Pixologic ➔ Maxon ZBrush

[Metin_Seven]

@Toka

Can we please be clear about what is a known for sure and what is simply speculation.

Official word is that perpetuals will be continued. Although we do not know in what form or for how long or what the pricing will be. Nobody officially to my knowledge has yet mentioned ending perpetuals for enforced subscription. And nobody officially has ever suggested to my knowledge placing all existing permanent licence holders onto a subscription only system. This was worded as if it had already happened. Speculation is inevitable with so much up still up in the air and we all have been speculating here. But please when speculating can we keep it measured and clealry sign posted. Otherwise the facts become blurred and confused.

What could make this acquisition situation more complex than it initially might appear is the size and diversity of the ZBrush user base community combined with the unique character and innovative brilliance of the company behind it up till now.

There are still so many unknowns. I am not trying to be overly optimistic and I certainly don’t feel at all super optimistic. I just think it’s important we are clear about when we are speculating vs what has happened or is actually known and has been officially announced.

What can be said for sure I think is that this whole tale is an example of just how unpredictable the commercial software industry can be. Anyway, all the best.

Yeah, I also wonder what the core team of Pixologic already knows, but doesn’t dare to disclose.

My guess is this:

Maxon probably has full control over the future of ZBrush, otherwise Pixologic would reassure ZB users that they should not worry about possible radical changes in pricing / upgrade policy.

Looking at Maxon’s prices and subscription policy of C4D, Redshift etc., they will converge to ZB subscriptions, and will probably ask an upgrade price for perpetual licenses that matches the yearly cost of monthly subscriptions, which will be at least 12 x $40 = $480. This will mean you’ll need to pay half the price of a new license or more to upgrade every year.

If that’s the case, I will choose one of these options:

1. Maybe upgrade during a possible special discount offer period, such as Black Friday.

2. Continue using the last supported version of my perpetual license (2022.x.x).

3. Go full Blender Sculpt Mode + 3D Coat.

Let’s hope for the best, as the future of the ZB user community should not be messed up by corporate greed.

One thing’s for sure: I won’t be upgrading my Keyshot for ZBrush license anymore, as that would require even more recurring investment, and Blender + Cycles / Octane / Luxcore are very competent Keyshot competitors, with GoZ for Blender being a great tool for seamless transfers of a scene between ZBrush and Blender.