Why is the processor limit in VMware player lower than the number of physical cores on my CPU?

My CPU has 18 cores, and, due to hyperthreading, 36 logical processors. However, VMware player's highest option in settings is a 16 processor virtual machine. Is there a reason for this? I have tried Googling, but have been able to find no answer. This is frustrating, as I would like to bring all my computational resources to bear.

I am on a Windows 10 host, using VMware Workstation 12 player to virtualize Ubuntu 16.04, and I have a Xeon E5-2697 v4.

(Why?)

Recent Questions...