Side-by-side comparison of two listed Games — real listing data only, no paid placement.
On record, they differ in: pricing (Stride Free vs GameMaker Freemium); platforms (Stride 1 official install link found vs GameMaker 2 — store/installer links only); unique tags (Stride 3: #csharp #open-source #3d vs GameMaker 3: #2d #no-code #beginner); category rank (Stride #2 vs GameMaker #30). Same category (Games). Listing facts only — not a recommendation.
Free open-source C# game engine for 2D and 3D games
Stride is a free, open-source, MIT-licensed cross-platform C# game engine for 2D and 3D games and interactive content, built on modern C# and .NET. Documentation includes manuals, tutorials, release notes and an API reference.
Published 2026-08-13 · Links checked 2026-09-07
Free 2D game engine for beginners and professional indie developers
GameMaker is a free 2D game engine aimed at both beginners and professionals. It provides tools, tutorials and asset bundles for building indie games with no prior experience required, and is also used to teach game design.
Published 2026-08-13 · Links checked 2026-09-06
| Stride | GameMaker | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Freemium |
| Category | Games | Games |
| Rank in Games | Position #2 of 74 | Position #30 of 74 |
| Alternatives listed | 12 → | 12 → |
| Shared tags | #game-engine | |
| Unique tags | #csharp #open-source #3d | #2d #no-code #beginner |
| Platforms | Windows | macOS · Windows |
| Source code | github.com/stride3d/stride | Not detected on official site (checked 2026-09-20) |
| Company | Not detected on official site (checked 2026-09-20) | YoYo Games |
| Founded | Not detected on official site (checked 2026-09-20) | 2004 |
| In their own words | Stride, an MIT-licensed C# game engine, built for the future of gaming. Use C# 14 and .NET 10 to create your own games.— official site (homepage description), checked | Make a game with GameMaker, the best free video game engine. Perfect for beginners and professionals. Learn to build your own 2D indie games with our simple…— official site (homepage description), checked |
| Official channels | X (Twitter)YouTubeFacebookdeclared on www.stride3d.net via homepage link with a matching handle | X (Twitter)YouTubeFacebookdeclared on gamemaker.io via schema.org sameAs |
| Official website | www.stride3d.net | gamemaker.io |
| Site preview | ||
Rank = neutral rotation by listing ID, not a quality score · how it works
Only platforms with an official store or installer link are listed; others may exist.
Stride is Free; GameMaker is Freemium. Both are listed in Games on ToolDock.
What they have in common: #game-engine
Stride is listed as free; GameMaker is listed as freemium (free tier alongside paid plans). Pricing label set at listing time; official pricing page linked where verified — see each official website for current details.
Both are Games listed on ToolDock, and they share the tag game-engine.
ToolDock keeps a tag-matched alternatives list for each: see Stride alternatives and GameMaker alternatives.