Licensing for Pre-Rendered Graphics

As I understand the licence, I can use Unreal and the UE-only content to create non-interactive media such as still images and videos, and this is royalty-free. I can also, obviously, create games with real-time rendering and that use incurs royalties.

What happens if I create non-interactive images or videos, and use them in a game like a point-and-click adventure? Does that count as non-interactive because you can’t interact with any of the components Unreal is rendering, or does it count as interactive because overall the game is an interactive experience? Either is fine because I’m unlikely to get to $1M but if it counts as a game I’m supposed to register it with Epic and I want to make sure I do the right thing.

Thanks for any help you can give.

As I understand it, the game be an interactive experience. It is an interactive experience if the user “interacts” with it. It is not interactive if it’s just a movie or image you made with Unreal. I don’t know exactly where the line is drawn, but any game you make is an interactive experience.

Hope this helps!

In 2018 atypic from Unreal Staff said:

“STAFF UPDATE - after internal consideration, we’re going to change the Licensed Technology definition in the near future. After that change, a linear-only use of UE4 will be royalty free, even if used in another engine’s game.”

(https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/753593/view.html)

But in 2021 i still can’t find a clear answer from UNREAL STAFF.

We have to pay Royalty on video rendered out in Unreal Engine 4, used in a separate engine?

PS.

In the Unreal Forum a moderator (darthviper107) wrote:

You don’t have to pay royalty on non-interactive media, so rendered stills and animations don’t have royalty. (using the engine for pre-rendered cut scenes to use in another engine.)

SOURCE: I Unreal Engine license question, using the engine for pre-rendered cut scenes.