About game engines and their future

Abstract

In these last few years we are witnessing an increasing adoption of video games in learning and teaching environments. This change is coming thanks to the fact that video games allow students to take a more active role in learning as they develop skills needed to succeed in their professional careers. At the same time, we are also observing a change in the way video games are implemented. Today, the existence of very large teams with a multi-layered organisation calls for the adoption of structured development approaches with associated environments. These environments have been baptised game engines. Availability and usability of game engines, in the near future, will positively influence educational activities for the next generations. In this paper, we discuss the general structure of modern game engines and put into question their current architectural approach. Our goal is to raise the attention of the scientific community on the fact that re-baptised software stacks are unlikely, on the long shot, to provide the flexibility and functionalities required by game developers in the coming years. After a detailed discussion of the possible problems on the horizon, an alternative approach for a modular and scalable game engine architecture will also be presented.