Will it have temporary exclusivity on the Epic Games store, for using Unreal Engine 5 with that agreement that CD Project reached with Epic?

Is the version of the game with Drm free from Gog at risk?

Do people enjoy creating clickbait forum threads? Stay tuned as we find out in tonight's edition of: Let's wildly speculate about far reaching future events.

I was just asking.

I would like to think CDPR is not so desperate to use Unreal 5 that they would agree to release their golden child on a DRM store after all their DRM-free efforts.

Besides, does Epic even require a contract like this to use their engine? I assume developers pay a license fee but Epic has no say besides that.

I hope so, let's remember what happened recently with Remedy and his Alan Wake 2.

To be fair, Epic funded the development in that case so you could say they were a major shareholder and had ownership. Unless I missed something, CDPR shouldn't require funding from Epic for Witcher IV.

Just using Unreal Engine doesn't automatically mean the 1 year exclusivity deal. As for whether they decide to go that route with the next Witcher, I highly doubt it.

Alan Wake 2 was funded and published by Epic, hence the exclusivity. Merely using the Unreal Engine won't do that.

The biggest risk with regard to The Witcher IV and DRM is not Epic, but CD Projekt Red.

I would be very surprised if they did not at least lock some part of the game behind a DRM scheme, most likely related to Galaxy usage.

They have signed a fifteen-year agreement to use the graphics engine in their next games, so Epic Games must be making some profit from it.

I would be surprised too.

Isnt the engine a software like any other that comes with a payment plan which CDPR will pay every year for the entire contract and... that's it ? That is the profit. Not to mention the advertisement Epic will get from CDPR using their engine for probably the biggest games to come in the future. I don't see how Epic can force CDPR to do anything else. I think it should be the other way around considering how many complains there are about the Unreal engine (perosnally not a fan either). Epic should be happy their engine is being used!


As for using DRM - I am pretty sure CDPR does not care about Galaxy anymore (its GOG who do care). I won't be surprised if they use DRM though - most likely cosmetics again with their new account system. In a single player Witcher game I don't see what else can be behinde DRM.

Yes, it is called licensing fees and royalties.

"Unreal Engine is free to use for students, educators, hobbyists, and most non-games companies making less than $1 million USD in annual gross revenue.

- For game developers and other users distributing applications that incorporate Unreal Engine code at runtime (such as a game) and are licensed to third-party end users, a 5% royalty is due (discounts may apply) when the lifetime gross revenue from that product exceeds $1 million USD. No royalties are due on the first $1 million in lifetime gross product revenue.

- For other companies, if you earn over $1 million USD in annual gross revenue, you will need to buy Unreal Subscription seats. Unreal Subscription costs $1,850 per user per year, and includes Unreal Engine, Twinmotion, and RealityCapture.

- There are also options for custom terms that can include Epic Direct Support, private training, negotiated terms for lower royalties, and more. Contact us to discuss your needs."

https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/faq