# Unity 3D: Overview

## What is Unity?

Unity is commonly considered a **game engine**. Which is a tool that helps people build games by providing resources that make up the building block of games.

* 2D / 3D scene rendering
* Physics simulation
* Animation
* Interaction management
* Integrated Development Environment

Other game engines: [Unreal](https://www.unrealengine.com/), [Godot](https://godotengine.org/), [O3DE](https://o3de.org), [CryENGINE](https://www.cryengine.com/), [Game Maker Studio](https://gamemaker.io/)

## What can you do with it?

Game engines can be used for more than just games. Any application that combines elements that game engines do well at:

* Real-time interaction
* Physics simulations
* 3D scenes and rendering
* Extended reality

## Licensing

Unity is free for students, hobbyist and small business under certain restrictions. For larger businesses there is both yearly fees and revenue sharing required.

## Next

{% content-ref url="/pages/UPSLB15oAIUzAd6FLvMs" %}
[Setting up Unity](/bai-creative-technology/guides/virtual-reality/unity-3d-overview/setting-up-unity.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://gitbook.brown.edu/bai-creative-technology/guides/virtual-reality/unity-3d-overview.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.