Achtung, die Kurve!: 6 Open Source Clones Compared
Achtung, die Kurve! Classic and achtungkurve.com are both fairly literal browser recreations of the original MS-DOS game — the former even bundles the original DOS executable for reference, playable via DOSBox. Several of the other clones extend the formula rather than just recreating it: Curvytron reframes the game explicitly as a Tron-style contest of curved light-trails with online and local multiplayer; Quick Curver, a modern Qt6/C++ rewrite, adds bots and collectible items; and Zatacka X adds special weapons, AI-controlled opponents, and updated graphics on top of the original ruleset, with a Nintendo Switch port besides its Linux build. Netacka is a smaller, from-scratch multiplayer clone built on the older Allegro library, whose own readme describes it as written in high school with 'horrible code.'
Comparison table
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Web
- Play in browser
- YesPlay in Browser
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Active
- Last updated
- 2mo ago
- Stars
- 315
- Contributors
- 16
- License
- MIT
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoThis is a web-based multiplayer game; no original assets required.
- Multiplayer
- Online, Local multiplayer
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Web
- Play in browser
- YesPlay in Browser
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Sporadic
- Last updated
- 6mo ago
- Stars
- 70
- Contributors
- 3
- License
- GPL-3.0
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoHTML5 implementation; can be downloaded and played offline without original assets.
- Multiplayer
- —
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Linux, Switch
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Halted
- Last updated
- 2y ago
- Stars
- 69
- Contributors
- 6
- License
- GPL-3.0
- Engine
- SDL2
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoThe game includes its own original graphics and assets.
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Windows, Linux
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Halted
- Last updated
- 2y ago
- Stars
- 46
- Contributors
- 1
- License
- GPL-3.0
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoStandalone game with original assets; no original game required.
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer, Online
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Web
- Play in browser
- YesPlay in Browser
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Active
- Last updated
- 2mo ago
- Stars
- 45
- Contributors
- 3
- License
- AGPL-3.0
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoBrowser-based implementation; no original game assets required.
- Multiplayer
- —
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Windows, Linux, OSX, Android
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- Android
Project health
- Development status
- Halted
- Last updated
- 8y ago
- Stars
- 10
- Contributors
- 1
- License
- —
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- NoA multiplayer Zatacka clone built from scratch; no original assets required.
- Multiplayer
- Multiplayer
| Title | Curvytron | achtungkurve.com | Zatacka X | Quick Curver | Achtung, die Kurve! Classic | Netacka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Playable | Playable | Playable | Playable | Playable | Playable |
| Platforms | Web | Web | Linux, Switch | Windows, Linux | Web | Windows, Linux, OSX, Android |
| Play in browser | YesPlay in Browser | YesPlay in Browser | No | No | YesPlay in Browser | No |
| Mobile | No | No | No | No | No | Android |
| Project health | ||||||
| Development status | Active | Sporadic | Halted | Halted | Active | Halted |
| Last updated | 2mo ago | 6mo ago | 2y ago | 2y ago | 2mo ago | 8y ago |
| Stars | 315 | 70 | 69 | 46 | 45 | 10 |
| Contributors | 16 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 | — |
| Engine | — | — | SDL2 | — | — | — |
| Compatibility | ||||||
| Requires original assets | NoThis is a web-based multiplayer game; no original assets required. | NoHTML5 implementation; can be downloaded and played offline without original assets. | NoThe game includes its own original graphics and assets. | NoStandalone game with original assets; no original game required. | NoBrowser-based implementation; no original game assets required. | NoA multiplayer Zatacka clone built from scratch; no original assets required. |
| Multiplayer | Online, Local multiplayer | — | Local Multiplayer | Local Multiplayer, Online | — | Multiplayer |
| Preview | | | | | |
Frequently asked questions
Are the Achtung, die Kurve! clones on this page open source?
Yes — every clone catalogued here is an open-source project. Availability, license, and development-status details for each one are listed in the comparison table above.
What license do these Achtung, die Kurve! clones use?
Curvytron (MIT); achtungkurve.com, Zatacka X, and Quick Curver (GPL-3.0); Achtung, die Kurve! Classic (AGPL-3.0).
Do I need to own the original Achtung, die Kurve! to play these clones?
Curvytron, achtungkurve.com, Zatacka X, Quick Curver, and 2 more run standalone, no original files needed.
Can I play any of these Achtung, die Kurve! clones directly in a browser?
Yes — Curvytron, achtungkurve.com, and Achtung, die Kurve! Classic have a browser-playable build linked in the comparison table above, no install required.
Which Achtung, die Kurve! clone is the most actively maintained?
Curvytron and Achtung, die Kurve! Classic are currently under active development, based on recent commit activity. See the "Development status" row above for every clone's current status.
See the full write-up for each clone, or go back to Achtung, die Kurve!.