Game developers who recently paid for Quixel assets have an unexpected reason to check their Epic accounts. Megascans is becoming free again, and eligible purchases made since January 1, 2025, will be refunded. However, the announcement includes another significant change: Epic Games is now allowing its scanned assets to be used for training artificial intelligence models.
Confirmed by Quixel on November 5, 2026, the decision reverses the paid-access model introduced with Fab at the beginning of 2025. It also changes what creators can do with Megascans and Megaplants, connecting a familiar game development resource with the growing use of generative AI in digital environments.
Megascans becomes free again after its move to Fab changed access
For years, Quixel Megascans was closely associated with Unreal Engine development. Epic Games acquired Quixel in 2019, and the scanned asset library remained free for projects created with its engine.
That arrangement changed when Epic introduced Fab in 2024. The new digital marketplace brought together different categories of creative resources, while Megascans moved into the platform’s catalogue. From January 1, 2025, the assets were no longer available for free under the previous arrangement.
Now Epic is reversing that decision. According to Quixel’s official announcement about restoring free access to Megascans, the complete library is once again available without charge through Fab.
For independent developers, environment artists and small studios, removing the purchase requirement can simplify access to scanned materials. Instead of treating each asset acquisition as a separate expense, creators can explore the library without the same upfront financial barrier.
However, free access is only one part of the announcement. The revised terms also introduce a new permission that could have wider implications for how digital environments are produced.
Megascans and Megaplants can now be used to train AI models
Alongside the pricing change, Quixel has updated the terms governing its assets. Megascans and Megaplants can now be used for AI model training, allowing developers to incorporate real-world scanned material into machine-learning workflows.
Quixel explains that these models can learn from physical-world scans to help generate varied, photorealistic environments for creative projects. This introduces a different potential use for the library beyond placing individual scanned objects directly into a game scene.
The practical changes for creators include:
- Free Megascans access – The complete Quixel Megascans library is available again through Epic Games’ Fab marketplace.
- AI training permission – Updated terms allow Megascans assets to be used to train artificial intelligence models.
- Megaplants AI rights – The new AI training permission also applies to Quixel Megaplants.
- Environment generation possibilities – Models can learn from real-world scans to help produce varied, photorealistic environments.
- Existing purchase protection – Eligible customers receive refunds while retaining their previously acquired licenses.
- Studio license distinction – Companies operating under Quixel studio contracts remain subject to their individual agreements.
There is an important distinction between making scanned assets available for conventional game development and permitting those assets to become training material. The first involves using existing resources in a project. The second allows their visual information to contribute to models capable of generating new content.
That difference makes this more than a pricing announcement. Epic is expanding the permitted applications of Quixel’s materials, although the announcement does not specify particular AI tools, model architectures or additional technical requirements.
Epic’s AI decision contrasts with other creator platforms
Quixel’s updated terms arrive while other gaming platforms are taking different approaches to artificial intelligence and creative ownership.
For example, Battle4play recently covered Nexus Mods’ new AI rules and creator permission controls. That platform is focusing on disclosure and on giving creators more control over how their work is used.
The distinction is worth understanding. Nexus Mods is addressing how creators communicate and control the reuse of uploaded modifications. Quixel, meanwhile, is changing the permissions attached to assets distributed through its own catalogue.
Neither approach answers every question surrounding generative AI. Nevertheless, both demonstrate that permissions are becoming a central part of digital content distribution, rather than a detail considered only after an asset has been downloaded.
A related development can be seen in itch.io’s new search filters for AI-assisted and AI-free games. Those controls focus on helping players distinguish between different development methods, whereas Quixel’s announcement concerns what developers are permitted to use as training material.
Together, these changes illustrate three different challenges facing the industry: access to creative resources, permission to reuse them and transparency about how finished projects are made.
Creators who purchased assets since January 2025 can receive refunds
The financial side of the announcement is particularly relevant to customers who bought Quixel content after the library became paid.
Epic will refund qualifying purchases of Megascans or Quixel Bundles made on or after January 1, 2025. Refunds will be credited to the customer’s Epic Account Balance.
Importantly, that balance is not restricted to Fab. It can be spent across Epic products, providing customers with more flexibility over how they use the refunded amount.
These are the steps to claim a Megascans refund
Here are the confirmed refund steps and conditions:
- Check purchase eligibility – The refund applies to Megascans assets and Quixel Bundles purchased on or after January 1, 2025.
- Log into your Epic Account – Use the Epic account associated with the eligible purchases.
- Accept the latest terms – Customers who have not already accepted the updated terms must do so to receive their refunds.
- Keep existing licenses – Refunded customers retain their licenses and receive the new AI training rights.
- Receive Epic Account Balance – Eligible refunds will be credited to Epic Account Balance, which can be used across Epic products rather than exclusively on Fab.
- Check the refund deadline – Quixel says the refunds will appear in account balances by the end of 2026.
- Review your balance on Fab – Log into Fab.com and check the Epic Account Balance displayed in the upper-right corner.
- Contact support if necessary – Customers experiencing problems should reach out to Fab support.
The January 2025 cutoff is not arbitrary. It corresponds to the date when Megascans stopped being free following the marketplace transition. Consequently, the refund policy addresses customers who paid for assets during the period now being reversed.
Quixel has not announced individual refund amounts or a more precise processing schedule. Therefore, eligible customers should use the end-of-2026 deadline as the confirmed reference point rather than assuming their balance will update immediately.
Studio contracts remain separate from the new free-access policy
Although the full Megascans library is becoming free on Fab, companies holding Quixel studio licenses should not assume their existing agreements have been replaced.
Quixel explicitly states that studio licenses continue under the terms of each individual contract. Businesses with questions about how the announcement affects their arrangements are advised to contact their Quixel representative.
This distinction matters because commercial asset agreements can involve arrangements different from those available through a public marketplace. The announcement confirms the continuation of existing studio contracts, but it does not provide enough information to determine how every company’s agreement may be affected.
For individual creators, the immediate consequences are easier to identify. The asset library is free again, qualifying purchases are being refunded and AI training is now a permitted use under the updated terms.
For the wider game development industry, however, the more interesting question concerns the future role of scanned assets. Resources once used primarily as ready-made environmental components can now also contribute to systems designed to generate new environments.
Megascans returning to free access removes a financial barrier that appeared in 2025. Yet its new AI permissions may prove just as consequential for developers exploring different production workflows. Will creators primarily welcome the restored access, or will the expanded training rights become the bigger story?
Creator of the website, Pokemon trainer by nature. Trying to report on everything related to the world of video games, series and movies. Yu-Gi-Oh is my weakness, collecting cards since the dawn of time.
