Phaser is a fast, free, and fun open source HTML5 game framework that offers WebGL and Canvas rendering across desktop and mobile web browsers and has been actively developed for over 10 years.
Games can be built for the web, or as YouTube Playables, Discord Activies, Twitch Overlays or compiled to iOS, Android, Steam and native apps using 3rd party tools. You can use JavaScript or TypeScript for development. Phaser supports over 40 different front-end frameworks including React and Vue.
Phaser is commercially developed and maintained by Phaser Studio Inc along with our fantastic open source community. As a result of rapid support, and a developer friendly API, Phaser is currently one of the most starred game frameworks on GitHub.
Interested in learning more? Click the image below to watch our intro video.
What is it used for?
Phaser is an HTML5 game framework designed specifically for web browsers. It is built using, and relying on, web technologies. And the games it creates are meant to be played in desktop or mobile browsers, or apps capable of running web games, such as Discord, SnapChat, Facebook and more. There are ways to convert browser games to native mobile or desktop apps using 3rd party tools, and many Phaser developers have done this successfully. However, Phasers primary focus is, and always will be, the web.
Phaser is a 2D game framework. This means that both its features and internal design are based entirely around creating lightning fast 2D games. It does not include 3D rendering or 3D physics as built-in features. Again, there are ways to integrate 3rd party libraries to provide this, but Phaser itself is 2D and our documentation and examples reflect this.
Phaser was developed in JavaScript, because this is the language of the web browser. As such, you will need to code your game using either JavaScript or TypeScript. All of our examples and documentation are provided in JavaScript, but we also provide TypeScript definitions.
Phaser is made available as a JavaScript library. This can be downloaded, linked from a Content Delivery Network (CDN), or installed via any of the standard JavaScript package managers, such as npm. Phaser itself is not a desktop application. You do not 'install' it, although we do provide Phaser Editor. At its core, Phaser is a JavaScript library that you include in your own web pages, or bundle. You then write your game code in JavaScript and run them together in a web browser.
Phaser has been in active development for over 11 years. There is a small but dedicated full-time team behind it, who are constantly striving to make it the best it can be, while keeping it easy to learn. It is used by developers around the world and has been used to create many thousands of games, from small prototypes to full-scale commercial titles with millions of players. Because of its maturity, Phaser is a stable and reliable framework. It is not a 'fad'. When changes are made, they're for the benefit of the framework as whole, not just to chase a 'trendy' new technology.
When is Phaser not the right choice?
To this end it's important to understand when Phaser is not a suitable choice:
- You want to make your game fully in 3D.
- You want to publish your game on a modern console, such as PS5, XBox or Nintendo Switch.
- You don't want to learn JavaScript and need a no-code based editor.
If any of the above apply to you, then Phaser isn't the right choice for your game. There are plenty of other frameworks and tools that will be a better fit. However, if you're looking to make a 2D game for the web, then we firmly believe that Phaser is a great choice.