Fortnite
developer
Epic
Games
will
charge
non-game
developers
an
annual
subscription
of
$1,850
“per
seat”
to
use
its
Unreal
Engine
as
opposed
to
the
royalty-based
model
it
uses
for
game
developers.
The
company
announced
the
changes
to
its
payment
scheme
last
year,
and
now,
it’s
providing
details
on
the
plan,
which
will
come
into
effect
with
the
release
of
Unreal
Engine
version
5.4
in
late
April.
The
changes
don’t
apply
to
game
developers,
who
will
continue
to
pay
for
access
to
Epic’s
tools
via
a
5
percent
royalty
on
products
that
earn
over
$1
million
in
lifetime
gross
revenue.
Instead,
the
new
per-seat
(effectively
per-user)
subscription
fee
will
apply
to
non-game
developers
such
as
those
who
use
the
Unreal
Engine
to
make
linear
content
such
as
film
and
television
shows,
infotainment
systems
in
cars,
or
immersive
experiences
such
as
theme
park
rides
that
aren’t
sold
directly
to
customers.
Not
all
non-game
developers
will
have
to
pay
for
the
Unreal
Engine
using
the
new
pricing
model.
Epic
is
exempting
companies
that
earn
less
than
$1
million
in
annual
gross
revenue
as
well
as
students,
educators,
and
“hobbyists.”
Companies
that
make
plug-ins
for
the
Unreal
Engine
can
continue
to
use
it
for
free;
in
these
cases,
Epic
will
continue
to
get
its
cut
via
the
revenue
share
model
in
its
Unreal
Engine
Marketplace.
The
$1,850
annual
fee
includes
access
to
both
the
Unreal
Engine
as
well
as
Epic’s
Twinmotion
real-time
visualization
tool
and
RealityCapture
photogrammetry
software.
Epic
says
it’s
bundling
the
additional
tools
ahead
of
integrating
them
directly
into
the
Unreal
Engine
by
the
end
of
2025,
but
they’ll
also
be
available
separately
for
$445
a
year
for
Twinmotion
and
$1,250
for
RealityCapture.
Epic
announced
plans
to
introduce
the
new
pricing
model
just
weeks
after
competitor
Unity
announced
—
and
then
quickly
rolled
back
—
a
controversial
pay-per-download
pricing
scheme.
As
with
Unity’s
rolled
back
pricing
model,
Epic
says
its
new
pricing
model
will
only
apply
to
games
made
with
the
latest
version
of
its
engine:
Unreal
Engine
5.4.
If
a
developer
is
using
version
5.3
or
earlier,
the
pricing
changes
will
not
apply
until
they
upgrade.
Original author: Jon Porter
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