Crafty Controller vs Excalibur
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game engines & frameworks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Crafty Controller
Web-based Minecraft server management panel
VS
Excalibur
TypeScript-first 2D game engine for the web
| Feature | Crafty Controller | Excalibur |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Game Engines & Frameworks | Game Engines & Frameworks |
| License | GPL-3.0 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | Python | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,700 | ★ 2,323 |
| First released | 2018 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Minecraft Realms, Pterodactyl | GameMaker, Construct |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Crafty Controller or Excalibur better?
Neither is universally better. Excalibur has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Crafty Controller and Excalibur free and open-source?
Yes. Crafty Controller is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Excalibur under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Crafty Controller and Excalibur with Docker?
Crafty Controller: yes. Excalibur: check the project docs for container support.