>[!Danger] Avoid like the plague. Unity is a proprietary licensed game engine written in [[3. Reference/Software/Programming Languages/C Sharp|C#]] (probably). - [Website](https://unity.com/) - [AlternativeTo](https://alternativeto.net/software/unity/about/) > If you're starting a new game project, do not use Unity. # Notability Up until 2023 Unity was perhaps the most used game engine for indie developers. There are a lot of tutorials and it is relatively flexible and accessible. # Philosophy ## 2023 Install Licensing >[!DANGER] Do Not Use > In September 2023 Unity Technologies announced a new licensing model based on a fuzzy metric derived from "installs" self-reported by the Unity game engine phoning home. > > Even if they roll this back, there is a 0% chance this leadership can ever be trusted again. - https://cohost.org/ewie/post/2823914-empty - https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/the-death-of-unity - https://forum.unity.com/threads/unity-plan-pricing-and-packaging-updates.1482750/ - https://www.theverge.com/2023/9/12/23870547/unit-price-change-game-development - https://www.polygon.com/23870247/unity-engine-pricing-model-install-fee - https://alternativeto.net/news/2023/9/unity-engine-implements-controversial-runtime-fee-for-game-developers-starting-january-1/ - https://www.theverge.com/23873852/unity-new-pricing-model-news-updates Unity Technologies has had a long history of being shitty to its primary users and making antagonistic business decisions against developers while not providing fixes or features that the community has requested for years. The current CEO of Unity Technologies, John Riccitiello, was previously head of EA. It seems that the CEO and all of the other investors were aware of the stir it would cause and [sold off as bunch of stock](https://dotesports.com/business/news/unitys-controversial-business-decision-comes-mere-days-after-ceo-sells-2000-shares) before making the announcement. The CEO left the company soon after.[^1] ## 2024 Strongarm Tactics Unity apparently started threatening studios and requiring payment of additional ongoing services.[^2] In general they have been harassing and shutting down studios and indie devs of all sizes to try to extort money out of them.[^3] ## 2025 Footgun In early 2025 Unity began issuing threats to licensees to revoke all existing licenses because they believe that some accounts were not fully covered under the pro license that studios were paying for. - https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/1kiyh0m/unity_is_threatening_to_revoke_all_licenses_for/ # OS Support - Linux - Mac - Windows - Mobile - Web # Features # References # Resources ## Lighting and Level of Detail Unity doesn't currently have another similar to Unreal Engine's Lumen or Nanite, but I don't consider them to be deal breakers. - https://forum.unity.com/threads/the-elephant-in-the-room-nanite-and-lumen.1440661/ ### NanoTech Obviously inspired by Nanite, but will be a paid add on from a third party developer and current demos do not show very good performance. It is not publicly available. - https://forum.unity.com/threads/nano-tech-similar-to-nanite-high-detailed-rendering-for-hdrp-urp-and-built-in-rp.1292223/ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJn5vdQ7CD8 ### Erebus A ray-trace based shading system similar to Unreal Engine's Lumen. In development since 2021, recent updates seem to show that it does not have very good performance. It is not publicly available. - https://forum.unity.com/threads/erebus-real-time-ray-tracing-sdfs-ue4-5-style-dfao-and-soft-shadows-hdrp-urp-built-in.1155401/ [^1]: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-67063855 [^2]: https://www.thegamer.com/rust-developer-facepunch-reportedly-forced-to-spend-half-a-million-dollars-a-year-on-unity-services/ [^3]: https://www.reddit.com/r/Unity3D/comments/1h07q5n/unity_accounts_suspended_after_releasing_our/