Developers of indie puzzle game Orgynizer have claimed that Unity said organisations like Planned Parenthood are “not valid charities” and are instead “political groups.”

In a blog post, the EU-based developer LizardFactory said the plans to charge developers up to $0.20 per install if they reach certain thresholds would cost them “around 30% of the funds we have gathered and already sent to charity.”

As Unity clarified the runtime fee will not apply to charity games, LizardFactory reached out to the company to clarify their game would be exempt from the plan.

However, Unity reportedly said their partners were not “valid charities” and were viewed as “political groups.”

Profits made from the game go directly to non-profit organisation Planned Parenthood and C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, Michigan.

“We did this to raise money for a good cause, not to line the coffers of greedy scumbags,” the developers wrote in a blog post. “We have been solid Unity fanboys for over ten years, but the trust is scattered all over the floor.”

The developers are considering a move to open-source game engine Godot, “but we will have to recode our entire game because we refuse to give you a dime,” they wrote. “This is a mafia-style shakedown, nothing more, nothing less.”

Today, Unity responded to the ongoing backlash and apologised, acknowledging the “confusion and angst” surrounding the runtime fee policy.

The company has promised that changes to the policy will be shared in “a couple of days.”

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    1249 months ago

    “not valid charities” and are instead “political groups.”

    Only the Insane Christian right fanatics would call Planned Parenthood a political group!

    Insane is the new normal in right wing America.

  • Jaysyn
    link
    fedilink
    619 months ago

    Devs may as well bite the bullet & switch engines mid development now, because I’m not buying any new games made in Unity.

    • Chariotwheel
      link
      fedilink
      279 months ago

      Gotta love how they really tried to check every argument against the engine.

      Financially, trustwise, politically. Next would be sexual harassment in the office then.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      139 months ago

      I’m excited for the push this is gonna give Godot. Wouldn’t mind it becoming the mainstream engine.

    • eltimablo
      link
      fedilink
      39 months ago

      There’s also O3DE, though I don’t know what kind of state it’s in.

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    339 months ago

    Some alternatives to Unity with:

    • Godot - GDScript, C#, 2D/3D
    • Defold - Lua, 2D/3D
    • Stride - C#, 2D/3D
    • Bevy - Rust, 2D/3D
    • Armory 3D - Haxe, C, C++, Rust, WebAssembly, JavaScript, Logic-Nodes, 3D
    • O3DE - Lua, Script Canvas, 3D
    • Flax Engine - C#, C++, Visual Scripting, 3D

    And Unreal, of course, if you trust big corps.

  • Computerchairgeneral
    link
    fedilink
    319 months ago

    Unity really just keeps stepping on rakes right now huh? Can’t wait to see how they manage to make this situation even worse before it’s over.

  • Obinice
    link
    fedilink
    English
    239 months ago

    Unity being run by those mental Christian Fundamentalist Americans now?

  • Bappity
    link
    fedilink
    English
    199 months ago

    I’ve got to say, seeing all these big companies with shit management making shit decisions this year has been great.

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    169 months ago

    Unity simply cannot stop shooting themselves in the foot, can they? Bless their hearts. (I’m a Southerner.)

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      14
      edit-2
      9 months ago

      I’ve heard people correct this as “Unity didn’t shoot themselves in the foot, they shot themselves in the chest.”

      And I agree, they didn’t just fuck up and get badly hurt. They’re dead. On life support if they’re lucky.

      Nobody sane will trust this company with their work now.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      -39 months ago

      I don’t care what anyone else says, I think they are a standup company, in their own way. (also a southerner)