The first thing to note about this release is that it's Unity 6, not Unity 2023 LTS. Last year, Unity announced plans to revert to version numbering based on the release number rather than the release year. Previously, two "tech stream" updates were released each year, introducing new features in Unity, followed by an LTS release that didn't include new features but continued to receive bug-fix updates for two years. This led to the somewhat confusing situation where the year in the LTS version name did not match the actual release year – for example, Unity 2022 LTS was actually released in 2023, as the version referred to the previous tech stream updates.

Unity also plans to follow a more traditional update schedule, with a series of 6.x updates like Unity 6 designed to improve compatibility. These updates will introduce new features but will not break compatibility and will undergo "thorough regression testing of the main release." Unity has already revealed part of the Unity 6.x roadmap, and the first update, Unity 6.1, is expected to be released in April 2025. Furthermore, the company will now provide active support for each major product release for two years after the release of the next version. As a result, Unity 6 will continue to receive critical bug fixes for two years after the final release of Unity 7.

One of the key changes initially planned for Unity 6, the introduction of a runtime fee for games created with the Unity engine, has now been canceled. The runtime fee, which was essentially a charge for the installation of Unity-made games, faced significant backlash from Unity users and was scrapped last month. Moving forward, Unity will stick with its existing subscription-based pricing model, although prices are expected to rise next year.

This change is particularly good news for users of the free personal subscriptions, who will no longer be required to display the mandatory "Made with Unity" splash screen in their games. Additionally, the threshold for eligibility has been increased, and now anyone earning less than $200,000 annually (up from $100,000) will be able to access the free tier. More detailed information about the pricing and licensing changes in Unity 6 can be found in the latest news update.

Unity 6 introduces a few notable updates, but the major changes were already implemented in earlier versions, such as Unity 2023.1, Unity 2023.2, and Unity 6 Preview. For artists, the key improvements in Unity 6 include the new Resident Graphics System Drawer. This feature enhances rendering performance, particularly for complex scenes with many generated objects. Additionally, there are improvements to the visualization of water, clouds, hair, and skin in the HDRP rendering pipeline. New scaling technologies for rendering and enhanced light processing workflows are also part of the update.

These updates were discussed in detail when they were initially released, so for more in-depth insights, you can refer to our breakdowns of the top features for digital artists in Unity 6 and Unity 2023.1.

Unity 6 is compatible with Windows 10 and newer, macOS 11.0 and newer, as well as Ubuntu 22.04/24.04 Linux. For artists and small studios earning under $200,000 per year, free personal subscriptions are available, which include all the core features. The Pro subscription for medium-sized studios is priced at $2080 per year. Corporate subscriptions for studios with revenue over $25 million annually are available upon request.