License HTML5 Games or Buy the Source Code?
A fair comparison for companies and agencies: what you receive, who hosts, who can edit, who owns what, and when licensing is the smarter pick.
If you want to license HTML5 games, you will find two different ways to pay for the same thing. One is buying the source code of a game at a fixed price: you receive the files, you host them, you keep them. The other is licensing a game per title or per subscription from a B2B provider, which usually means the provider keeps the code and you get the right to run the game for an agreed purpose.
Short answer: buy the code when you have someone who can host and edit it and you want to keep the game for years. License when the campaign is short, nobody on your side touches code and you would rather have a provider handle the hosting. This guide compares the two honestly. We are a studio that sells source code, so we say so up front. Everything we say about MarketJS comes from its own Buyer FAQ and About pages, read on 24 October 2026. This is not legal advice: read the actual licence before you pay anyone, us included.
Two models in plain words
Buying the source code means a one-time payment for the files of a finished game. In the Polar Games Marketplace you get a perpetual, non-exclusive licence for one end product, yours or one client's, plus readable code you can change. The words licence and buy overlap here: you do hold a licence, but it comes with the files in your hands.
Licensing, in the B2B sense, usually means the provider keeps ownership of the game and sells you the right to use it. We use MarketJS as the example because it describes this model on its public pages. According to its Buyer FAQ (marketjs.com/buyer-faq), there is a fixed-fee licence, where it delivers the compiled game files, and a subscription licence, where it delivers game links, one link per game. It owns the IP rights, and the buyer receives non-exclusive distribution rights to the game.
Side by side: six things that decide it
What you receive
- Buying code from us: a ready-to-host game folder, the readable source, a manual and a playable demo per edition. A certificate with a licence number comes with each licence.
- Licensing from MarketJS: compiled game files on a fixed-fee licence, or game links on a subscription. Its Buyer FAQ says it does not deliver the raw source code.
Who hosts
- Buying code from us: you do. The folder runs on any static web host, with no PHP or database. Hosting is not part of our support, and we can quote it as a separate service.
- Licensing from MarketJS: on a subscription, MarketJS hosts the games and gives you the links. On a fixed-fee licence the files go on your server.
Who can edit
- Buying code from us: you can change code, art and audio inside your end product, including putting your brand where ours was.
- Licensing from MarketJS: its Buyer FAQ says you may not modify the game. Changes go through its Reskin or Custom Development services, for an additional fee quoted once the project is defined.
Who owns what
- Buying code from us: the licence is perpetual and non-exclusive, so other buyers can license the same game. You do not own the template. You may not resell or share the template, its code or its assets on their own. One licence covers one end product: yours, or one client's.
- Licensing from MarketJS: it owns the IP and you hold non-exclusive distribution rights. The FAQ says each standard licence works on one domain, and an agency can buy for a client, with the client named in the licence.
Cost over time
- Buying code from us: one payment. List prices run from $5 to $59 per edition, and the studio direct price in our store is 10% below list. Bundles of 2, 3, 4 and 5 or more items get 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% off. Support is 6 months, or 12 with an extension priced at 30% of list. Your own hosting is the running cost.
- Licensing from MarketJS: its Buyer FAQ does not list prices. It says there are fixed-fee and subscription options, discounts above 10 games and extra fees for reskins. Ask for a quote and compare the total over the months you will actually run the game.
Support and small print
- Buying code from us: support covers questions about installing and using the files and fixing reproducible defects. Refunds follow our terms: only before you download, or if the game has a defect we cannot fix.
- Licensing from MarketJS: we did not find support, refund or licence-duration terms on the Buyer FAQ page. Ask before you sign.
Read our licence, support and refund terms
When licensing is the better choice
We sell code, and we still think licensing wins in some cases. Be honest about which one you are in.
- A short campaign. If a game runs for a promotion of a few weeks, owning files for years adds nothing.
- No technical person on your side. A subscription where the provider hosts and sends you a link means nobody has to deploy anything.
- You want to test many games before committing. Licensing one title at a time lets you try several.
When buying the source code is the better choice
- You want to keep the game. The licence does not expire when support ends, and your files stay in your library while the marketplace operates.
- You need to change it yourself. Your brand, colours, texts, translations and your own ad code are expected edits, and the code comes with a manual that shows where things live.
- You work for clients. One licence per client, with the files in your hands, fits agency work; the licence covers one client, so buy one per client.
- You want a paper trail. Each licence has a certificate that anyone can check at marketplace/verify with the licence number and the authenticity code, and we issue a Brazilian invoice (nota fiscal) on request, or an invoice for buyers abroad.
See how licence verification works
What about custom games for a brand?
Both models have a third door. MarketJS says on its About page that it also builds custom HTML5 games for brands and reskins games from its catalogue. We accept custom projects too, and we can adapt a template to your brand, platform or SDK as a quoted service. We publish no price or lead time for custom work: tell us what you need and ask for a quote.
Browse the templates, or ask the studio for a quote
Keep reading
Read: HTML5 game template licence explained
Read: what HTML5 game source code means
Read: where to buy HTML5 games
FAQ
Can I license HTML5 games instead of buying the code?
Yes. B2B providers such as MarketJS sell licences per game or by subscription, and according to its Buyer FAQ the provider keeps the IP and, in the subscription case, hosts the game. Buying the code from a studio such as ours gives you the files and a licence for one end product. Pick by how long you need the game and who will host and edit it.
Can an agency use one licence for several clients?
Not with ours: one licence covers one client or end product, so an agency buys one per client. MarketJS says on its Buyer FAQ that an agency can buy for a client and the client is named in the licence.
Can I put my brand on the game and get an invoice?
Yes. You may put your own brand in place of the Polar Games brand. We issue a Brazilian invoice (nota fiscal) if you ask, and an invoice for buyers abroad. Write to willian@polargames.com.br.
White Label HTML5 Games: What You Get and What to Ask