Compare / Unity Gaming Services
Unity Gaming Services vs Lonca
Unity Gaming Services is Unity's set of separate game services: authentication, Cloud Save, leaderboards, Economy, Remote Config, Friends, multiplayer and more, each billed on its own meter. Lonca is one managed backend where events, teams, inbox and promo codes are already connected and your product team configures live ops without Cloud Code.
Book a 20-minute early access callPick Unity Gaming Services when
Your game is built in Unity, you want first-party services inside the Editor, and you have engineers to write Cloud Code for event logic.
Pick Lonca when
You want tournaments, team events, an inbox and promo codes ready on day one, launched by your product team, on Unity, Godot or web.
At a glance
How Unity Gaming Services and Lonca differ before you look at a single feature.
Unity Gaming Services
Lonca
What it is
Unity Gaming Services
Unity's modular live-ops and multiplayer services, mainly for games made with Unity.
Lonca
An open-source game backend for casual and mobile games, with live ops built in.
How live ops are built
Unity Gaming Services
Remote Config, Game Overrides, Economy catalogs and push campaigns in the dashboard. Events with rules and rewards are written in Cloud Code.
Lonca
Configured in the console from 18 event templates, with a flow builder, versions, and dev and staging environments to test in. No server code.
Engine SDKs
Unity Gaming Services
Unity SDK first. REST APIs for other engines; an Unreal package for a few services.
Lonca
Unity, Godot and web, generated from one API description.
Custom server logic
Unity Gaming Services
Cloud Code in JavaScript or C#, run by Triggers and a Scheduler.
Lonca
Rarely needed. Flows cover the logic between events; webhooks reach your own server when you need more.
Hosting
Unity Gaming Services
Managed by Unity. No self-hosting.
Lonca
Lonca Cloud, run for you on shared infrastructure with each game's data, limits and keys kept apart. Or self-host on your own infrastructure.
Source code
Unity Gaming Services
Proprietary.
Lonca
Open-source core. Lonca Cloud is the managed edition.
Pricing
Unity Gaming Services
Per service: several are free, others bill on their own usage meters with free allowances.
Lonca
Self-hosting has no license fee. Lonca Cloud targets $0.05 per daily active player per month; early access pricing is agreed with each studio.
Feature by feature
What each one gives a casual or mobile game out of the box. The Lonca column is what early access is designed to include; Lonca is not generally available yet.
Feature
Unity Gaming Services
Lonca
Players
Accounts and sign-in
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Anonymous, Apple, Google, Facebook, Steam, Game Center, Play Games, consoles and more
Lonca
Built in
Guest, Google, Apple, Facebook and username. Steam, Game Center and Play Games planned.
Cloud save
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Cloud Save
Lonca
Built in
Versioned, with conflict detection, history and restore
Live ops
Live events without code
Unity Gaming Services
Write it in code
Config and overrides are no-code; events with rewards need Cloud Code
Lonca
Built in
18 templates, scheduled and tested in staging
Segments and targeting
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Analytics audiences used by Game Overrides
Lonca
Built in
Level, platform, app version, audience and country
A/B tests and remote config
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Remote Config and A/B testing
Lonca
Planned
A/B variants planned after early access
Push notifications
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Push campaigns, requires UGS Analytics
Lonca
Planned
Planned after early access
Competition
Leaderboards with seasons
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Scheduled resets with archives, tiers and buckets
Lonca
Built in
Seasons, archives, friends, team and country views
Tournaments and leagues
Unity Gaming Services
Partly
Assembled from leaderboard resets, buckets and Cloud Code
Lonca
Built in
Rooms, brackets and leagues with bots
Social
Teams and clans
Unity Gaming Services
Write it in code
No guild service; built from Cloud Code, Cloud Save and Economy
Lonca
Built in
Roles, help requests and team events
Chat
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Vivox voice and text
Lonca
Built in
Global, team, group and direct, with moderation
Friends
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Requests, blocking and presence
Lonca
Built in
Friend codes, suggestions and blocking
Inbox with rewards
Unity Gaming Services
Partly
A published pattern built from Cloud Code, Cloud Save and Remote Config
Lonca
Built in
Scheduled broadcasts, claimed exactly once
Economy
Currencies and inventory
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Currencies, inventory and purchases
Lonca
Built in
A ledger that never goes negative, lives and timers
Promo codes
Unity Gaming Services
Write it in code
No promo code service
Lonca
Built in
Shared, unique and personal codes
Purchase receipt validation
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Apple and Google receipts through Economy
Lonca
Planned
Planned after early access
Multiplayer
Real-time multiplayer
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
Lobby, Relay and Matchmaker
Lonca
Not yet
Not in early access; may come later. Lobbies hand off to your match server, and async PvP is built in.
