Discord Launches Game Store Beta

Discord launched a beta version of its game store on Tuesday with games ready to be purchased right from the messaging service.

Following a soft release of the Discord store, the game marketplace is now available worldwide, Discord announced. Featuring a library of games and a subscription service that gives access to more titles for a monthly price, Discord shared a blog post explaining why Discord users should check out the new store.

"We want to make it easier for you to find games to play with your friends," Discord's blog post said. "Our curated selection, editorialized content, and surfacing of social information should help you figure out which games are right for you. No need to browse endless lists of anime titles — we make it easy to find something great to play."

Included in the store is a selection of games that will be exclusive to Discord for a short time. Called the "First on Discord" or "FOD," the games that launch this way are exclusive to the PC platform through Discord for 90 days. The games might launch on console platforms during the FOD period, but they'll only be found through Discord on PC during that time. Discord already has a site up with trailers and descriptions for the games that can be seen here.

The Discord Nitro service has also expanded to include acclaimed games that Discord things people should play, the post explained. Subscribing to this service will now cost $9.99 a month with over 60 games included in the catalog at this time, a value that Discord appraises at over $1,000. Like other subscription services, games might leave the Nitro catalog, but save data will remain intact even if they leave. For those who still want to support Discord and its Nitro subscription but don't want all the games, Discord has another option for $4.99 a month that gives chat perks, custom emoji options, and other features referred to as "the classic Nitro load-out."

Those who already have their games spread out through multiple services and are apprehensive about having another client to deal with can use the Universal Library to make their game organization a bit easier.

"Enter our Universal Library. If you want, Discord can scan your computer for games. Then, you'll be able to launch any of your games through Discord even if they require another launcher (Discord will boot the other launcher and game). This way, you don't have to worry about which game boots from where!"

The Discord game store is currently available in a beta version.