Epic Games is throwing some serious money behind getting developers from all backgrounds to use Unreal Engine. They have announced a new “MegaGrant Program”, which actually started back in 2015. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said that this new grant program is a way of giving back to the community in the wake of Fortnite’s mega success, with grants varying from $5000 to $500,000.
This is not just about game development either as Unreal Engine is used in many different applications, so the program can seed money to teams who use tools that integrate Unreal Engine, say like a CAD program.
Both media and entertainment creators that make use of Unreal Engine can apply as well as students and schools that use Unreal Engine within their curriculum. What’s even better is that creators keep their IP, Epic is providing these grants with “no-strings-sttached” meaning that Epic will not have any power over what content comes from the grants.
Epic had this to say in their press release, “Submissions will be evaluated, and grants awarded, on a continual rolling basis as funds allow, with no firm deadlines to submit. If you are requesting more than $25,000, we want to hear about how you plan to use the funds. If your planned use of the funds changes over the course of your project, that is perfectly fine”.
It is great to see Epic giving back to the community, what do you think?
