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12 Best Video Editing Software for Gaming in 2024

Gaming videos and live streaming are the trends of 2023. In just 2 years since 2020, the number of gameplay video viewers increased by 25% achieving 1.2 billion (Statista). Much of that growth is fueled by the pandemic when people increased their online content consumption during lockdowns.

Still, the demand for gaming content will continue to grow, opening new opportunities for video app developers.

If you want to hop on the bandwagon with your Twitch- or YouTube-like streaming app that lets users create gaming clips from broadcast content, this post is for you. We shortlisted the 12 best video editing software for gaming and highlighted their key features.

Get insights into today's gamers' challenges and what competitors have to offer. Learn the gamers' drivers on choosing the best video editing software for gameplay and how to cut down your app development costs.

Best Software For Gaming Video Editing: An Insider View

Two years ago, we set ourselves on a mission to make the best Video Editor SDK for mobile video apps. When working on it, we naturally aimed to create a powerful software kit that helps developers build video sharing apps with users in mind. But how do users create their videos? What do they want?

We browsed hundreds of reviews on Capterra and GetApp on the best video editing software to find it out. It appears that professionals go for universal video software with extensive feature sets. They stick to one app as they know it inside out. However, non-professionals are a different matter. Their common story is that many had to try several options before nailing down their ideal video editing tool.

From the developer's perspective, novice and non-professional creators are your most interesting target audience as they are easier to win. Their common drivers in choosing the best video editing software are:

  • Quick video production and easy UI
  • Availability of effects and stock content so they can make engaging videos
  • Getting a good value for money as users pay only for the features they need.

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The segment of video editing software for gaming is no different. More and more gamers are looking to launch their channels, drive followers, and turn their hobby into a source of revenue. Gaming clips and highlights help video game content creators drive millions of views on YouTube- and TikTok-like platforms to attract tons of subscribers who enjoy a streamer’s gameplay.

So, today's gamers want the same as most users. The ability to produce cool gameplay videos and highlight clips fast, easily, and at a large scale for the platform of their choice - YouTube or social networks like Instagram or Facebook. It all translates through app features.

12 Best Video Editing Software for Gaming

Below is a list of the top players in the market of video editing software for gaming. It includes heavyweights used by millions because the brand is on everyone's lips. Such kits target filmmakers and pro designers, and their features go far beyond what most gamers need.

More narrowly focused video apps, on the contrary, are gaining popularity among gamers. They tailor their offerings to non-pro-specific needs and prioritize ease of use over feature abundance.

1. InVideo

InVideo is among the easiest and best online video editors for gaming. You can upload videos in HD and tweak them all around. Add filters, animations, video effects, overlay captions, pictures, and sound - all intuitively and quickly. Even a complete newbie who hasn't made a single recording before can make excellent gaming video content in minutes.

Pros:

  • no watermark
  • 5000+ templates, iStock media, music library, filters, transitions
  • ideal for novices.

InVideo | Best Video Editing Software for GamingInVideo | Best Video Editing Software for Gaming

Pricing: Free, $30/mo Business, $60/mo Unlimited

2. iMovie

Apple knows a thing or two about designing intuitive and quality apps. Whether you are a newbie or already have some experience creating video gaming content, iMovie will catch your fancy. It's among the best video editing software for gaming on iOS. The cross-device support brings all its cool features to mobile and tables, so iPhone and iPad gamers can edit videos on the fly.

Pros:

  • Advanced features like green-screen, voice-overs
  • Videos in 4k resolution
  • Ideal for Mac gamer novices.

iMovie | Best Video Editing Software for GamingiMovie | Best Video Editing Software for Gaming

Pricing: Free

3. OpenShot

OpenShot is a professional video toolkit that lets you design engaging gaming videos with just a couple of mouse clicks. The feature choice is rather extensive including all the must-haves like video trimming, effects, text and sound add-on, and video export in different formats. As an advantage, OpenShot is completely free and supports multiple platforms including Windows, macOS, Linux, and Chrome OS.

Pros:

  • Simple layout
  • Multi-platform support
  • 100% free.

OpenShot | Gaming Video Editing SoftwareOpenShot | Gaming Video Editing Software

Pricing: Free

4. Lightworks

Lightworks video software provides a wide range of tools to edit your gameplay sessions. Gamers favour it for powerful features that come free in the basic version. If you’re fine with the limited exporting option (720p and H.264/MP4), LightWork Basic will be your best video editing software for gaming clips.

The Pro version breaks the limits by offering advanced features like rich media formats, a complete pack of trimming and merging options, proxy-editing, and background changing to name a few.

Pros:

  • Lots of flexibility
  • Easy to understand for new users
  • Convenient video splitting, merging, and trimming.

