"PJF, Corel only added the tree lab and metaballs as I remember it to the already existing Bryce 4.

tree lab
metaballs

soft shadows
depth of field
blurry reflections
blurry transmissions
true ambience
network rendering (platform independent)
control over ray depth and internal reflections
improvements to light controls
major improvements to terrain editor GUI

It's also worth remembering that the already existing Bryce4 had been updated by Corel to version 4.1, wherein they added gradient lights, new texture/material mapping modes (Sinusoidal, World Front, World Side, World Cubic, Object Cubic), support for custom star fields, and additional import/export plugins. For free.

Corel did its bit in the story of progressing Bryce. I'm sure it can be fairly slagged off for all sorts of reasons, but gratuitous neglect of Bryce isn't one of them. It came down to the bottom line. Those programs that delivered a sufficient return on Corel's investment were supported; those that didn't weren't.

All this happened at a time of steep competition in the 3D market. The prices of senior, professional programs plummeted, with some even offering free versions for non-commercial use. Full modelling and rendering applications like Carrara, Cinema and Amapi were available for free on magazine CDs; and damn near free via other offers. It's no wonder that Bryce found it tough going in that environment, particularly as it faced the strong and direct competition from Vue.

The bottom line also decided the 'wilderness years' for Bryce. Corel had to maximise return on their investment, and that led to the discounting and the long wait for somebody to come along with enough money to buy the property.

There's no sense in blaming Corel for that brutal economic reality - you might as well blame DAZ for taking so long to getting around to buying it. Considering the cynical treatment sometimes metered out to software by corporations (including Corel), I'd say Bryce was actually treated with some respect by that company.

I speak as someone who is a long-term user, and fan of, 'Xara'. I have every reason to 'hate' Corel and to regard its every move with suspicion. Indeed, if I were a user and fan of 'Paint Shop Pro', I would right now be abandoning all hope for its independent existence (long term it'll be asset-stripped/amalgamated into a Corel range of image manipulation programs serving beginners to professionals). But I don't see that corporate cynicism applied to Bryce. Bryce exited Corel alive and intact.

DAZ didn't buy some rotten, dead thing with nothing but worms and centipedes crawling through its empty eye sockets. It bought a viable, functional, stable and popular program that still leads the way in user friendliness for 'normal' people (computer/techno illiterates); and until Vue5 launched just recently, was still the overall landscape/consumer 3D leader.

I'm not offended in the slightest by the Corel logo appearing when I fire up Bryce. My hope is that I'll be feeling the same way about the DAZ logo in the months and years to come.