We live in an era where indie developers have more tools and options than they ever did in the past, and one of those tools is Unity. Now, Unity might be considered more than a tool as it is the foundation of many games, but that might change. Developers may stop using Unity because of new terms are added to the software. This would be an industry-wide shakeup, and it is a quickly unfolding situation, so let’s look at what has happened.
Summary
- Unity is updating its terms of service that will force developers to pay for every install of a game made with the software.
- Some devs are already responding by asking the company to change this new policy.
- If this new policy is not changed, it could see an industry-wide shakeup as several devs abandon the software.
It is not uncommon for software developers to change or update their terms every few years to accommodate new policies and developments. This is often a necessity, but occasionally, you will find a company that makes an outlandish change to its policies that is ridiculous.
We have one of those right now, as Unity has recently changed its terms so that the developer will be charged every time a game made with its software is Installed.
The new fees will kick in once several threshold holds have been met. This threshold depends on the Unity level the developer has. They must pass both a sale and downloads threshold to start incurring fees. The problem is that most devs will easily hit these numbers, but vague wording around the few will start to cause problems.
Now, on the face of it, that may not sound that bad, but the wording is what gives it away: downloaded. Using the word downloaded means that this fee is applied when a game is bought and downloaded, downloaded from a game pass, re-downloaded after purchase, or even pirated. This is a glaring issue that could deeply affect small and indie developers.
SIGH pic.twitter.com/YgJEKGVQEI
— AGGRO CRAB (@AggroCrabGames) September 12, 2023
It’s not like this has gone unnoticed either, as the developers of AGGRO CRAB have already posted the response. Their response was a reasonable request for Unity to undo this decision and return to a more favorable deal for both parties. There has been no response yet from Unity, but it seems unlikely to change, given how long it would have taken to implement.
In addition to their straightforward and reasonable request, they outlined something in their response that we could see across the industry. AGGRO CRAB stated in their response that this level of fees could severely harm the company. In response, they would stop using the Unity software and move on to another system.
One developer doing this would hardly dent the community’s bottom line, but it would just be one developer. If this policy goes into effect, studios all over the industry will likely drop Unity in favor of other software. Only time will tell if logic will win out or if Unity could end up a mediocre unknown tool that few people use.
That is all we have on the fact that Developers may stop using Unity because of new terms.
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Jace loves both video games and writing, so he thought the best career was to write about video games. He attended Full Sail University and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Creative Writing. He joined Gamsual in 2022, and when not covering video game news, he is often building and strategizing in simulation and RTS games. Xbox: Alchemist5966
