Effective January 1, 2024, we will introduce a new Unity Runtime Fee that’s based on game installs.
We are introducing a Unity Runtime Fee that is based upon each time a qualifying game is downloaded by an end user. We chose this because each time a game is downloaded, the Unity Runtime is also installed.
Games qualify for the Unity Runtime Fee after two criteria have been met: 1) the game has passed a minimum revenue threshold in the last 12 months, and 2) the game has passed a minimum lifetime install count.
Unity Personal and Unity Plus: Those that have made $200,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 200,000 lifetime game installs.
Unity Pro and Unity Enterprise: Those that have made $1,000,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 1,000,000 lifetime game installs.
This means that if you have made more than $200K in the last 12 months and have lifetime installs of over 200K, you’ll have to pay per game install. It won’t affect most people but this sounds outrageous. It’s a good time to be a Godot enthusiast. Unity really is insanely desperate these days.
There are a lot of thoughts floating on the internet and while this won’t kill Unity since it won’t affect people making under $200k, it does signify that Unity is a sinking ship. They’ve already been on a silent decline as Unreal has become the best choice for 3D while Unity stagnated, and other engines like Godot are quickly catching up.
I did write a blog post on transitioning from Unity to Godot: https://popcar.bearblog.dev/unity-to-godot-what-to-expect/
Thanks, that was somewhat comforting! I find the “cheapness” of everything quite appealing, and of course the transition from C# hugely intimidating!! But overall your post gave me hope as to what to expect, despite the obstacles. I’ll start my first project this week, since the installation is quite light.