Epic Games, which just today revealed its new game engine, Unreal Engine 5, quietly made the Unreal Engine ecosystem much more cost-effective for small development studios.
Developers can now use Unreal Engine without having to pay any royalties or fees to Epic Games until their game earns $1 million. After the game earns $1 million, developers will pay a 5% royalty on any future earnings to Epic Games. That royalty can stop being paid if revenue for the game drops below $10,000 a quarter.
This is great news for smaller or independent developers looking to develop titles at a minimal cost. Creators looking to create content they don’t intend to monetize can also use Unreal Engine completely free of charge. The new terms of use go into effect immediately for Epic’s game engine and will carry over to Unreal Engine 5 once it releases sometime next year.
Before this change, licensing for Epic’s game engine had developers paying that same 5% royalty after the game earned just $3,000 a quarter.
Questions about Unreal Engine answered
Senior Marketing Manager at Epic Games, Dana Cowley, confirmed details of the new royalty plan after the changes appeared on the company’s frequently asked questions page. She also confirmed the $1 million mark is per title, not per developer or publisher. This means a single developer can release multiple projects, even in the same year, earning up to $1 million each, and pay nothing in royalties to Epic Games.
Unreal Engine 5, announced earlier today, will bring a number of technical updates to game developers around the world. These changes will allow for everything from more detailed rendered images to an overhauled lighting system. Be sure to check out our article covering the announcement to learn about the most significant changes coming with the new development engine.
Epic’s Unreal Engine first released in 1998 with the release of the aptly titled game Unreal.