Discord is quietly becoming one of the most powerful growth engines in gaming

Naerlyn Published March 31, 2026

Discord is the premier platform for hanging out while playing games, so much so that it helps boost games’ popularity. Playing with friends allows titles to retain their players longer. Discord’s new features further enable it as a growth tool.

Discord is emerging as a growth and monetization platform for games

A report on the app’s website states that the average Steam player is playing fewer titles per year.

Between competitive multiplayer games that can be played endlessly, lengthy RPGs, rising prices, and the players’ loyalty already belonging to certain titles, people are less compelled to play as many new games.

However, the trend flips for Discord users. People who use it now play more games a year than earlier.

According to the report, players spend six times longer in a game when they’re on a call with a friend, or eight times longer if they’re on a call with three friends.

Friends on Discord make games more fun and more strategic. At the same time, they can convince their teammates to try out other games. That makes Discord one of the most efficient marketing tools.

Discord’s new features for growth and monetization

Bit by bit, the communication app introduced features to reduce the coordination cost to play with friends.

Account linking, activity sharing, out-of-game gifts, game profiles, exposed achievements. These are some of the tools Discord has been building to help connect players in and out of games.

People can see when their friends are playing and what they’re playing. Now with just a few clicks, they can join their game session.

By removing the need for organization in order to play with friends, Discord has made gaming parties happen more frequently, and in turn, the playtime benefits that they give for the games. Quests are also there to incentivize people to try out a new title.

Furthermore, Discord has also put these tools in the hands of the game developers. The devs themselves choose how their product interacts with the communication app.

With that control given over, Discord has become a legitimate and efficient growth tool for games.

Also read: Esports betting rises across CS2, LoL, VALORANT, MLBB, and Dota, per report

Featured image source: Discord