So recently a lot of people have been going nuts about the new pricing model and I had some questions that I want some answers to.
How many employees does Unity have now since in 2014 they apparently had over 400.
What does this new pricing model mean for Unity 4 users?
Feel free to share your thoughts on the pricing model and what you believe would be better.
I would like someone from Unity to chime in too.
Personally I cannot believe a company of 400 individuals could make such slow progress on an engine like this and do what many people believe equates to going backwards but I am sure there’s plenty of good reasons for this. Regardless it bothers me that the asset store money I have spent is partly responsible for causing this spiral. I feel partly responsible for contributing to this mess but I have voiced my opinion like many other users here and it seems to be making a difference but it’s taking literally ages to see the fruits of these voices.
I love Unity and see a lot of potential in it, but the company can’t seem to get its act together, it’s clearly because of a difference in direction within the company itself. Regardless though this is something big, exciting times of change and yes I acknowledge they are listening as am I.
They acknowledged it’s not the best plan and are working on something better. We just have to wait. I think it’s fantastic that they realized it’s not perfect and are wiling to fix it.
When you consider an average employee costs a company 5-6k a month, I’m way more concerned with employee(and my own) productivity than I am about whether or not I’m paying an extra $30 a month for a daily used tool.
My only concerns with any pricing model is that there needs to be good value at each of the tiers and a natural progression from one tier to the next as your company and income grows. I think they are trying to that(analytics, cloud building) but some of the value adds(skin) seem a little off.
Its around the 900 mark now. We more than doubled last year. Lets not have another thread on pricing, we have changes coming so wait till then. Hopefully next week.
Gosh, surprised Unity commented on this one. My company doesn’t let us talk about employee numbers, even though we’re a public company… Is unity public? I should get some shares…
Thanks for replying, could you please answer question 2 in regards to the changes for those still using Unity 4 and who are considering purchasing Unity 4, has the licensing model changed for that and how would it work?
Already answered in the official threads IIRC. Existing Unity 4 licenses won’t change but it’s support has already ended last year. You have to pay for the newest version to be able use the old versions.
As long as I can remove the splash screen without paying an insane amount. “As in, the most I’d be willing to pay to remove a simple splash screen is $20 - $30 a month.”
Since I’m still starting out, I can’t afford $120 a month locked for 12 months, there’s just no way. And I can’t have the current “rather ugly” splash screen on my game, especially if it’s going on Steam, it just doesn’t look professional. I’d rather put the Unity logo under my own credits screen in my main menu…
The lisencing model for four hasn’t changed, and is unlikely to change. Remember that Unity 4 is no longer supported. There is no longer any support or updates for Unity 4
Unity to me Is still in Beta since the lighting model changed. Most of it’s built in features require the asset store to make complete which only adds to the cost. As users have reported instability which doesn’t make sense.
A Module Feature installer I believe is the solution.
It allows you to pay for features you need now while still allowing you the option to purchase the rest at a later date.
This system will allow Unity to see whether certain features are actually being used or not by its audience. This information is like Analytics but for its Engine user base.
For example If my game doesn’t need real-time shadows then I won’t purchase that module. I will consider purchasing Swift Shadows in the asset store which works fine for me. If my game succeeds then I may finally purchase the module one day for the more fancier games. This same concept applies to other features I don’t need right now like Analytics, Cloud Build and Multiplayer.
This monthly module subscription or buy module to keep system will likely end up allowing you to charge more for the complete package because if you consider how many features the engine has it can add up quite quickly, the actual price may need some community negotiation. Keep in mind those prices are just examples.
Unity Physics ($7 Monthly)
Unity Real Time Shadows ($8 Monthly) ($40 yours to keep)
Unity Global Illumination ($10 Monthly) ($60 yours to keep)
Unity Occlusion Culling ($6 Monthly) ($30 yours to keep)
Unity Beast Lightmapper ($15 Monthly (99 yours to keep)
Unity IOS Level 2 or Pro ( Etc)
Unity Android Level 2 or Pro ($ Etc)
Unity Analytics, Cloud Build, Multiplayer and the list goes on and as you can see these features can quickly add up and really show the popularity of certain features so the guys at Unity know what to work on next.
Personally I will use the yours to keep option for Physics and Beast Lightmapper because they are core features for me. Multiplayer will be purchased down the line with Android and IOS Level 2/Pro etc.
