However, a subscription model can also have many positive effects :
The software company behind the subscription model gets more resources to add new features. They also have to listen more to their customer base, because when they neglect feature requests or bug fixes too often, they loose customers.
In a subscription model, companies have to deliver a quality product. Also at least one major upgrade a year is necessary for the subscription to stay succesfull.
Unfortunately, both assertions have been proven to be untrue by Adobe's rental model: the quality of Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator and Dreamweaver has gone downhill ever since they went rental-only. Dreamweaver is a wreck - people have been leaving in droves. The quality of the updates have been lack-luster.
If anything, Adobe hasn't listened very well at all to their customer base, and the development teams seem to be more about keeping management happy.
Of course, good things have happened as well, but on a whole (based on the Adobe forums and the opinions of students in the past few years) the rental model has predominantly turned out to be a great thing for the shareholders and Adobe. Not as much for their users. My opinion - I am aware some Adobe users may disagree.
Anyway, the assertion that a rental model somehow magically forces a software company to produce quality updates and makes them listen more to their users is simply untrue. The same can be said about perpetual licenses with regular updates: if you do not keep your user base satisfied, they will leave at some point. Simple as that.
Why not give C3 a chance? If you have a present licence, it is half price for the first year. Lets see during that first year how C3 performs and if Scirra can keep up with new features and user requests. If after one year, you are not satisfied, you can still choose another game development tool.
There is also a monthly subscription model, which fit the needs of a hobbyist with limited finances. You can let say pay for April, not using it in May (in this case no subscription is paid) and then take a new monthly subscription for June.
In my personal opinion, I find the yearly subscription model very affordable but again, I respect when you think different.
Well, for me a rental-only business model means I will never choose Construct 3 as part of my pipeline. Just too risky. I think anyone who develops should have full control over their development tools, and not run the risk of losing access to their work just because the rent isn't payed.
Stop paying the rent, and the Construct 3 dev cannot edit the project - basically losing access to it. A rental model keeps your files (potentially) hostage. A perpetual license allows a developer to open, edit, and build their project whenever the need arises.
That worries me, and personally I think anyone even half-heartedly semi-professionally invested in their game projects would be stark mad to rent their development tools. For larger game dev teams and companies it may be worthwhile depending on the circumstances, but those teams generally opt for more "serious" and open game engines anyway.
It is as you say: this model might work for hobbyists. But I really am strongly doubting any serious developer would ever want to lock themselves and their work in a rental model. If Construct would be the only visual programming tool in town, it might work - but that is the thing: there are other tools that are either free or provide a perpetual license that are also more powerful than Construct 3 AND provide native platform export.
So I can't see the attraction of Construct 3 at this point, even if it has nice features. Because other tools already have better and more advanced options.
Always keep an open mind for new developments.
That is very much true, indeed. I quit part of my freelancing jobs last month and went "full indie" now! I have started work on my first independent game. I am still figuring out and researching the tools and pipeline, which is a lot of fun.
One thing is for certain, though: Construct 2 and 3 are not even a consideration for me anymore - the rental model approach clinched it (aside from the problems with native export and missing features). I will probably use Construct 2 for quick prototyping, though, to test ideas out quickly.