Amazon has released Lumberyard, a free new game engine powerful enough to develop triple-A video games for a modern, graphics-hungry audience.
It's completely free for developers to use, even down to the source code, requiring no paid subscription or royalties, although the engine is intrinsically tied to Amazon's Web Services server infrastructure "to empower online play", according to a Gamasutra report.
Amazon has signed deals with Microsoft and Sony, opening the game engine up for use on PS4 and Xbox One, as well as PC, and with mobile support on the horizon.
If you're wondering what Amazon gets out of this deal, it's all to do with that integration to Amazon Web Services. Any developer is free to use their own server tech, but if they go third-party, they have to use Amazon, which is where money comes into it.
Twitch integration will also play a role, with the Amazon-owned streaming service deeply ingrained into the engine, making sure that platform's dominance is bolstered by allowing developers to create more games to be streamed on the service.
The game engine is currently in beta, but is downloadable for free today.
