Okay, here is the abstract and summary for the provided transcript about C++ game engines and frameworks.

Abstract:

This video provides a comprehensive overview of game engines and frameworks that utilize or support C++ development. Presented by Mike from GameFromScratch, it revisits a previous series, listing options for both 2D and 3D game creation. The list covers a wide spectrum, from industry-leading AAA engines like Unreal Engine and established open-source projects like Godot and O3DE (formerly Lumberyard/CryEngine fork), to lesser-known or niche engines such as Flax, Unigine, Torque 3D, Wicked Engine, and Rebel Fork (Urho3D fork). It also includes rendering frameworks and libraries like Ogre, SFML, SDL, Allegro, and Orx. For each entry, the video touches upon its history, licensing model (open source, commercial, free with royalties), key features, development status, and target use cases, offering insights into both popular choices and more obscure alternatives for C++ game developers.

A Comprehensive Guide to C++ Game Engines and Frameworks

• 0:00:01 Introduction: Mike from GameFromScratch revisits a series breaking down game engines/frameworks by programming language, focusing on C++ for both 2D and 3D development.
• 0:00:22 Unreal Engine: The most prominent C++ AAA engine, free to start with a $1M revenue threshold before royalties kick in. Massive tool with a steep learning curve.
• 0:00:54 Unigine: Long-standing engine known for benchmarks, now more accessible for game development. Very powerful 3D capabilities, also supports C#.
• 0:01:39 O3DE (Open 3D Engine): Open-source fork of Amazon Lumberyard (itself a CryEngine fork). Has potential to be a free AAA engine but can be frustrating and still needs work.
• 0:02:18 Godot Engine: Prominent open-source C++ engine, though most users use GDScript or C#. C++ can be used via experimental live support or more commonly via extensions/modules for performance-critical code. Good for 2D/3D.
• 0:03:13 Flax Engine: Seen as a "baby Unreal Engine," smaller scope, source available (not open source), similar licensing to Unreal. Scriptable with C++, C#, and visual scripting. Rapidly improving underdog.
• 0:03:59 CryEngine: Storied engine (source of O3DE), but its current status, future development (Neon Noir), and licensing are uncertain. Used for games like Hunt Showdown. Supports C++ and C#.
• 0:04:52 Torque 3D: Open source (MIT license) engine derived from the Tribes game engine. Has both 2D and 3D versions. Still reportedly under development, though activity seems low.
• 0:05:43 Ultra Engine: C++ based engine from Leadwerks, focused heavily on performance (claims 10x faster than Unity in some cases). Code-based approach.
• 0:06:13 Leadwerks Engine: The predecessor to Ultra Engine, also C++ based with a level editor. More dated but available on Steam, often discounted.
• 0:06:36 G3D Innovation Engine: Primarily a research/teaching engine by Morgan McGuire (ex-Nvidia, now Roblox). Good for learning how engines work internally.
• 0:07:10 Source Engine: Valve's engine. Licensing details for new third-party projects are unclear, making it a questionable choice despite games still being made with it.
• 0:07:44 idTech Engines / GZDoom: idTech engines (Quake, Doom) up to Doom 3 are open source. GZDoom, a popular port of the Doom engine, is widely used for modern "Boomer Shooters."
• 0:08:36 Dagger Engine: Open-sourced (BSD-3) engine by Gaijin Games (War Thunder). Powerful and updated, but lacks documentation ("very much on your own").
• 0:09:16 Now Engine (Nau Engine): Believed to be based on Dagger, potentially state-sponsored (Russia). Open source, actively updated, but carries political context.
• 0:09:47 Ogre (Object-Oriented Graphics Rendering Engine): Long-standing open-source rendering framework (not a full engine). Requires adding tooling/other systems. OgreNext is the modern version. Used in games like Torchlight.
• 0:10:27 Irrlicht Engine: Long-running (nearly 2 decades) open-source C++ engine, easy to work with. Development seems slow, potentially based on older graphics APIs. A C port might exist.
