Best Physics Engine Software

Adam Crivello
AC
Researched and written by Adam Crivello

Physics engines are software that allow computers to create physics phenomena that we experience in the real world (gravity, fluid dynamics, etc.) and apply them to 3D objects in games and other 3D renderings, which affects how those objects interact in the digital world. Game developers and video effects artists use physics engines to create lifelike computer-generated environments for video games, movies, and television. Some architects may use physics engines to create realistic 3D renderings for concept designs. Even if a 3D environment doesn’t require real-life physics, a physics engine will allow the designer to customise physics to fit their needs.

Without something like a physics engine telling many different 3D objects how to interact, programming an environment would be extremely time-consuming. Some environments may have hundreds of objects that all interact with each other in various ways. For example, an object in a bowl on a table is interacting with the bowl, the other objects in the bowl, the table, and the ground the table sits on. As a game developer or video effects artist, a physics engine will be part of the suite of tools used to create 3D environments. In many cases, physics engines are included in game engines, 3D modeling suites, and 3D rendering tools. However, it may be offered as a standalone or as a plug-in to another software.

To qualify as a physics engine, a software must:

Simulate a variety of physical systems (rigid body dynamics, soft body dynamics, fluid dynamics, etc.)
Apply those systems to 3D objects and environments
Work in tandem with other software systems to create a cohesive experience

Best Physics Engine Software At A Glance

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7 Listings in Physics Engine Available
(37)3.9 out of 5
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  • Overview
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    PhysX creates effects and scene filled with dynamic destruction, particle based fluids, and life-like animation with accurate physics simulation.

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    • Computer Software
    Market Segment
    • 68% Mid-Market
    • 35% Small-Business
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    NVIDIA
    Year Founded
    1993
    HQ Location
    Santa Clara, CA
    Twitter
    @nvidia
    2,322,755 Twitter followers
    LinkedIn® Page
    www.linkedin.com
    36,197 employees on LinkedIn®
    Ownership
    NVDA
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

PhysX creates effects and scene filled with dynamic destruction, particle based fluids, and life-like animation with accurate physics simulation.

Users
No information available
Industries
  • Computer Software
Market Segment
  • 68% Mid-Market
  • 35% Small-Business
Seller Details
Seller
NVIDIA
Year Founded
1993
HQ Location
Santa Clara, CA
Twitter
@nvidia
2,322,755 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
36,197 employees on LinkedIn®
Ownership
NVDA
(11)4.4 out of 5
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    Box2D is an open source C++ engine for simulating bodies in 2D that has features in collision, physics, system, testbed, and documentation.

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    • Computer Games
    Market Segment
    • 82% Small-Business
    • 18% Mid-Market
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    Box2D
    HQ Location
    ARGENTON SUR CREUSE, FR
    Twitter
    @erin_catto
    6,990 Twitter followers
    LinkedIn® Page
    www.linkedin.com
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

Box2D is an open source C++ engine for simulating bodies in 2D that has features in collision, physics, system, testbed, and documentation.

Users
No information available
Industries
  • Computer Games
Market Segment
  • 82% Small-Business
  • 18% Mid-Market
Seller Details
Seller
Box2D
HQ Location
ARGENTON SUR CREUSE, FR
Twitter
@erin_catto
6,990 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com

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  • Overview
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    Bullet is a physics engine which stimulates collision detection, soft and rigid body dynamics, soft body support, and more.

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    No information available
    Market Segment
    • 50% Small-Business
    • 50% Enterprise
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    Bullet.so
    Year Founded
    2023
    HQ Location
    Middletown, DE, USA
    Twitter
    @bullet_so
    136 Twitter followers
    LinkedIn® Page
    www.linkedin.com
    2 employees on LinkedIn®
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

Bullet is a physics engine which stimulates collision detection, soft and rigid body dynamics, soft body support, and more.

Users
No information available
Industries
No information available
Market Segment
  • 50% Small-Business
  • 50% Enterprise
Seller Details
Seller
Bullet.so
Year Founded
2023
HQ Location
Middletown, DE, USA
Twitter
@bullet_so
136 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
2 employees on LinkedIn®
(2)3.8 out of 5
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  • Product Description
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    This description is provided by the seller.

    Havok is a collision detection and physical stimulation technology for interactive software for digital media creators in games and movie industries.

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    No information available
    Market Segment
    • 50% Enterprise
    • 50% Small-Business
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    Havok
    Year Founded
    1998
    HQ Location
    Dublin, Ireland
    Twitter
    @HavokBuzz
    1,342 Twitter followers
    LinkedIn® Page
    www.linkedin.com
    109 employees on LinkedIn®
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

Havok is a collision detection and physical stimulation technology for interactive software for digital media creators in games and movie industries.

Users
No information available
Industries
No information available
Market Segment
  • 50% Enterprise
  • 50% Small-Business
Seller Details
Seller
Havok
Year Founded
1998
HQ Location
Dublin, Ireland
Twitter
@HavokBuzz
1,342 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
109 employees on LinkedIn®
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    A modular, extendable, and easy-to-use physics engine for javascript

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    No information available
    Market Segment
    • 50% Small-Business
    • 50% Enterprise
  • Pros and Cons
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  • PhysicsJS Pros and Cons
    How are these determined?Information
    Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
    Pros
    Documentation
    1
    Easy Integrations
    1
    Speed
    1
    Cons
    UI Issues
    1
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    PhysicsJS
    HQ Location
    Toronto, Canada
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

A modular, extendable, and easy-to-use physics engine for javascript

Users
No information available
Industries
No information available
Market Segment
  • 50% Small-Business
  • 50% Enterprise
PhysicsJS Pros and Cons
How are these determined?Information
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
Pros
Documentation
1
Easy Integrations
1
Speed
1
Cons
UI Issues
1
Seller Details
Seller
PhysicsJS
HQ Location
Toronto, Canada
(1)4.5 out of 5
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  • Overview
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    BeamNG aims to bring soft-body physics and soft-body physics model design to the forefront of game physics simulation making available the technology and know-how a wide audience.

