Unity introducing new fee attached to game installs (dev outrage follows).

[KnittedKnight]

https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/unity-to-start-charging-fee-pegged-to-game-installs
https://blog.unity.com/news/plan-pricing-and-packaging-updates

The cost of using Unity as a game engine is once again about to increase. Starting in January 2024, the company will begin charging what it's calling a "Unity Runtime Fee" that is based on the number of users installing games built on the widely-used engine.

The Runtime Fee will kick in after developers cross specific revenue and install thresholds that scale with different subscription plans. According to a breakdown sent to Game Developer by Unity, fees will be charged on a monthly basis. The amount charged per install will also vary depending on the license.

Developers of free-to-play games (which have a much higher install rate than premium titles) will have the option to offset this fee by adopting other Unity services, such as its LevelPlay advertising mediation service.

Unity stated in a blog that it is implementing the Runtime Fee in lieu of a revenue-sharing program. The company said it believes "an install-based fee allows creators to keep the ongoing financial gains from player engagement."

As for why Unity has chosen to introduce these new fees, Unity Create president Marc Whitten told Game Developer the company is seeking to "better balance the value exchange" between Unity and developers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As you may expect, this has turned into a mini-shitstorm quick, and got Unity trending on twitter, with devs sounding off:







Even random machiavellian memes apply:

You may be wondering which lizard in a suit would be the one to approve of such a monetization program and..... well, well, well, lo and behold...

EA's John Riccitiello of yesteryear is today's Unity CEO.

The magic touch.

Obviously it should be expected that these clowns will try to adjust based on the blowback while also keeping the essence of the increase. Ask high first if you will and sense the reaction. Typical.

For more reactions:
https://twitter.com/search?q=Unity&src=trend_click&vertical=trends

 

[Zzero]

Lol, I forgot about Johnny R. He'll go all the way down to McDonald's manager eventually.

 

[KnittedKnight]

Pretty sure he has enough money to retire comfortably and way above average as a multi-millionaire.

Not without leaving a turd like an old geriatric man.

 

[Gamernyc78]

Unity introducing new fee attached to game installs

Unity's new "Runtime Fee" will kick in after developers cross specific revenue and install thresholds.

www.gamedeveloper.com

The cost of using Unity as a game engine is once again about to increase. Starting in January 2024, the company will begin charging what it's calling a "Unity Runtime Fee" that is based on the number of users installing games built on the widely-used engine.

The Runtime Fee will kick in after developers cross specific revenue and install thresholds that scale with different subscription plans. For those on Unity Personal or Unity Plus licenses, the fee will kick in after a project crosses both $200,000 in revenue over 12 months and 200,000 total installs.

Developers operating on the Unity Pro or Unity Enterprise licenses will be granted a higher threshold before they begin owing fees. For those devs, the charge will kick in after a title earns $1 million over that same 12-month period and passes 1 million installs.

According to a breakdown sent to Game Developer by Unity, fees will be charged on a monthly basis. The amount charged per install will also vary depending on the license.

Unity Personal and Plus developers will pay a flat fee of 20 cents per install. Pro and Enterprise users will pay a smaller per-install fee that scales downward with the number of installations over the initial threshold. Pro user fees will begin at 15 cents per install and scale downward to as low as .02 cents per install, while Enterprise user fees will begin at 12.5 cents per install and scale down to as low as .01 cents per install.
Fees will also vary depending on what region a game is monetizing in. Unity has set an "emerging market monthly rate" for developers monetizing in countries like India. In those regions, Personal and Plus users would owe .02 cents per install, Pro users would owe .01 cents per install, and Enterprise users would owe .005 cents per install.

Developers of free-to-play games (which have a much higher install rate than premium titles) will have the option to offset this fee by adopting other Unity services, such as its LevelPlay advertising mediation service.

 

[anonpuffs]

This is going to make a lot of Unity games into gaas games. If I'm reading this right this is a monthly fee which is quite high.

 

[Snes nes]

I would expect people to move away from this engine if they continue increasing prices.

 

[daniel5043]

Apparently it's being done for previously released games do genshin and among us might get fucked

 

[JAHGamer]

This is just evil

 

[Zzero]

Alright, actual game devs in here, Unity says that they "have their own proprietary data model" to track downloads. But thats gotta be bullshit, right? Its either that the big store-fronts are doing it for them or there's spyware baked in, right?

 

[Satoru]

Alright, actual game devs in here, Unity says that they "have their own proprietary data model" to track downloads. But thats gotta be bullshit, right? Its either that the big store-fronts are doing it for them or there's spyware baked in, right?

Unity may have some sort of data analytics catcher embedded in the engine, I guess?

 

[historia]

Unity may have some sort of data analytics catcher embedded in the engine, I guess?

Telemetry yes. You can blocked it in the firewall in Linux and Win if you can.

Also I don't devs not gonna abandon Unity.

I taught sone entry game devs classes back in collages, all of class materials covers Unity, because it is pretty easy to use and the excessive amount of assets pre-made with it makes it easily for game development. Never in game development myself so not sure what changes compared to other engines.

 

[Dabaus]

So this does effect some game pass games:

 

[JAHGamer]

So this does effect some game pass games:

If they don't walk back on it....at least there is a silver lining

 

[Satoru]

So this does effect some game pass games:

Seems like Unity will have more issues than Devs leaving... does anybody think MS, Sony, Apple, etc, will pay these fees? There's zero chance.

 

[Old Gamer]

Use this instead

 

[arvfab]

Use this instead

As a software developer with 0 experience in game development, how easy/hard would it be to learn to use the engine and create a small game?

 

[Satoru]

As a software developer with 0 experience in game development, how easy/hard would it be to learn to use the engine and create a small game?

Godot vs Unity (for making your first game) - Game Dev Beginner

Which engine is better for making your first game? Unity or Godot? Decide for yourself using our beginner's comparison guide.

gamedevbeginner.com

 

[Yurinka]

This dumb move means mobile game devs will stop using Unity when it was by far the most popular engine in this area, and also that many indies who did use it will leave Unity.

Use this instead

No if you plan to release your games in consoles.

 

[Old Gamer]

No if you plan to release your games in consoles.

There are ways to release Godot games on consoles that restrict open source. There are companies who specialize on taking your game and porting it straight to console using proprietary code.

Home | W4Games

w4games.com

Also, Godot games can now be published on the Switch at very affordable cost.

Publishing on the Nintendo Switch

If you are looking for a way to publish your game on the Nintendo Switch, Gotm.io has an offer for you

www.godotes.com

 

[Old Gamer]

Godot vs Unity (for making your first game) - Game Dev Beginner

Which engine is better for making your first game? Unity or Godot? Decide for yourself using our beginner's comparison guide.

gamedevbeginner.com

Take note: that article was written with opinions based on Godot 3.x. Versions 4.0 and newer have greatly improved performance, especially in 3D rendering.