Choose your runtime
Web or Native (Unreal)? A quick decision guide and what each path gives you.
You write your world logic against the engine-agnostic Platform API either way. The runtime decides how it renders, how it networks, and which languages you write in.
Quick guide
Choose Web
Instant play from a link, no install, broadest reach. TypeScript. HELIX's own multiplayer stack. The fastest way to ship and the canonical API.
Choose Native (Unreal)
Highest fidelity, engine-native rendering & physics. Write in C++, Blueprint, PuerTS (TS) or UnLua (Lua). Uses Unreal's networking.
Side by side
| Web | Native (Unreal) | |
|---|---|---|
| Languages | TypeScript / JavaScript | C++, Blueprint, PuerTS (TS), UnLua (Lua) |
| Distribution | Instant, from a link, any device | Engine-native build |
| Multiplayer | HELIX networking (web-only) | Engine-native dedicated servers |
| Platform API | ✅ identical | ✅ identical |
| Status | Canonical contract, available first | Mirrors the web contract 1:1 |
| Best for | Reach, speed, AI-built worlds | Fidelity, large maps, existing UE teams |
You are not locked in. Because both runtimes call the same Platform API, world logic written for web ports to Native with minimal change — the differences are rendering, input, and networking, not identity/economy/storage.
Still deciding?
Start on Web. It's the canonical surface, it's the fastest path to a playable link, and everything you learn transfers. Move to Native when you need engine-level fidelity or you already have an Unreal team. Continue to the Quickstart.