Polytoria Goes Open Source!
Cover image: Flood Escape by CyA
Hello everyone!
We're excited to announce that Polytoria 2.0 will be open source under the Mozilla Public License 2.0. This is something we've wanted to do for a long time, and now that Polytoria 2.0 is almost ready it feels like the right moment to announce this.
Polytoria 2.0 is a complete rebuild of the core of our platform: the client, creator and server. When 2.0 releases, we will publish our main repository on GitHub and allow everyone to inspect, learn from and contribute to the project.
Why open source?
We think that everyone benefits from an open-source Polytoria, both the community and the platform itself. Polytoria gets better when the people who use it can also help build it. We've wanted to release the current client as open source for a long time, but due to the licensing of some of the libraries we used this wasn't possible. 2.0 however is a complete rewrite from the ground up. Open sourcing makes it possible for anyone to understand how the platform works and contribute improvements like bug fixes, performance improvements and entirely new ideas we may not have thought of ourselves.
What will be included?
When Polytoria 2.0 releases, we will open source the core repository. This includes the client, creator and server backend. We already have open repositories for our scripting documentation and Discord bots, and the core repository will be the next one on that list.
What won't be included is our anti-cheat module and a small portion of code to ensure only official clients can connect to Polytoria-hosted servers. These are intentionally excluded to protect the integrity and safety of the platform. These exclusions are minimal and cleanly separated, the rest of the codebase works perfectly fine without it.
What this means for the community
This is a big shift in what you can do with Polytoria, since you can now look at how things work under the hood and suggest or implement improvements. If you care about privacy and transparency, it means that you can inspect the code and validate what it does and doesn't do. For Polytoria as a whole, open source means a more resilient platform by letting the community contribute in the areas they're best at. Development will no longer be limited to our small team so improvements can be shipped faster.
We will share more details as we get closer to release such as repository links, contribution guidelines and documentation. This is a huge milestone in Polytoria's history, and as always thanks to everyone who supported us over the years! Be sure to check out our Discord server (13+) to talk to the team if you have any questions or just to chat with the community!
Until next time!
FAQ
When will the source code be available?
The source code will be published alongside 2.0's release.
What tech is 2.0 built in?
Polytoria 2.0 is built in C# (.NET 10) using the Godot game engine.
Will Polytoria become fully open source, including the website?
No, the open-source release applies to the 2.0 client, creator and server software. Our website will remain closed source as it deals with user data and moderation. The 1.0 client will also remain closed source since we rely on paid third party plugins which we are not allowed to release.
Can I run my own Polytoria server?
Yes, you'll be able to run your own servers for development, experimenting or private use. Connecting to Polytoria's official servers will still require the official client as a means to make cheating/exploiting harder.
Will this affect performance or security?
If anything the opposite, open sourcing puts more eyes on the code which helps catch bugs and performance issues. Every PR will be carefully reviewed so no malicious code gets into the codebase.
Can I fork Polytoria or make my own version?
The MPL-2.0 license allows you to fork the project and create your own versions, as long as files covered by the license remain open.
Why not MIT?
The MIT license is extremely permissive, so much that companies can take the code, make improvements and release a closed-source project with it. We picked the MPL-2.0 license to protect the open-source nature of the project.
Can I contribute to Polytoria's development?
Yes, once the repository is public anyone will be able to open issues, submit pull requests and contribute improvements. We'll publish contribution guidelines closer to release.
Have more questions?
Feel free to join our Discord server (13+) and we will happily answer your questions!