Built in the open. Yours to keep.
Ghost Arcade is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Full source on GitHub. Cross-platform binaries, no signup, no watermark, no expiry. Use it for paid gigs, installations, broadcasts — anything. Fork it, modify it, ship it.
Tools for live performance shouldn't hold you hostage.
Ghost Arcade is built by performers, for performers. We've all been there: a license server times out an hour before doors, a watermark renders on the projector during sound check, a machine activation gets eaten by a system reinstall.
None of that here. The full source is public. Build it yourself, modify it, put your name on it, ship it on a USB stick to a venue with no internet. The only ask: contribute fixes back when you can.
Three commands, no auth, no toolchain dance.
git clone https://github.com/riskcapital/ghost-arcade.git ghost-arcade
cd ghost-arcade
npm install
npm run desktopRequires Node.js ≥ 20. Builds on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
Reproducible binaries via npm run build:desktop (Windows) / npm run build:desktop:mac (macOS).
- ✔ Use it commercially. Paid gigs, installations, broadcasts, sub-contracted work — yes.
- ✔ Modify the source. Fork it, patch it, theme it, strip features, add features.
- ✔ Distribute modified versions. Ship your fork to clients, students, festivals.
- ⚠ Network-service trigger. If you run a modified version as a network service (e.g. a hosted web port), users have the right to your modified source. Local desktop use doesn't trigger this.
- ⚠ Derivative works are AGPL too. Forks must stay AGPL-3.0. You can't close-source a Ghost Arcade fork.
- 📺 Output is yours. Videos, livestreams, recordings, projection content created with Ghost Arcade are not derivative works. They're yours, outright, no license attached.
Pull requests welcome.
git commit -s (DCO). Run npm run check before you submit.Mac · Windows · Linux • AGPL-3.0 • No signup