- Support for modular software design should be added to FAB’s build pipeline.
I separate my code into plugins which stick to their own function, so that they are incredibly easy to combine and reuse. Currently, you can’t publish a plugin depending on another of your plugins. You are required to merge it all, forcing buyers to get content they don’t need. The following listing “Custom Settings” with the following dependency structure will be declined:
“Custom Settings”
- UI Additions > Central UI
- Utility
- Remove the “Declined” state from a listing pending approval.
FAB approves a listing before it can be published. Two other options are “Changes Needed” or “Declined”. The motivation behind having “Declined” is that a listing “can not be accidentally approved” at a later time. However, nothing prevents one from recreating exactly the same listing and get it pending for approval. So, the motivation for having that “declined” state seems flawed, and you could say that “changed needed” is the only state required besides “approved”, during the approval process. Another problem “Declined” introduces, is that all of the data you provided for the listing (images, text) become locked fields from which you can not copy or download your own data unless you get clever with the browser’s HTML editing. There is no reason to lock those fields.
- Regional pricing
I get to set a price in dollars, and my listing displays it in euros. I get no choice to configure that or set regional price differences.
- Theft, copyright violations, AI generated content, viruses.
Many listings out there are clearly stolen files, copyright violations, ai generated (and said not), contain viruses, and the seller’s word is trusted that the listing is OK, until the listing is reported by people.
- The rating system.
I am a new seller. All I see is “stars” and “comments”. I can only preview “no rating yet” and “0 comments” and don’t see an explanation how this works.
What I need is:
- section for Q & A
- A star rating should only be allowed if a written text is posted along with it explaining why X stars were rated.
- It must be possible for users to vote on a rating “I agree / I don’t agree”.
Look at ModDB for a rating system which works.
- Price per seat / price per product / price for time / etc.
Products can be sold for 2 price tiers, standard and professional. There is seemingly no difference for the customer besides that customers who earn X amount of money can only buy the professional tier, so that sellers can optionally sell to them for a higher price, the professional tier.
First off, this is not flexible. At times selling a product once for a fixed price makes sense (a pack of trees to put in a game). At times it does not, and a per seat license makes sense (an engine plugin to have one person automate certain tasks.).
In the end, even that is not flexible enough. Once a product is bought, customers expect future updates and support. There is no way to earn money post the initial sale of the product. There is no way for customers to subscribe, say, 20 euros a month for continued support and updates.
- Services
There is no way to offer services at all.
Look at Patreon, Fiver. Why can’t it be done on FAB??
- Visibility
The marketplace is crowded (a few engine tools an hour are posted in FAB’s plugins / tools section alone). Visibility is low and activity is low on the marketplace section of Unreal Engine’s forums.
What about paid advertising? Or displaying new businesses on the front page?
- Contact
Sellers must list their email address to be contacted by customers. Often it is better to communicate with the community in a public space (people can discuss and help eachother) or directly on the marketplace (direct messages, support system). This is can also useful for the function of the marketplace (people can ask refunds, marketplace can read communications).
- Alternatives
Patreon, Gumroad, etc. Is FAB the place to be?
- Automation
While creating a new listing for FAB (code plugins), I need to write certain information over and over, while the information could either be extracted from the files I provided (such as what modules are included in the code), or injected post review (such as the FAB url in the uplugin file). The former annoys me, the latter annoys FAB. FAB has to review the code plugin for problems such as a missing FAB url in the uplugin. Nowhere in FABs documentation is written where you can find this url, and it turns out to be the GUID you see in the URL of the listing as a seller while editing the listing. As if that uplugin couldn’t be edited automatically on FABs side pre release. Calculate the time and costs required for such nonsense on both sides, and the time a seller needs to wait while waiting (again) for listing approval.
- Listing code build process consistency
At times FAB gets errors that sellers don’t get during the build process. The build process seems to be different. For example the error “An explicit Category specifier is required for Blueprint…” It wastes time on both ends. At times FAB reports errors that are their own (system failure, pre build), and a resubmission passes their tests the next time.
- Listing review consistency.
People are reviewing the listing’s files (to some point). One person approved my files without a date in the copyright notice, the next did not. Inaccurate and again time consuming on both sides.
- Fab bugs, things left unexplained, and overall inconsisty
Isn't the ID used in "FabURL", and the listing URL (seller and buyer side) supposed to be the same??
- EPIC launcher integration
EPIC launcher is lacking in capabilities. Any filtering, sorting etc. you’d expect in a marketplace, you’d need on a launcher post buying a product.
- “Tiny” or low effort (AI, copied) products flooding the market.
What some describe as small products, low effort, ai generated etc. are flooding the market which reduces visibility of products which take a long time to create, especially when just browsing FAB randomly. For example, some creators publish hundreds of meshes / textures etc individually. Suggestions are to add an initial cost to publish a product, or to group them together as a collection (click on “Shirt Design Collection” and see those 200 shirts only if you want to).
Please, add an initial cost to publish on FAB - #18 by Ferrefy_Software