    Users
    No information available
    Industries
    No information available
    Market Segment
    • 100% Small-Business
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Seller
    BeamNG
    HQ Location
    Bremen, Germany
    Twitter
    @beamng
    44,278 Twitter followers
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

BeamNG aims to bring soft-body physics and soft-body physics model design to the forefront of game physics simulation making available the technology and know-how a wide audience.

Users
No information available
Industries
No information available
Market Segment
  • 100% Small-Business
Seller Details
Seller
BeamNG
HQ Location
Bremen, Germany
Twitter
@beamng
44,278 Twitter followers
  • Overview
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  • Product Description
    How are these determined?Information
    This description is provided by the seller.

    Matali Physics is an advanced, modern, multi-platform, high-performance 3d physics environment intended for games, VR, AR, physics-based simulations and robotics. Matali Physics consists of the advanc

    We don't have enough data from reviews to share who uses this product. Write a review to contribute, or learn more about review generation.
    Industries
    No information available
    Market Segment
    No information available
  • Seller Details
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  • Seller Details
    Twitter
    @mataliphysics
    10 Twitter followers
    LinkedIn® Page
    www.linkedin.com
    1 employees on LinkedIn®
Product Description
How are these determined?Information
This description is provided by the seller.

Matali Physics is an advanced, modern, multi-platform, high-performance 3d physics environment intended for games, VR, AR, physics-based simulations and robotics. Matali Physics consists of the advanc

We don't have enough data from reviews to share who uses this product. Write a review to contribute, or learn more about review generation.
Industries
No information available
Market Segment
No information available
Seller Details
Twitter
@mataliphysics
10 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1 employees on LinkedIn®

Learn More About Physics Engine Software

What is Physics Engine Software?

Physics engine software, often included with game engine software, grants game developers and visual effects artists a tool kit for simulating and tweaking the laws of physics in 2D and 3D creations. This software eases the workload for designing interactive visual assets. With physics engine software, developers and artists apply real-world physical properties, such as gravity and momentum, to their 2D and 3D objects rather than designing them from scratch.This is a major advantage when crafting scenarios with multiple interactive objects. Physics engine software empowers creative game design by accurately simulating real-world physical systems, which frees developers to focus their efforts on mechanics and level design as opposed to mimicking physics from scratch. Visual effects artists rely on physics engines to ease the animation workload by automating representations of physical phenomena.

Without physics engine software, game design is bogged down by the prospect of either building an in-house solution, or using individual animations to represent physics. The former is a monumental task that would prove difficult for even a large, well funded studio. The latter is tedious and time consuming, especially in games with hundreds if not thousands of interactive elements. Physics engine software eases development workloads by offering pre-configured physical properties and systems for developers to work with.

Physics engine software runs 3D simulations to test real-world designs. Designers use physics engine software to help ensure that their initial build plans are optimal before bringing those builds to the real world. These simulations save time and money when designing new machines and other tech. Build flaws can be discovered before expending the resources to create prototypes in the real world.

Key Benefits of Physics Engine Software

  • Eases workload
  • Empowers creativity
  • Limits possibility for human error

Why Use Physics Engine Software?

Streamlined interactive design — Video game and visual effects design scenarios involve hundreds of interactive elements. Physics engine software lets users implement simulations of physical systems for 3D objects and environments without crafting each scenario from scratch.

Creative freedom — The tools and systems provided by physics engines give users the freedom to focus on creating their vision. By applying physical properties to objects and tweaking values, users create interactive and visually stunning scenarios without extra design work.

Realistic end product — Physics engine software give games and visual effects a level of realism that enhances immersion. The systems provided by physics engines minimize the possibility of human error when representing real-world scenarios.

Who Uses Physics Engine Software?

Game developers — Game developers use physics engine software to make their interactive worlds come to life. Video game scenarios often involve many interactive virtual objects, and physics engine software alleviates the development workload required to apply physical properties to those objects.

Visual effects artists — Visual effects artists use physics engine software to add realism to their renders. Physics engine software makes it easier to apply physical properties to rendered visuals by eliminating the need to animate those properties from scratch.

Engineers and designers — Engineers and designers use physics engine software to simulate the physical properties of their designs before they build them in the real world. Physics engine software saves time and money by pinpointing flaws before prototypes are built in the real world.

Physics Engine Software Features

Simulations of physical systems — Physics engine software grants users access to a variety of tools for simulating physical systems in a 2D or 3D space, including gravity, fluid dynamics, and momentum. Developers and visual effects artists using a physics engine platform can apply real-world physical properties to their virtual objects.

Collision detection — Developers and visual effects artists can use physics engines to implement collision detection for realistic and satisfying interactivity.

Value tweaking — Beyond mimicking real-world physics, physics engines allow users to tweak the values of physical properties. Developers and designers can craft scenarios that would be impossible in the real world. They do this by bending the laws of physics in their creations.