Why every game developer is mad right now, explained
Yesterday, game engine company Unity announced changes to its pricing plan that will see developers charged each time someone installs their game after certain revenue and installation thresholds are met. Unity has been around since 2005 and is one of the most popular platforms for game creation, used for big-budget titans like Genshin Impact as well as games like Vampire Survivors, Pokémon Go, Cuphead, Among Us, Subnautica, RimWorld, BattleTech (2018), and Hollow Knight.
The reaction to the change, which is set to take effect on January 1, 2024, has truly been something to behold: Everyone is mad. And I mean everyone, with that classic Gary Oldman emphasis:
The backlash has been nothing short of furious: Individual developers and indie studios of different sizes all came together with the sort of unity—ahem—that's usually only seen during international sporting events. Some developers predicted Unity would very quickly abandon the new pricing scheme (so far, it has not), others suggested parts of the plan—specifically the retroactive contract changes—might not even be legal, and many swore they'd walk away from the Unity engine completely.
A small sampling of great anger
Innersloth (Among Us):
Aggro Crab (Another Crab's Treasure):
Massive Monster (Cult of the Lamb):
Stop the stink @unity pic.twitter.com/ijme9wQ89mSeptember 13, 2023
Devolver Digital (indie-focused publisher):
Landfall Games (Totally Accurate Battle Simulator):
Garry Newman (Garry's Mod, Rust):
Mark Mayers (Desolus)
https://t.co/warKLmw7zB pic.twitter.com/Y2VqIzRJ2MSeptember 12, 2023
Xalavier Nelson Jr. (El Paso, Anywhere)
Cat Manning (Firaxis)
George Broussard (3D Realms co-founder):
Joe Wintergreen, a designer and programmer whose recent
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