Nakama vs SuperTuxKart

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?
FeatureNakamaSuperTuxKart
CategoryGame ServersGame Servers
LicenseApache-2.0GPL-3.0
LanguageGoC++
Setup difficultyMediumEasy
Min. RAM512 MB512 MB
Deploymentdocker, kubernetes, binarybare-metal, binary, source
GitHub stars★ 13,121★ 5,293
First released20172007
ReplacesPlayFab, FirebaseMario Kart

Why pick each one

Choose Nakama if…

  • Released under the Apache-2.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
  • Mature project with 13.1k GitHub stars
Nakama details

Choose SuperTuxKart if…

  • Family-friendly fun
  • Lightweight server
SuperTuxKart details

Frequently asked questions

Is Nakama or SuperTuxKart better?

Neither is universally better. Nakama has the larger community, while SuperTuxKart is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Nakama and SuperTuxKart free and open-source?

Yes. Nakama is licensed under Apache-2.0 and SuperTuxKart under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Nakama and SuperTuxKart with Docker?

Nakama: yes. SuperTuxKart: check the project docs for container support.

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