Colyseus vs CTFd
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Colyseus
Authoritative multiplayer game server framework for Node.js
VS
CTFd
Open-source capture the flag framework for hacking competitions
| Feature | Colyseus | CTFd |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Game Servers | Game Servers |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,168 | ★ 6,776 |
| First released | 2016 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Photon Engine | HackerRank CTF |
Why pick each one
Choose Colyseus if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 7.2k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Choose CTFd if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 6.8k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is Colyseus or CTFd better?
Neither is universally better. Colyseus has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Colyseus and CTFd free and open-source?
Yes. Colyseus is licensed under MIT and CTFd under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Colyseus and CTFd with Docker?
Colyseus: yes. CTFd: yes.