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The United Game Devs give their verdict on Unity's big backdown

The group of developers - currently 1052 strong - who have signed up to take Unity to task have not been pacified by the latest changes

The United Game Devs give their verdict on Unity's big backdown

Moments ago Unity announded their new plans for a revised set of terms, replacing those that it aired on Spetember 12 and which rapidly became the subject aimed to appease their community and replace the former proposal.

However, the United Game Devs community - currently 1052 strong, who are withholding Unity Ads and ironSource payment streams from their apps in protest - are not happy with the new terms.


The released commentary on behalf of United Game Devs reads:

The main problem is that an update to the runtime fee doesn't solve its fundamental issue: its existential impact on the game dev community. Building a games business while paying runtime fees, even with its proposed revenue cap, is not an option, and many developers will use the old version of Unity Engine to avoid that fee.

The latest announcement shows again that the game developer community has no choice but to explore and focus on other engines.

Sadly, Unity is also unwilling to openly communicate with its community in a true dialogue to find common ground and a workable solution. Instead, it chose again to inform its community of its changes as a fact. The market rules are simple - everyone prefers to do business with partners whose changes in terms and conditions are transparent and consider developers' interests.

That is why the community will not rely on Unity in the long run and already started migrating to other engines. As United Game Devs, we will focus on fostering and investing in open-sourced engines.

 


Further comment and opinion to follow.


Editor - PocketGamer.biz

Daniel Griffiths is a veteran journalist who has worked on some of the biggest entertainment media brands in the world. He's interviewed countless big names, and covered countless new releases in the fields of videogames, music, movies, tech, gadgets, home improvement, self build, interiors and garden design. Yup, he said garden design… He’s the ex-Editor of PSM2, PSM3, GamesMaster and Future Music, ex-Deputy Editor of The Official PlayStation Magazine and ex-Group Editor-in-Chief of Electronic Musician, Guitarist, Guitar World, Rhythm, Computer Music and more. He hates talking about himself.