Which engine should I use? — a starting point rather than a debate

This gets asked often, so here is a practical answer instead of an argument.

Pick by what you are making, not by what is popular:

• 2D, want to ship quickly → Godot. Small editor, fast iteration, a real 2D renderer rather than 3D with the camera locked.
• Mobile → Unity. The tooling, ad and analytics integrations are years ahead of the alternatives.
• Realistic 3D, small team → Unreal. Lumen and Nanite give you a visual ceiling nothing else reaches out of the box.
• Want a studio job → Unity or Unreal, because that is what job listings ask for.
• Learning → Godot. Finishing something small teaches more than comparing engines does.

The advice nobody wants to hear: engine choice matters far less than finishing. Three tiny finished games in one engine beats three prototypes across three engines.