Audio EXP Podcast: #211 – Could the new Unity license impact VTTs?

Welcome home.

This is Audio EXP for the 23rd of September, and the episode title is “Could the new Unity license impact VTTs?”

[The following is a transcript of Audio EXP: #211]

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Coyote and Crow is in the Spotlight this month, as voted for by Patreons.

The interview with Connor Alexander is up. I asked about the Coyote & Crow strategy game and the RPG, and I also learned the difference between being a Cherokee and being a citizen of the Cherokee Nation.

You have until the end of the year to download the Cult of the Lamb computer game by Massive Monster.

Bronwen wrote the news up, which is part of the fallout from the license for Unity changing.

D&D fans and those who looked into the OGL-drama which hit 5e will be familiar with the shape of this. Unity is a free, powerful and widespread platform for building computer games on and Cult of the Lamb uses it, as does Kerbal Space Program, Rust, Pokemon Go and many many others.

Now, the developer will have to pay 20 cents for each time their Unity-powered game is downloaded. The catch? That fee only kicks in once the game has had over 200,000 downloads and made more than $200K in revenue.

Bronwen describes Massive Monster’s reaction as cutting their nose off to spite their face, and many people agree, but many also support any and every protest against Unity Technologies for the change.

Fantasy Grounds, the popular virtual tabletop, also use Unity. If they’ve made more than $200K and have had more than 200K downloads, they’ll now be caught up.

The lesser known VTT, but an official partner to Demiplane TaleSpire does too. In a comment, TaleSpire said;

Like so many of you, we have been watching the Unity “Runtime Fee” situation unfold with confusion, disappointment, and disgust.

They also said;

To be clear, we are not immediately affected, and TaleSpire is not going anywhere. However, this is not why we, like many in the community, are angry. As others have perfectly elucidated, the fact that Unity would even attempt this makes them an actor that, as it stands, cannot be trusted.

That’s what happened to Wizards of the Coast with the OGL change. Game-makers were worried that having changed the terms once, they could again, and trust was lost.

TaleSpire won’t abandon Unity in a rush, but they are treating the possible future as a risk and are looking at alternatives.

Speaking of Wizards of the Coast, what about their once-called digital ‘playspace’ and now known more simply as a forthcoming D&D VTT? They’ve not been using Unity, but Unreal Engine, and have a different license.

Belatedly, I have asked SmiteWorks, who publishes Fantasy Grounds, for a comment.

Let’s just stick with D&D for a tad longer as we’ve had a big D&D anniversary and I think it kinda slipped under the radar. It’s been 40 years since the D&D cartoon first aired. Yes, some of us getting old!

Merchoid had some of the 1983 collectable rollercoaster tickets made to celebrate. I saw people on Facebook sharing screenshots of their receipts to prove they had managed to snag one, which is pretty rare, and I’ve just checked the site now – there’s still some left, but Merchoid’s stock level widget says there’s only a few left.

I’ve no idea how the D&D licensing people work and who gets deals like this. Drop me an email if you know. I wonder, sometimes, if companies like Merchoid, JustGeek and Fun.com pitch ideas to them and see if they approval.

There is other licensing news from the world of tabletop RPGs this week and absolutely colossal news if you are Cubicle 7.

The publisher has confirmed they’ve renewed their Games Workshop deal. This means they’ll continue to publish RPGs like Warhammer Fantasy, Soulbound, Wrath & Glory and Imperium Maledictum.

I’m pleased that C7 got their renewal, as I’m sure its loss would have been dramatic, but I’m also pleased they’ve been spreading their eggs across more than one basket. This week they also announced the 5e-powered A Life Well Lived, which is lifepaths for Player Characters, is coming to Kickstarter and they’re looking for writers for the 2nd edition of The Laundry. The last time I talked to C7, they confirmed they had no plans for The Laundry, but that was a good few years ago.

If you don’t know it, The Laundry is a series of books where British civil servants go up against Lovecraftian horrors.

However, the license roulette has not been so kind to Crafty Games. Right now you can get the Mistborn RPG collection bundle through the Bundle of Holding.

You can also now buy Nobles: The Golden Mandate from DriveThruRPG for the Mistborn RPG.

However, Nobles will be the last-ever supplement for the game. I can’t find the physical editions anyway, not even on the Crafty Games site, and the publisher has confirmed that the Mistborn Adventure Game in digital is going away. You’ve until the end of the year to grab the RPG for Brandon Sanderson’s official game, or miss out.

Will the popular and prolific author release his own game? Perhaps.

There’s also an official Final Fantasy XIV tabletop RPG coming out and the Starter Set is on pre-order.

Which publisher did Square Enix give the license to? None. The game maker is doing this in-house, which is telling. Of course, they are already a large publisher with great writers and artists, and I suspect a marketing budget to challenge even Wizards of the Coast. That said, it’s hard to tell whether the Final Fantasy ttRPG is a real push into tabletop gaming, a PR stunt or a toe in the water.

The news from Coca-Cola, though, feels more PR stunt. The drink-maker, who sponsored both the Russian and Chinese Olympics, has released Y3000 which is a limited edition and zero sugar soft drink.

I’d ignore it, but should I actually keep my eyes open for a can? It’s been co-created by an AI. It’s a taste of the future, says Coca-Cola and while that is also marketing talk, it’s also kinda right. I suspect we’ll see big data chomped through by neural networks and processing models more often to design ultra-processed food for us more often in the years to come.

More traditionally, Bronwen and I have been thinking about Halloween fashions. Bronwen went all Frocktober with Collectif and found some eye-catching spooky-themed dresses.

I’m less sophisticated but noticed secret Gremlins and Friday the 13th jackets on Fun.com. Why are they secret? They look like regular smart-casual blazers until you see the decorated lining.

I’m tempted by the Gremlins blazer, but £60 is a lot for me to spend on clothes. However, as a counterpoint, it was Hobbit Day this week, and JustGeek made the Giant Balrog rubberducky the deal of the day. That 25% discount lowered the cute demon’s price to £60. Perhaps £60 for a jacket isn’t so bad after all?

So, let’s outro on money with freebies and bundles. I’ve already mentioned the Mistborn deal and the Bundle of Holding also has one for The Yellow King from Pelgrane Press, the reality-warping horror.

Lastly, and in a surprise move from Marvel, there’s a free-to-download adventure for their tabletop RPG, which was also made in-house, with Enter: Hydra.

Why is that a surprise move? It’s not a surprise to get a freebie, though the Disney-owned publisher did charge fans for the playtest rules of the Marvel Multiverse game, but because it’s an actual PDF.

And on that note, I survived last week’s charity walk and will see you next week.