 

Pricing: Free, $9.99 / mo Create, $23.99 / mo Pro

5. Adobe Premiere Pro

Adobe Premiere Pro doesn't need an introduction among professional video makers. It's a universal and powerful tool that is often referred to as an industry standard among the best video software, including gaming. Still, this tool is the best fit for pro gamers due to its feature abundance and somewhat overcluttered UI.

Pros:

  • Tons of features
  • Fast rendering
  • Works on all platforms
  • Shortcuts for quick video editing.

adobe-premiere-pro-Best-Sports-Highlight-Video-Editing-SoftwareAdobe Premiere Pro | Video Editing Software for Gaming Clips

Pricing: $20.99/mo for individuals, $35.99/mo per license for teams.

6. Blender

Blender video editor is a top choice for many game artists and video creators. Along with standard video processing options like video slicing, transitions, and effects, it can impress you with 3D features like motion tracking, triggering and modelling. You can animate your moving game character and create truly exciting game moments.

Pros:

  • Live preview
  • Powerful audio features: mixing, syncing, scrubbing and waveform visualization
  • Up to 32 slots for adding video elements
  • Built-in video effects.

Blender | Best Video Editing Software for Gaming ClipsBlender | Best Video Editing Software for Gaming Clips

Pricing: Free

7. DaVinci Resolve

DaVinci Resolve capabilities are often compared to Adobe ones. In terms of pricing, Davinci Studio is more affordable than Adobe Pro and well-worth its $357 one-time payment. But even the free version makes it one of the best software for gaming video editing. Speed modification, animations, transition effects, video, and image editing, video split and merge - the list can go on.

Like Adobe, DaVinci targets professionals, so novice game video creators will need some time to get around. Be ready to operate on your own and search for video making tips and tricks. Like with many free services, customer support is missing.

Pros:

  • full-scale video editing
  • no ads
  • prebuilt channel-specific export templates, i.e. export for Vimeo, export for Instagram.

davinci-resolve-Best-Sports-Highlight-Video-Editing-SoftwareDaVinci | Gaming Clips Video Editing Software

Pricing: Free, $357 one-time for DaVinci Resolve Studio

8. Movavi Video Editor Plus

If you look for a sleek interface, ease of use and can perfectly do without feature frills, Movavi Video Editor Plus may be your best video editing software for gaming. It's a desktop toolkit that targets clip making, presentational video and other short, entertainment content. You can use filters, templates, video effects, and other built-in functionalities to add gloss to your game recordings.

Getting started with Movavi takes an hour or so, and creating your first basic game video - less than 20 minutes. These perks come at a cost - a minimum of $49.95 and a one-year commitment. The free trial version lasts only 7 days, adds a watermark, and cuts half of your audio if you save the project as an audio file. Not very democratic terms compared to others.

Pros:

  • Easy for newbies
  • Fast video creation
  • Extensive effect collection.

movaviMovavi | Best Gaming Video Editing Software

Pricing: Lifetime, $49.95 basic, $69.95 - pro, $89.95 - full suite.

9. Filmora

Another established and universal video editor, Filmora, does a perfect job at helping gamers share their content with the world. What makes it stand out? Filmora can handle high-resolution footage, supports multiple export formats, and provides robust features.

You may not ignore its flexible pricing plans and free feature-packed toolkit. Together, these pros can safely let Filmora compete for the title of the best video editing software for gaming.

Pros:

  • Excellent balance of features and simplicity
  • Quick video tutorials
  • Rich effect collection
  • Copyright-free soundtracks.

filmora-Best-Sports-Highlight-Video-Editing-Software

Price: $7.99/mo for individuals, $155.88/yr for businesses

10. HitFilm Express

HitFilm Express is an on-premise video editing solution designed for the novice as well as professional video content creators such as directors, video editors, gamers, YouTubers. The free express version offers a lot of useful features and is quick to learn. short films. The masking tools are incredible and the ease of drag and drop effects is amazing.

Pros:

  • Numerous tutorials on feature usage
  • No watermarks.

hitfilmHitFilm | Best Video Editing Software Gaming

Pricing: Free with paid add-ons

11. VideoPad Master's Edition

VideoPad is a feature-rich video editing software for Windows which makes it easy to work with videos of different formats. You can create pro gaming video clips, enhance them with filters, and add images and text. The audio possibilities are powerful, letting you mix audio tracks and create voiceovers. With an easy drag-and-drop timeline, the process is smooth and enjoyable.

Pros:

  • 50+ effects and transitions
  • adjust video speed
  • Easy audio files import and voice recording
  • Multiple formats support and instant share options (YouTube and Facebook).

