Photon Realtime

Photon Realtime is a cloud-hosted networking service for developers building cross-platform real-time multiplayer games. Its matchmaking API can pair players randomly, search by parameters or let them choose open rooms. The service supports synchronous and asynchronous turn-based play, including rejoining rooms after disconnection. HTTP webhooks can persist player and room data, properties and event caches to Photon Cloud or a developer’s own storage. Client-to-server transport options include Reliable UDP, TCP, HTTP and WebSockets. Authentication can use providers such as Epic EOS, Facebook, Oculus, Steam and VIVEPORT, as well as custom authentication. Photon Cloud hosts applications across global regions; the product describes scaling from a few users to tens of thousands of concurrent users. Free development use covers 20 concurrent users and 60.0 GB of monthly traffic. A 100 CCU plan is billed for 12 months at $95. Enterprise Cloud lists dedicated servers and additional support and security features, with no price listed.

Photon Realtime offers matchmaking, transport, authentication and persistence options for multiplayer development, with a free development tier and paid capacity plans. Review the intended-use and SDK platform constraints when selecting an implementation path.

Photon Realtime is aimed at multiplayer game developers, from indie developers to AAA studios, who need cloud-hosted networking across platforms. Its development tier may suit projects using up to 20 concurrent users.

Photon Realtime is a hosted client-server networking service for developers building cross-platform multiplayer games. It suits teams that want managed matchmaking and room-based sessions instead of hosting the networking layer themselves. Its range of play and transport options is useful, but concurrency caps and production minimums make plan selection part of the architecture decision.

Overview

Realtime supports random matchmaking, parameter-based searches, and player selection from open rooms. It handles synchronous and asynchronous turn-based gameplay, with room rejoin after a disconnection. That combination fits games built around sessions and recoverable connections; it is less compelling if a team does not need room-based matchmaking or prefers to operate its own networking service.

Photon Cloud hosts applications across global regions and is described as scaling from a few users to tens of thousands of concurrent users. HTTP webhooks can persist player and room data, properties, and event cache to Photon Cloud or a developer’s own storage, giving teams a choice in where retained state lives. Client-to-server transport options include Reliable UDP, TCP, HTTP, and WebSockets.

Key features

• Matchmaking and rooms: Random matching, parameter searches, and open-room selection give developers several ways to form sessions.
• Session flexibility: Synchronous and asynchronous turn-based play, plus room rejoin after disconnection, support games where a player may need to resume a session.
• Persistence hooks: Webhooks can retain player data, room data, properties, and event cache in Photon Cloud or developer-controlled storage.
• Authentication: External providers include Epic EOS, Facebook, Oculus, Steam, and VIVEPORT, alongside custom authentication.
• Security and enterprise controls: Photon Engine states it is ISO 27001:2022 certified and aligned with GDPR and CCPA, and that Photon Cloud does not store personally identifiable information. Enterprise Cloud adds dedicated servers, service-level guarantees, priority operations support, server-authoritative plug-ins, and multi-layered DDoS protection.
• Support: All plans include documentation, samples, tutorials, videos, and assistance with account and billing issues; paid support options are described for higher tiers.

Pricing

The free Development Only — 20 CCU plan costs nothing and allows 20 concurrent users with 60.0 GB traffic/month. It is limited to development and has no CCU burst, so it is useful for building and evaluating a project, not for a production launch.

The 100 CCU plan costs $95, paid once, billed for 12 months. It includes 100 concurrent users and 0.3 TB traffic/month, but is games only and has no CCU burst. The 500 CCU plan costs $95 a month, billed per month, and raises capacity to 500 concurrent users and 1.5 TB traffic/month with CCU burst included. For teams expecting more variable demand, the burst allowance is a practical advantage over the smaller plan.

The 1000 CCU plan costs $185 a month, billed per month, for 1,000 concurrent users and 3.0 TB traffic/month with CCU burst. The 2000 CCU plan costs $370 a month, billed per month, for 2,000 concurrent users and 6.0 TB traffic/month, also with burst. Both are games only. The stated paid-from price is therefore not a complete guide to every entry plan’s billing term: the 100 CCU price is billed for 12 months, while the 500 CCU tier is monthly.

Premium Cloud costs $0.29 a month billed per CCU, with invoices based on monthly usage, but requires a $580 minimum fee per month and a 2,000 CCU minimum. It includes 6.0 TB traffic, usage-based CCU auto-scaling, and default DDoS protection. That structure is aimed at larger workloads that can justify the minimum, not small launches. Enterprise Cloud uses custom pricing and is the tier for teams that need dedicated servers, an SLA, priority operations support, server-authoritative plug-ins, or multi-layered DDoS protection.

Platforms

Supported platforms include Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One/Series, and Nintendo Switch. SDK choice matters: the Realtime .NET SDK is only tested for Windows applications, while the Unity SDK lists Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, consoles, and XR devices. Documented Realtime SDK variants include Unity and .NET, and Photon’s SDK downloads also include JavaScript and native platform packages.

Who it's for

Realtime is aimed at multiplayer developers from indie teams to AAA studios. The free tier suits development under a 20-user cap; the 100 CCU plan can serve a small game with stable, bounded concurrency, while the burst-enabled monthly tiers better fit projects with higher or less predictable peaks. Teams seeking hosted scaling and multiple matchmaking paths have a clear use for it. Teams that need a low-cost production tier without capacity limits, or that want to self-host their networking stack, should weigh alternatives carefully.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Multiple matchmaking paths and room rejoin support session-based games that need flexible player entry and recovery.
• Pro: Webhook persistence can target Photon Cloud or a developer’s own storage, rather than forcing one storage destination.
• Pro: The Unity SDK spans desktop, mobile, consoles, and XR, while transport and authentication choices cover varied implementation needs.
• Con: The free plan is development-only, capped at 20 concurrent users, and has no burst capacity.
• Con: The 100 CCU tier has no burst and is billed for 12 months; larger tiers cost more monthly, and Premium Cloud carries a $580 monthly minimum.
• Con: The .NET SDK’s tested-platform scope is limited to Windows applications, so teams targeting other platforms need to account for SDK selection.

Alternatives

Compare Game Networking Middleware and Game Matchmaking Software if you want to survey the broader categories. Choose Photon Fusion for its free 100 CCU plan with one app per customer, approximately 40k MAU, and 0.3 TB monthly traffic. Photon Quantum offers a 20-user development-only free plan with 60.0 GB monthly traffic, or a free 100 CCU plan.

Colyseus is worth considering if self-hosting an open-source solution is preferable: its Open Source plan is free, self-hosted on your servers, and has no restrictions. FishNet is a free Unity networking solution with no CCU caps or CCU paywalls. GameNetworkingSockets is a free BSD-3-Clause open-source library, with Steam Datagram Relay access restricted. Mirror Networking is free and open source under MIT, with no paywalls or CCU costs. Netcode for GameObjects is a free Unity package that requires a valid Unity account and license and Unity Editor 2021.3 or later. Netick has a free server-authoritative state-sync networking tier for Unity; Interest Management and Lag Compensation are Pro features.

Verdict

Photon Realtime is a strong fit for game teams that want hosted matchmaking, room-based play, and persistence options across platforms without running the networking service themselves. Its principal advantage is the breadth of session, transport, and authentication choices; its principal drawback is that production capacity can bring rigid caps, annual billing, or substantial monthly minimums. Choose it when those managed services match the game’s needs and projected concurrency; look elsewhere if self-hosting or avoiding CCU-based cost constraints matters more.