Phaser World Issue 232

Author

Phaser Studio
April 17, 2026

In partnership with

Hey there, game dev! 🌍

Phaser 4 is out in the wild and developers are already building with it. The response from the community has been incredible, and the feedback we have received means the world to us. Thank you, genuinely 💜

This week we have everything you need to hit the ground running: migration guide, visual effects showcase, and a framework comparison that might surprise you. 🚀

Plus two indie games built with Phaser that are genuinely worth your time, and a free demo ready to play right now.

Let's get into it ☕️👇

This week:

➡️ Migrating from Phaser 3 to Phaser 4

Phaser 4 is out, and yes, migrating is worth it. Most games need less work than you think, and this guide shows you exactly where to start 🚀💯

We walk through every breaking change, from the new renderer to the updated filter system, so you can plan your migration before touching a single line of code 🎯

🎬 New Visual Effects, Filters & Noise

We put together a quick two-minute video showing Phaser 4 in action. Visual effects, filters and noise, all running live across a handful of examples so you can see what the new system actually looks like before you dig into the docs 🔥✨🫧

All the links to the examples are in the video description and comments. Worth a watch if you are deciding whether the upgrade is right for your project 💡

🔥 Fresh From the Web This Week

» Phaser vs Kaplay vs Excalibur: Which 2D Web Game Framework Wins in 2026?

JSLegendDev built the same Sonic-themed infinite runner in Phaser, Kaplay, and Excalibur to see how they actually compare. You might remember we featured that game in a previous issue 📧🔙

Performance, stability, ease of use, even how well AI tools handle each one. Watch the full comparison and judge for yourself 🎮⚡️

» GameFromScratch Reviews Phaser 4: "The Biggest Release Ever"

Mike at GameFromScratch has been covering Phaser since 2015. His latest video breaks down the new renderer, the unified filter system, and all the new game objects shipping with Phaser 4 🎞️

A great watch whether you are just getting started or catching up on what changed 👌

» Once Upon a Swagman: A Cozy Pixel Art Survival Game

Joshua Morony spent months building a pixel art survival game set along the Australian coastline, then stopped for three months, then made one decision that changed everything: stop adding features that are just passable and fix what actually matters 😎

The result is a slow, meditative game about fishing, cooking, and bushcraft with no combat and no rush, and a free demo already available 🎣🇦🇺

» Lumenia: A Minimal Game About Light and Black Holes

Billy Wilcosky had never made a game before. Lumenia is a minimal browser game built with Phaser where you play as light, collecting pixels before black holes pull them in 🌠 

Boss fights every five levels, a zen mode for when you just want to float around, and it runs in the browser on desktop and mobile 🧑‍🚀

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📩 20,000 Devs Want to See What You've Built

Games, tutorials, tools, videos. If you made it with Phaser, we want to feature it. Completely free, always. Drop us a line and let's get it in front of them 👇

Happy coding, and see you next week! 👋

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