Using unity assets commerically?

Obviously this has been asked but I’d like to be positive. I want to use the Nebula skybox asset. Hopefully commercially. I’m not editing it. Can I sell a game that uses it?

PS Please don’t use fancy words :confused:

Where did you get the asset?

Was it made by one of your paid employees? Then you are probably the copyright holder. It’s a good idea to be sure, though, and this is where contracts come in.

Was it in one of Unity’s standard assets packages? Then you’re free to use and publish it with your game, no questions asked.

Was it something you purchased from the Unity Asset Store? Check if the asset has any extra license terms (most do not). The bare-bones EULA, which covers most assets, allows you to distribute those assets as part of a game. You can’t necessarily distribute the raw asset, but it’s fine to include it with your game. Again, though, check for extra license terms with the asset. Editor extensions in particular tend to have some.

Was it something you found online? Check if the author has provided a license. Many open source licenses allow you to use and modify content for free. Most require that you credit the original author(s). Some licenses restrict commercial use or modification. You can see some examples and descriptions of popular open source licenses here.

Be careful, though: some open source licenses, such as the GPL or Creative Commons “ShareAlike”, will only allow you to use an asset if your own work is also distributed with a similar license.

This isn’t legal advice, but it covers most of the scenarios where you’ll be using someone else’s work. When in doubt, and always if there is a lot of money on the line, consult a lawyer.