Games and Projects Using O3DE (Open 3D Engine)

The Open 3D Engine (O3DE) is a powerful, open-source, multi-platform 3D engine that descended from Amazon Lumberyard and CryEngine. Managed by the Linux Foundation's Open 3D Foundation, O3DE is rapidly gaining traction among indie developers and studios for its flexibility, modern feature set, and open governance. But what games are actually being built with O3DE? Let's explore the confirmed titles and notable projects.

Confirmed Games Using O3DE

MadWorld

Developer: Carbonated, Inc.
Genre: Third-person shooter
Platform: iOS, Android
Status: In development, widely publicized as the first mobile game built on O3DE

MadWorld is a multiplayer third-person shooter with strategic map gameplay, designed for mobile platforms. Its development on O3DE has been heralded as a milestone for the engine, showcasing its capabilities for mobile game development. Carbonated, Inc. has emphasized O3DE's advanced features and flexible architecture as key enablers for their ambitious project.

Source: O3DE Official Announcement

Awaken Guardian

Developer: Genome Studios
Genre: Survival souls-like dungeon crawler
Platform: PC
Status: In development, regular gameplay updates shared

Awaken Guardian is a third-person survival game with souls-like mechanics, set in a dungeon-crawling environment. The project has been in development for some time, with the studio sharing progress and gameplay videos, highlighting their use of O3DE. It represents the engine's potential for complex, atmospheric PC games.

Source: Genome Studios Dev Blog

Reverb

Developer: Indie developers from Kazakhstan
Genre: First-person PVPVE extraction shooter
Platform: PC (Steam)
Status: In development, planned for late 2024 release

Reverb is a multiplayer stealth tactical first-person shooter set in a fictional Biopunk universe, where there's a constant struggle for species evolution. The game features extraction shooter mechanics with distinctive elements that set it apart from others in the genre. As one of the early adopters of O3DE for a PC title, Reverb demonstrates the engine's capabilities for creating complex multiplayer experiences.

Source: Reverb on Steam

Technical Features Powering O3DE Games

What specific O3DE capabilities are these games leveraging? Each title showcases different strengths of the engine:

Advanced Mobile Rendering Pipeline - MadWorld utilizes O3DE's mobile rendering pipeline, which includes sub-pass support for mobile (targeting 40% bandwidth reduction), mobile-specific optimizations, and color grading support. This allows Carbonated to achieve high-quality visuals on mobile devices.
Physically Based Rendering (PBR) - All three games take advantage of O3DE's Atom renderer, which provides modern PBR capabilities, dynamic lighting, and realistic material systems. This is particularly evident in the dystopian environments of MadWorld and the atmospheric dungeons of Awaken Guardian.
Modular Gem Architecture - Developers can pick and choose functionality through O3DE's gem system. For example, Reverb likely uses the multiplayer and networking gems, while Awaken Guardian leverages the physics and animation gems for its souls-like combat system.
Advanced Physics Simulation - O3DE's integration with PhysX provides realistic physics interactions, crucial for the tactical gameplay in Reverb and the environmental interactions in Awaken Guardian.
Asset Pipeline and Importing - The engine supports various asset formats and includes tools for asset processing, enabling developers to bring in high-quality 3D models, animations, and environments efficiently.

Developer Perspectives: Why Choose O3DE?

What do developers actually think about working with O3DE? Here's what they're saying:

"I'm happy to announce the use of O3DE for MadWorld, showcasing the power of open-source technology to deliver engaging gameplay to players everywhere. O3DE's advanced features and flexible architecture have empowered our team to push the boundaries of mobile games by taking full advantage of state-of-the-art technologies and hardware." - Lloyd Tullues, CTO of Carbonated, Inc.

From the development trenches, developers highlight several key advantages:

Open-Source Freedom - Unlike proprietary engines, O3DE gives developers complete control over their technology stack, with no licensing fees or restrictions.
AAA Heritage - Coming from Amazon Lumberyard and CryEngine, O3DE brings enterprise-grade features to the open-source world.
Modular Design - The gem system allows teams to use only what they need, keeping projects lean and focused.
Multi-Platform Support - From mobile to PC to emerging platforms like VR/AR, O3DE provides the flexibility to target multiple platforms from a single codebase.

