After the recent Unity pricing controversy, the developers of Terraria donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to competitor game engines. This has led many to ask the question, what engine is Terraria on?

What Engine is Terraria On?

The XNA Game Studio 4.0 is the engine powering Terraria and uses the C# language. Initially released as a “Community Technical Preview” at the 2010 Game Developers Conference (GFC), this programming environment allows developers to create games for various systems, particularly for the Xbox 360 consoles, Windows phones, and Windows PCs, using Visual Studio 2010. Additionally, the programming language of this game doesn’t use scripting or data files. Instead, most of its assets are hardcoded into the EXE, apart from the art and sound content.

Microsoft XNA Game Studio 4.0 System Requirements

Those interested in using the XNA Game Studio 4.0 should have a system that can handle the software. The minimum PC requirements are as follows:

• OS: Windows XP, Windows 7, or Windows Vista
• Graphics card: Must be able to use Shader Model 1.1 and DirectX 9.0c

However, these requirements change depending on the developer’s goal. For instance, executing and debugging software made from the XNA Game Studio 4.0 for Windows phones through a Windows phone emulator requires a graphics card that can support DirectX 10 and the WDDM 1.1 driver at minimum. Also, developing an app from the XNA Game Studio 4.0 for the Xbox 360 requires a hard disk installed on that gaming console. Some software may also require graphics cards supporting Shader Model 2.0 to be compatible with certain samples and starter kits.

Alternatives to the XNA Game Studio 4.0

Aside from the XNA Game Studio, here are some alternatives to help power applications:

• Löve: A free, open-source engine for making 2D games in Lua
• Godot Engine: A free cross-platform game engine for creating 2D and 3D games
• Unity: Another cross-platform game engine for making 2D and 3D games, but has since received backlash after announcing its pricing plan