Colyseus vs shapez.io
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
shapez.io
Open-source factory-building puzzle game
| Feature | Colyseus | shapez.io |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Game Servers | Game Servers |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,168 | ★ 6,932 |
| First released | 2016 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Photon Engine | Factorio |
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
Frequently asked questions
Is Colyseus or shapez.io better?
Neither is universally better. Colyseus has the larger community, while shapez.io is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Colyseus and shapez.io free and open-source?
Yes. Colyseus is licensed under MIT and shapez.io under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Colyseus and shapez.io with Docker?
Colyseus: yes. shapez.io: check the project docs for container support.