O3DE vs. Other Open-Source Engines

How does O3DE compare to other popular game engines? Here's a quick comparison:

Feature	O3DE	Godot	Unity	Unreal Engine
Architecture	ECS-based (Entity Component System)	OOP-based (Object-Oriented Programming)	Component-based	OOP-based with components
3D Capabilities	High-fidelity, AAA-grade rendering	Good, improving rapidly	Excellent, industry-standard	Industry-leading
2D Capabilities	Basic	Excellent, specialized workflow	Excellent	Basic (Paper2D)
Learning Curve	Steep (complex, enterprise features)	Gentle (beginner-friendly)	Moderate	Steep
Mobile Support	Advanced (dedicated mobile pipeline)	Good	Excellent	Good
Licensing	Open source (Apache 2.0)	Open source (MIT)	Proprietary (free to start)	Proprietary (royalties after $1M)

Key Takeaways: O3DE excels in high-performance 3D applications and is ideal for teams that need AAA features without proprietary constraints. Godot is better suited for 2D games, simpler 3D projects, and developers who prioritize ease of use. Unity and Unreal offer more mature ecosystems and tooling but come with licensing considerations.

O3DE's Future: What's Coming Next?

The O3DE roadmap reveals exciting developments on the horizon. Here are some key features and improvements planned for 2024-2025:

2024 Roadmap Highlights

Mobile Enhancements - Continued optimization of the mobile rendering pipeline, with iOS/Android packaging improvements and AR/VR multiview support.
AI Integration - New AI Character Gem and AI Scene Generator Gem, plus integration with generative AI frameworks like Ollama and Amazon Bedrock.
WebGPU Support - First version of WebGPU Atom renderer, opening doors for browser-based 3D applications.
Improved Asset Pipeline - Better OpenUSD support, Houdini integration, and 1TB of open-source assets released to the community.

2025 Roadmap Highlights

Advanced Graphics - Multi-GPU support, mesh streaming, water rendering, and investigations into virtual geometry support.
Console Support - Collaboration with third parties for PlayStation 5, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch support.
Enhanced Physics - Continued improvements to PhysX integration and cloth simulation systems.
VR/AR Focus - Texture space render pipeline optimized for VR, Imgui support for VR, and native foveated rendering.

These developments show O3DE's commitment to becoming a comprehensive, next-generation game engine capable of competing with established commercial offerings while maintaining its open-source ethos.

Notable Demos and Sample Projects

Beyond full games, the O3DE community and partners have created a variety of demos, samples, and prototypes that showcase the engine's potential:

Multiplayer Sample Game (AWS Game Tech) – A demonstration of multiplayer functionality in O3DE, useful for developers learning networked gameplay.
Stealth (DigiBL Studio) – A demo highlighting stealth mechanics, demonstrating AI interaction and environment design in O3DE.
Paper Kid (AWS) – A stylized sample game showing how O3DE can be used for simpler, artistic game styles.
First Person Controller Gem (Porcupine-Factory) – A project providing a robust first-person controller for others to use in their O3DE projects.
Chain Arc skill using PopcornFX (Olex Lozitskiy) – A visual effects demo integrating PopcornFX particle systems with O3DE.

These projects, while not commercial releases, are valuable for developers wanting to understand what's possible with O3DE today.

The Current State of O3DE in Game Development

As of now, O3DE is still in the early stages of adoption in the game development community. The engine is most prominently used by:

Indie studios and startups experimenting with modern open-source engines.
Developers migrating from Amazon Lumberyard or CryEngine.
Teams building simulations, visualizations, and non-game applications that benefit from 3D rendering.

The list of full commercial games is short but growing. MadWorld, Awaken Guardian, and Reverb are the most prominent examples, but their status as "in development" shows that O3DE-powered games have not yet reached wide release. However, the engine's feature set, active development, and backing by major organizations suggest that more projects will be announced in the coming years.

Conclusion and Future Outlook

O3DE is a promising, powerful engine with the potential to host the next generation of indie and experimental games. While the current roster of completed games is limited, the active development of MadWorld, Awaken Guardian, and Reverb, plus a rich ecosystem of demos and samples, point to a bright future. For developers looking for an open-source alternative to Unity or Unreal, O3DE is definitely worth watching—and perhaps building with.

"O3DE's advanced features and flexible architecture have empowered our team to push the boundaries of what's possible on mobile." – Carbonated, Inc.

Stay tuned to the O3DE Showcase and community channels for the latest projects and announcements!

This article was compiled based on official O3DE sources, developer blogs, and available public information as of 2024. The O3DE ecosystem is evolving rapidly, so new games and projects may emerge after publication.