Unity issues apology over controversial changes and reverts some modifications

Unity's President and General Manager, Marc Whitten, issued an open letter on Friday, offering apologies for the controversial changes that were announced on September 12. The company had unveiled plans for a new Runtime Fee to take effect on January 1, 2024, which drew criticism from many indie developers. This fee would be applied retroactively to games that met certain revenue and installation thresholds. However, Unity has now walked back some of these changes.

Unity issues apology over controversial changes and reverts some modifications

In his letter, Whitten began with a sincere apology, acknowledging that Unity should have consulted with developers before announcing such significant alterations. He then outlined the revised changes, hoping for a more positive response this time.

Firstly, Unity confirmed that its Personal plan would remain free, with no Runtime Fee applied to games built with Unity Personal. Additionally, the revenue limit for games made using the free version of the engine was increased from $100,000 to $200,000. Unity also removed the requirement for a "Made With Unity" splash screen.

Furthermore, Unity clarified that games with less than $1 million in trailing 12-month revenue would not be subject to the Runtime Fee. The fee would only apply to software developed using the next LTS version of Unity, set to release in 2024. Existing games and projects would not be affected unless developers chose to upgrade them to the new version.

However, it's important to note that Unity did not completely eliminate the Runtime Fee. Developers subject to this fee now have a choice: either a 2.5% revenue share or a calculated amount based on the number of new players engaging with the game each month. Unity assured that developers would always be billed for the lesser amount.

Initial responses from developers were cautiously optimistic, with some acknowledging the changes as a step in the right direction. However, the trust between Unity and the developer community has been strained due to the initial announcement, and it remains to be seen how these revisions will impact that relationship.

In summary, Unity has offered apologies and made adjustments to its controversial changes, aiming to address concerns within the developer community.