VideoPadVideoPad | 

Pricing: $69.951 for Master's Edition, $34.991 for Home Edition

12. Final Cut Pro

If you're looking for more sophisticated video editing software for gaming that runs on Mac, Final Cut Pro deserves your attention. Compared to iMovie, its feature set is far more diverse, offering some unique effects like 'image pan and zoom' pre-set aka Ken Burns effect and instant effect preview with the Skim tool. Its powerful motion graphics features, 4K HDR support, and advanced color correction make it one of the best software for gaming video editing on Mac.

Pros:

  • Feature-rich toolset for pros
  • Great transitions
  • Fast video rendering
  • Simple, intuitive user interface
  • Autosave.

final-cutFinal Cut Pro | Gaming Video Software

Pricing: one-time payment of $299.99.

10 Core Features of the Best Software for Gaming Video Editing

If you plan to build the best video editor for gaming, you may find it hard to shortlist its must-have features. No worries, we’ve done it for you. Here are key features the best video editing software gaming should include.

Split, Trim, Merge

Trim unneeded parts of your gaming video, merge videos or split your gameplay into multiple pieces to arrange them the way you want.

Crop, Rotate, Resize

Change the aspect ratio of your videos to fit into different video platform formats. Resize and crop your videos to cut out all the noize and present a polished gameplay clip.

Effects and Filters

Special effects and filters will make your gaming video compelling and catchy. It’s the best way to show your creative game vision and produce unique, memorable content.

Voice and Sound

Proper sound tweaking sets the mood for your video gameplay. No video is complete without the background sound, music overlays and your voice comments.

Text, GIF, Image Overlays

Enhance your raw gaming footage with overlays. Add text captions, funny GIfs and images to make your video content appealing to your audience.

PIP Effect

PIP Effect lets you place one video into another. This feature is super popular among gamers as you can stream your gameplay and show your reaction - all in one video clip.

Video Formats & Resolution

Different video formats and HD video support give more freedom to gamers. You can export and publish gaming videos on any platform you want.

Video Recording

In most cases, gamers have to record their gameplay using one tool and edit it with another. The best video editing software for gameplay editing is the one that lets you record and process clips in one place. Saves you time and effort.

Change Video Speed

Change the video speed to speed up monotonous parts e.g. resource mining in Minecraft. Or emphasize an epic game moment with slow-mo.

Intuitive Video Timeline

Last but not least comes an intuitive video editing timeline. It’s where most of the magic takes place. Ideally, each element added to the video, be it a soundtrack, filter, or text, must be displayed in front of the user. You can drag and drop elements and control the duration of each of them.

The features above are the minimal kit to address today’s gamers' demand for video software. But this list is far from complete if you aim for the best video editing software for gaming clips.

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How Video Editor SDK/API Help Save Up to 50% Development Costs

Creating the best video editing software for gaming is rightfully associated with high project costs.

Along with extensive functionality, you need to fill your app with content, i.e. video filters and effects. Furthermore, you need to plan your app platform support, optimize and test its performance on a wide range of devices. This will require setting up a development team or outsourcing to a third-party vendor and may take months if not years of work.

To cut your project budget, you may use a premade video editing SDK like Banuba. It includes ready-coded video editing features and a pack of cool filters and AR effects. Banuba SDK lets you compete with the best video editing software for gaming, accelerate your app time-to-market and save up to 50% of dev costs.

Case in point. Weat launched its video-based social app with a 50% budget saving on development costs.

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Why Banuba's SDK as the Best Video Editing Software for Gaming

Banuba Video Editing SDK lets you create the best video editing software for gaming that will catch the fancy of your users. Our SDK lets you power your video app with:

  • Video effects. You get them ready-made in your app, so users can stylize their videos with a tap.
  • Speed change. Let users slow down and speed up the gameplay.
  • AR masks. Make it a kipper feature of your app and stand out among competitors. Users can create engaging game streams wearing Snapchat-like filters or turn themselves into AR avatars.
  • Background removal and replacement. Gamers can put themselves in the center of the game. No physical green screen is needed. Our AI technology automatically cuts out the human from the background letting users replace it with an image or video.
  • Camera recording with hands-free mode. Users can place their device as a static camera, record themselves playing and add to the gameplay in PIP mode. Speaking of which.
  • PIP videos. Users can overlay their own video onto the other e.g. show your gameplay and yourself playing.
  • Cross-platform support. Add these perks to your iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter, or Native Script app.
  • FullHD support.

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FAQ
  • Among the best software for gaming video editing for pro gamers, you can check DaVinci Resolve, Adobe Premiere Pro for Windows, Final Cut Pro for Mac or OpenShot for online video editing.

  • YouTuber gamers mostly use iMovie, InVideo, DaVinci and Adobe Premiere Pro due to their extensive effect collections and ability to export videos in high quality.

  • The best video editing software for gaming that comes 100% free includes OpenShot, iMovie, Blender and DaVinci Resolve. Lightshot, AVS Video Editor, Filmora, and Windows Movie Maker include powerful free plans too.

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