So, it's probably worth clarifying some things. When we say that we don't understand why Unity is doing the things they're doing, it's not that we don't literally understand. We aren't confused about the reason: it's money and control. That's not the confusing part. Here's where the confusion actually roosts: in seeking those things, they've undertaken a course of action that stands to lose them quite a lot of both, and the outcome is completely obvious. This is the kind of genius maneuvre you and I simply can't comprehend.

I made the comparison to WotC's OGL debacle, the kind of unforced error made against the very grain of the people who work there - in either case, we're talking about a definitive player in their respective spaces, undertaking an obviously fucked course of action that abraded an already uneasy trust. I mentioned it because what Wizards had to do in order to get out from under that particular Sword of Damocles - one they installed themselves, directly o'erhead - was to make concessions even greater than the original status quo they'd been attempting to amend.

And that's what it will take here.

There are all kinds of little conversations we can have. Are having, I guess. We can talk about the fact that when you decide to do a product for charity, Unity gets to decide if your charity meets their mysterious internal rubric. Planned Parenthood, apparently not.

There is also a class of "reasonable middle" Unity Apologia that thinkingly ponders questions like "but what about Unity" or "game engine hard to make." But these things are not for developers to worry about - they don't work for Unity. Their concerns are their own concerns, like (just as an example) what happens when the entire technology base your game is built on, and all the skills you invested in, your career, can be warped or seized or rendered hazardous retroactively by a hideous, demonic craw.

I really liked the piece by Tom Francis (Gunpoint, Heat Signature, Tactical Breach Wizards) on this whole thing. It's called "Unity's Trap," if you wanted me to top-line the content for you. Developers accepted the deal that was offered - the rest of these conversations simply serve power. People who make games aren't on the hook for these fuckin' quandaries. They didn't make Unity merge with an adware company, they didn't plump the company up to unsustainable levels in the hopes that some wealthy suitor might swipe right. They're the victims in all this. The victims.

(CW)TB out.