Unity has eliminated controversial runtime fee

Exactly one year to the day since Unity announced its runtime pricing model, the software developer is canceling the program, effective immediately. “After extensive consultation with our player community and customers, we have decided to cancel the runtime fee,” Unity CEO Matt Bromberg said in a blog post announcing the news. Instead of a runtime fee, Unity will return to a per-seat subscription model.

Last year, Unity caused a stir in the game development community by introducing a controversial update to its pricing model. Instead of charging developers a set monthly rate based on the number of users using the software, it implemented a pay-per-download scheme that charged developers a fee each time their game was downloaded. That meant that instead of paying Unity a flat, predictable rate, payouts could fluctuate, resulting in potentially higher fees.

The news caused a huge stir in the game development community, with developers voicing their frustration on social media. Developers argued that the pricing model was implemented without adequate warning, forcing them to either pay new fees that could not be adequately budgeted for or make a costly and time-consuming switch to new software. They also claimed that the per-download model could be exploited by malicious actors to charge developers they did not like.

This new pricing model returns Unity to a per-seat subscription model, but there’s a catch: starting January 1, 2025, prices will increase for Unity Pro and Unity Enterprise tiers. You can check out the details here .