• 0:11:11 Panda3D: Powerful engine (used for Disney's Toontown), primarily programmed in Python but implemented in C++ and fully usable with C++. Battle-tested MMO engine.
• 0:12:00 OpenSceneGraph / Vulcan Scene Graph: OSG is a very old scene graph library (data structure for 3D objects). Vulcan Scene Graph is its modern, Vulkan-based successor. Useful for building engines on top of. Open source (MIT).
• 0:13:07 The Forge: A cross-platform rendering framework from a company specializing in engine development for third parties (worked with Google on Godot, Call of Duty, Starfield). Open source reference implementation available.
• 0:13:59 Wicked Engine: Astonishingly capable open-source (MIT) engine, largely by a single developer. Features C++ access, Lua scripting, editor. Highly recommended to check out. Powers GameGuru Max.
• 0:14:44 Rebel Fork (rbfx): A fork of Urho3D, which became problematic after geopolitical events. Now the main continuation for the Urho3D community. Free, open-source, C++ based with higher-level options, cross-platform, includes editor.
• 0:16:05 Esenthel Engine: Interesting engine that allows live scripting directly with C++, making it good for learning C++. Has gone through various licensing/feature changes, somewhat dated in parts.
• 0:16:52 Spartan Engine: Initially a one-man project, now open source (MIT) with more contributors. Very capable, uses Vulkan, includes editor/examples. Another interesting open-source C++ project to watch.
• 0:17:50 C4 Engine: Long-running commercial engine ($100) by Eric Lengyel. Reliable updates over decades, though had a confusing period (rebranded as Tombstone, then reverted). Unique author approach.
• 0:18:47 Lumix Engine: Another open-source (MIT) 3D C++ game engine. Actively updated, includes an editor and shader editor. Been around for over a decade.
• 0:19:26 Linman Engine: Open-source (LGPLv3) multiplatform 3D engine focused on FPS games. Still in development, license might be restrictive (requires derivative works to be open source). Actively developed.
• 0:20:20 Hazel Engine: Engine developed by YouTuber "The Cherno." Highly requested but access is locked behind Patreon ($10/month), making it hard to evaluate freely compared to competitors. C++ based, Vulkan renderer.
• 0:22:00 Easy Engine: Open-source (MIT) C++ game engine with full editing tools, but currently Windows-only. Actively updated with multiple contributors. Another mature open-source C++ option.
• 0:22:53 Rave Engine: C++23 based cross-platform framework (Apache 2 license). Early alpha, no graphical editor yet. One to watch in the open-source C++ space.
• 0:23:36 Spring Engine: Open-source engine specifically focused on creating and running Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games, particularly in the style of 90s/2000s titles like Total Annihilation.
• 0:24:13 Storm Engine: Niche open-source (GPLv3) engine behind games like Sea Dogs/Age of Pirates. License makes it difficult for commercial use outside modding.
• 0:24:45 2D Frameworks Introduction: Shifts focus to 2D C++ frameworks (not full engines).
• 0:24:57 SFML (Simple and Fast Multimedia Library): Cross-platform C++ 2D framework providing windowing, graphics, audio, input. SFML 3 recently released.
• 0:25:11 SDL (Simple DirectMedia Layer): Similar to SFML, provides low-level hardware abstraction. Widely adopted by Steam. SDL 3 is upcoming, adding modern features.
• 0:25:53 Allegro: Another long-standing framework similar to SFML/SDL, originating from Atari ST days. Still actively updated.
• 0:26:17 Orx: A unique 2.5D (3D models rendered as 2D) data-driven C++ framework using configuration files extensively, supporting ECS concepts.
• 0:27:05 Oxygine: Cross-platform 2D C++ open-source engine specifically built for web deployment (HTML5).
• 0:27:37 Cocos2d-x: Historically popular C++ 2D framework, but development focus shifted to Cocos Creator. Not recommended directly anymore.
• 0:27:57 Axmol Engine: An active open-source fork of Cocos2d-x, representing its future development path. Provides more engine-level features (scene management, transitions) than SFML/SDL.
• 0:28:53 Conclusion: Recap and asks viewers for missed engines, points to a linked article, and asks what language to cover next.