Unreal Engine Made Free By Epic Games
However, before getting too excited, Unreal Engine 4 isn't becoming free software by the definitions of the FSF & Co. Rather, UE4 is free to everyone but once making revenue off any products shipped on the engine, Epic Games wants their cut.
Unreal Engine 4's C++ source code is "100% free." Tim Sweeny of Epic explained, "Our goal is to give you absolutely everything, so that you can do anything and be in control of your schedule and your destiny. Whatever you require to build and ship your game, you can find it in UE4, source it in the Marketplace, or build it yourself – and then share it with others."
In terms of Epic's compensation, "When you ship a game or application, you pay a 5% royalty on gross revenue after the first $3,000 per product, per quarter. It’s a simple arrangement in which we succeed only when you succeed." Previously there was a $19 per month cost.
More details via this Unreal blog post.
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