The Forge
v1.58Cross-platform rendering framework used in AAA game development, supporting Vulkan, DX12, and Metal
Development Activity
Sample Renders
Overview
Best for
Experienced graphics engineers building cross-platform rendering pipelines for games or visualization tools that need to ship on PC, console, and mobile from a single codebase
Not ideal for
Solo developers, small teams, or beginners looking for a ready-to-use game engine with visual editing tools and approachable documentation
Strengths
- Proven in shipped AAA titles including Supergiant Games' Hades and Hades II — the only open-source rendering framework with this level of commercial game validation
- True cross-platform GPU API covering Vulkan, DirectX 12, Metal, and console-specific backends (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch) from a single codebase
- FSL (Forge Shading Language) enables writing shaders once for all backends, eliminating the maintenance burden of separate HLSL, MSL, and GLSL codebases
- GPU-driven rendering architecture with compute-based culling, indirect drawing, and asynchronous resource management designed for maximum hardware utilization
- Exceptionally thorough automated test suite running across multiple GPU architectures, providing confidence in cross-platform correctness
Limitations
- Steep learning curve — the framework is designed for experienced graphics engineers and the codebase is large, requiring significant ramp-up time
- Not a complete game engine — no built-in editor, physics engine, audio system, or scripting runtime; purely a rendering and OS abstraction framework
- Console support (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch) requires NDA access to respective platform SDKs and is unavailable in the public open-source version
- Documentation is sparse relative to the framework's complexity — learning requires reading extensive example code, unit tests, and release notes
- The custom build system and project structure add friction for new contributors who are accustomed to standard CMake workflows
Background
The Forge is a cross-platform rendering framework developed by Confetti Interactive, led by Wolfgang Engel and his team of veteran graphics engineers. Unlike most open-source rendering projects, The Forge has been deployed in shipped AAA titles — most notably Supergiant Games' Hades and Hades II — giving it a level of production validation that is rare in the open-source rendering ecosystem. The framework provides a unified low-level rendering API that abstracts over Vulkan, DirectX 12, Metal, and console-specific APIs (GNM/GNMX for PlayStation, proprietary APIs for Xbox and Nintendo Switch behind NDA).
The Forge's architecture centers on GPU-driven rendering pipelines, with extensive support for indirect drawing, compute-based culling, and asynchronous resource management. It includes FSL (Forge Shading Language), a custom cross-platform shader language that compiles to all supported backends, eliminating the need to maintain separate HLSL, MSL, and GLSL shader codebases. The framework also provides an OS abstraction layer, a custom memory allocator, font rendering, a UI system, and comprehensive profiler integration.
As a rendering framework rather than a game engine, The Forge intentionally excludes physics, audio, scripting, and scene editing. It targets experienced graphics engineers who are building their own engine or rendering pipeline and need a proven, production-quality GPU abstraction. The project maintains an extensive automated test suite that runs across multiple GPU architectures, and its release cadence follows a continuous improvement model with frequent updates. Console support is available under NDA from the respective platform holders.
Quick Start
git clone https://github.com/ConfettiFX/The-ForgeRelated Renderers
Community & Resources
Tutorials & Resources
Performance Benchmarks
No benchmark data available for The Forge yet.
Benchmarks will be added as more renderers are tested across our standard scene suite.
Learn about our methodology