Update (9/13/23):Following yesterday’s news, Unity has clarified and already walked back some key points. In a statement toAxios, Unity exec Marc Whitten said fees will not be charged for demos unless they are a part of a download that includes the full game.
Additionally, Unity looks to have walked back one issue around multiple fees. Unity now says it will only charge for an “initial installation,” per Axios, after regrouping to discuss the issue. However, an extra fee will charge if a user installs a game on a second device; once on a home PC and again on Steam Deck, for example. Whitten also says that developers will not be on the hook for fees through services like Xbox Game Pass, but rather, it would be the distributor (a.k.a. Microsoft).
Our original story follows.
This morning, Unity Technologies announced an update to its pricing plans and fees that sparked a bit of an outcry among developers. Unity says that, starting on January 1 of 2024, the company will introduce a new runtime fee based on game installs for any game that passes certain thresholds.
To break it down in straightforward terms, there are two components of Unity: the Editor and the Runtime. The Runtime is code that plays on devices, making Unity-made games work.
This new Unity Runtime Fee, as the company dubs it, would be based on each time a game is downloaded by a user. According to Unity, games that meet these thresholds qualify:
“With this new policy, as of June 14, 2025, we will offer Unity Personal to anyone regardless of how much revenue they make to provide more flexibility in how creators manage their licenses,” the company’sannouncementexplains. “Once a game passes the revenue and install thresholds, the studio would pay a small flat fee for each install.” It then refers to a table, detailing the fees.
Essentially, once a game clears the marked thresholds for revenue (per year) and lifetime installs, the developer will start incurring fees per install. And as Unity states, once it goes into effect on July 05, 2025, the fee will apply to all eligible games on the market that continue to distribute the runtime.
Chaos in unity
In clarifying comments toAxios’ Stephen Totilo, Unity says if a player deletes a game and re-installs it, that counts as 2 installs and consequently 2 charges. The same goes if a user installs a game on two devices. Unity also says that charity games and bundles are “exempted from fees,” per Totilo.
There is a lot of discussion and ire drawn over these changes from developers, especially those working in the independent scene. I found a good summation of the issues from the developers’ side fromNecrosoft Games‘ Brandon Sheffieldhere, and I’ll highlight one section in particular:
Ultimately, it screws over indies and smaller devs the most. If you can afford to pay for higher tiers, you don’t pay as much of this nickle and dime fee, but indies can’t afford to on the front end, or often it doesn’t make sense in terms of the volume of games you’ll sell, but then you wind up paying more in the long term. It’ll squash innovation and art-oriented games that aren’t designed around profit, especially. It’s a rotten deal that only makes sense if you’re looking at numbers, and assume everyone will keep using your product.
Sinking cost of games
As developers continue to note, this means distinct issues fordemos and free-to-play, andruns a risk of being used maliciouslyagainst studios. Speaking to Axios, Unity said it will use fraud detection tools and “allow developers to report possible instances of fraud to a compliance team,” perTotilo.
For those who don’t want to deal with the headache, they mightalready have years of developmentin the pipeline and be trapped by the cycle. This issue applying backwards can also become a current headache for existing developers, and those heading to subscription services. Aggro Crab Games explained as much ina statement:
It’s hard to imagine something like this doesn’t eventually get reversed. As it stands now, it’s a massive issue for anyone planning to use, and is now stuck with, Unity.
