizen looks mighty impressive in new trailer". Rock Paper Shotgun. November 25, 2023.
  29. ^ "More than four years into development Star Citizen changes game engine". Polygon. December 23, 2016.
  30. ^ "Star Citizen and Squadron 42 are using Amazon's Lumberyard game engine". VentureBeat. December 23, 2016.
  31. ^ "Star Citizen dev drops CryEngine in favor of Lumberyard". Game Developer. December 27, 2016.
  32. ^ "'Star Citizen' switches to Amazon's game engine". Engadget. December 25, 2016.
  33. ^ "Star Citizen Switches Game Engines". GameSpot. December 26, 2016.
  34. ^ "'Star Citizen' Devs Switch To Lumberyard Game Engine, Add 'Star Marine' First-Person Shooter Module". Tom's Hardware. December 28, 2016.
  35. ^ McKeand, Kirk (February 23, 2017). "The DRG Initiative is a third-person team shooter where Twitch can influence battles". PCGamesN. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  36. ^ "Release Date Update". newworld.com. July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  37. ^ "Let the games begin". amazon.com. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  38. ^ a b Takahashi, Dean (July 6, 2021). "Amazon shifts Lumberyard to open source 3D game engine supported by 20 companies". GamesBeat (VentureBeat). Archived from the original on July 7, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021. Apocalypse Studios was using the Lumberyard engine, and Dyack's team decided that the Open 3D Engine would be a really good direction to go, he said. It supports high graphical fidelity in the company's Deadhaus Sonata, and it enables the company to build customizations on top of the engine that can enhance what the game can do.
  39. ^ a b Mccaffrey, Ryan (October 24, 2018). "Deadhaus Sonata Announced From Eternal Darkness, Legacy of Kain Creator Denis Dyack". Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  40. ^ "Final Crucible Developer Update". Crucible. October 9, 2020. Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
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