Platform
Product analytics
Unity Gaming Services
Built in
UGS Analytics
Lonca
Planned
Planned after early access
Where Unity Gaming Services is stronger
Deep Unity integration
Services sit inside the Unity Editor and share one Unity sign-in and dashboard.
Mature leaderboards
Scheduled resets with archived versions, tiers and buckets.
Purchases and multiplayer
Apple and Google receipt redemption in Economy, plus Lobby, Relay and Matchmaker for real-time games.
Generous free tiers
Authentication, Remote Config and A/B testing cost nothing, and most other services start with a free allowance.
Where Lonca is different
Events without Cloud Code
Tournaments, races, team battles and passes are templates in Lonca, with rooms, bots and prize tables. In UGS an event with rules is code your engineers write.
Systems that are already connected
Teams, inbox and promo codes are part of Lonca, and every event reward lands in the same inbox and wallet. In UGS these are built from several services.
One meter
Lonca targets one price per daily player instead of a separate meter for each service.
Not tied to Unity
Lonca's SDKs for Unity, Godot and web are generated from the same API, so every engine gets the same features.
Moving from Unity Gaming Services
UGS studios usually have player accounts, Cloud Save data and Remote Config keys, plus Cloud Code for events. Accounts and saves move with the player; Cloud Code events map to Lonca templates.
- 1
Tell us what you run
Your events, leaderboards, economy and the server code behind them. A 20-minute call is enough to map it.
- 2
Map it to Lonca
We match each event to a template and each system to its Lonca module, and list honestly what would not move.
- 3
Try it in staging
Early access studios get dev and staging environments with test players and a time offset, so an event can be checked before any player sees it.
Questions studios ask
Is Lonca an alternative to Unity Gaming Services?
For the meta-game of a casual or mobile game, yes: accounts, cloud save, leaderboards, live events, teams, chat, inbox, wallet and promo codes. Lonca doesn't replace UGS multiplayer (Lobby, Relay, Matchmaker) today, and push notifications and product analytics are planned after early access.
Can I use Lonca with a Unity game?
Yes. Lonca has a Unity SDK with retries, token refresh and typed errors, and the same API is available to Godot and web games.
Do I need Cloud Code for events in Lonca?
No. Events are configured in the console from templates. Flows handle the logic between steps, and webhooks call your own server only when you want something custom.
Can I keep some Unity services and use Lonca for the rest?
Yes. Studios often keep a separate analytics, push or multiplayer provider. Tell us your setup on a call and we'll say which parts Lonca would take over.
Other comparisons
- Nakama vs LoncaOpen-source game server, with live ops in Satori and meta systems in Hiro.
- Metaplay vs LoncaSource-available C# backend and LiveOps Dashboard for Unity teams.
- PlayFab vs LoncaMicrosoft's broad managed backend, strongest for cross-platform and console games.
- Firebase vs LoncaGoogle's app platform: great analytics, push and config, game systems by hand.
- Supabase vs LoncaOpen-source Postgres platform: portable and flexible, game systems in SQL.
Based on the public documentation and pricing pages of Unity Gaming Services, as of October 2026. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.
- UGS pricing
- Authentication providers
- Leaderboard resets
- Game Overrides
- Cloud Code modules
- In-game mailbox solution
- Economy purchases
Unity and Unity Gaming Services are trademarks of Unity Technologies. Lonca is not affiliated with Unity Technologies.
Running on Unity Gaming Services today?
Tell us what you run and what you'd like your product team to launch on its own. We'll tell you honestly whether Lonca fits your game.
- SDKs for Unity, Godot and web games.
- Open source: Lonca Cloud or self-hosted.
- Built for casual and mobile games with live ops on day one.
- A founder answers every signup.