Discord is rewriting its desktop app in Rust and dropping Electron, and the early numbers look very promising. Discord CTO and co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy posted a Task Manager screenshot on X showing the new client, listed as "Discord Phoenix," using just 290.2 MB of RAM. In the same screenshot, Steam's WebHelper sits at 856 MB and Battle.net at 344 MB. That's a big drop, as Discord said late last year that its current Windows client normally stays under 1 GB, and it even tested auto-restarting the app once it crossed 4 GB. Vishnevskiy also shared a side-by-side clip on two laptops showing the new client booting much faster, adding that clicking around "feels instant."

Mobile is getting the same treatment. According to Vishnevskiy, Discord is dropping React Native as well, so the mobile apps will keep their native interface while sharing app code with the desktop client through Rust. The new client is built on GPUI, the Rust UI framework from the team behind the Zed code editor, rather than Tauri as many had guessed. There's no release date yet, and Discord only says it hopes to get it into testing with users soon.

F-Stop, the Portal prequel Valve canceled in 2007, is now playable after the community stitched it together from several leaks. Most of its assets were already sitting in the gigantic 12 TB Steam2 archive that leaked in August, but that dump didn't include the game's source code or its mapsrc data, Valve's folder for map source files. Those two missing pieces showed up on the Valve Cut Content project's Discord server over the past few days, where the team verified the map files before everything was merged into one build. It isn't fully complete, as some textures and dialogue are still missing, but YouTube playthroughs suggest it's largely stable, and the campaign wraps up in under an hour. Getting a copy yourself is another matter, since the Discord server apparently went invite-only after all the attention.

F-Stop came out of what Gabe Newell later called the Directed Design Experiments, a three-month stretch where Valve split into five teams, each building its own prototype. Its central idea is an Aperture Science camera that photographs an object so you can place it elsewhere to solve puzzles, a concept the 2023 game Viewfinder later explored. Valve staff apparently liked it, but playtesters were less impressed. It was shelved, and some of its dialogue, characters, and mechanics were reworked into Portal 2. The playthroughs show an early Cave Johnson talking to the player (without J.K. Simmons' voice), along with personality cores acting as puzzle companions. Valve hasn't commented on this project, and there's no indication of an official release.

Discord has apparently realized that more and more companies and game studios have moved content, like announcements, guides, and product support, that would ordinarily have been hosted on blogs and forums to official Discord servers, effectively locking that content behind a Discord account and making it extraordinarily difficult to find in some cases. In response, the chat service provider has officially announced the roll-out of Server Web Pages in an effort to make discoverable Discord servers—those publicly available servers often used for support and announcements—more easily discoverable using search engines, like Google and DuckDuckGo.

Prior to Discord's launch, message boards were common, ranging from community-driven forums to official ones run by game studios. These message boards excelled at hosting long-form, structured conversations about helping people, theory crafting, and more. While they still exist today, many have moved into Discord servers. This has led to valuable information being locked in Discord conversations, inaccessible to the wider internet. We want to fix this.

Today, Shure announced the launch of the MV6 USB Gaming Microphone Gen 2, including a new white variant, the latest evolution of its digital MOTIV microphone portfolio. Following the success of the original MV6, the MV6 Gen 2 incorporates feedback from gamers, streamers, and creators to deliver a more customizable audio experience while maintaining an accessible price point.

Engineered specifically for PC gaming, streaming and content creation, the MV6 Gen 2 brings Shure's professional broadcast technology to more creators, including those purchasing their first dedicated microphone and looking to elevate their sound beyond a headset.

Discord was met with substantial backlash when it first announced that it would be adding age verification requirements globally, with the platform almost immediately rolling back the ID requirements after the backlash. It has since announced that it will be introducing new age verification methods, including credit card verification, Apple Store and Google Play Store verification, Google Wallet, and AgeKey—a third-party reusable age credential that can be used for multiple platforms. It will use these services to place its users in an age group—13-17 years and 18+ years—which will allow them access only to content appropriate for their age. While these new methods will apply to international users, users in the UK, Brazil, Australia, and the US state of Texas will have to follow different guidelines.

However, these new systems will not be the first resort for age determination. Discord says that, following the controversy with the ID requirement for age verification, it will prefer other ways to verify the age of its users, including account signals—account age and which servers users are part of, specifically. It says that these signals match biometrics on accuracy. Only in cases where there aren't sufficient signals to confirm user age, will Discord require users to verify their age using one of the aforementioned age assurance options. Users in the teen group will not have access to sensitive media, while messages to teens from non-friends will be filtered through message requests, and other users will not be able to see teens' full profiles or activity. They will also not be able to join age-restricted servers without confirming their age.

OpenMouse was announced in early August as a new open-source, browser-based mouse configuration software with support for some of the most popular gaming mice around, including brands like Logitech, Razer, Endgame Gear, Pulsar, and the Orbital Pathfinder, but it seems as though the dev team is now expanding into other peripherals.

The official X account for OpenMouse just posted a screenshot of preliminary support for the Wooting 60HE+ gaming keyboard in a development build. It's unclear which features are currently supported, but the dashboard shows the keyboard's connectivity mode—suggesting both wired and wireless keyboards may be in development—firmware version, actuation distance, and Rapid Trigger distance. There are also tabs for Performance, Lighting, Buttons, Profiles, and Advanced. Support for the Wooting 60HE also suggests that Wooting's other keyboards, like the 80HE, should be fairly easy to implement, since they all use the same protocol.

Following the launch of the Valve Steam Deck, there has been a growing tide of game and software developers looking to bring their products and projects to the growing body of Linux gamers. Epic Games is no different, with the company previously revealing in a job listing that it was looking to expand Easy Anti-Cheat support on Linux. Following an announcement that Epic Games was rebuilding its game launcher with a new framework that promises 5× faster launch speeds, there has also been speculation that the Fortnite company could be launching a native Linux version of the Epic Games Launcher.

Now, as reported by Steam Deck HQ, an Epic Games employee has revealed in a Discord Q&A that a Linux version of the launcher is in development and would be launching "soon," when asked about the possibility by a Discord member. This doesn't actually give anyone a timeline or state of a native Linux version, but it serves as confirmation that Epic Games is actively working on Linux support. It's also an indicator that Epic Games is starting to take Linux more seriously as a gaming platform, despite CEO Tim Sweeney's prior dismissive remarks about Linux.

Razer, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, today announced the Razer Seiren V3 Chroma 32-Bit DSP, a premium upgrade of its signature Chroma-powered USB microphone.

Built for creators and streamers who demand studio-grade vocal quality without the complexity of traditional audio rigs, the new microphone incorporates advanced hardware processing capabilities from the acclaimed Seiren V3 Pro to help deliver crisp, reliable audio from any home setup.

It hasn't been long since Logitech launched the G Pro X2 Superstrike gaming mouse that made waves thanks to its adjustable haptic feedback and actuation distance features, but it already seems as though the peripherals maker is preparing a new iteration of the G Pro X2 Superstrike. According to a recent leak via the Pericord Discord server, shared by @jakeufps on X, Logitech will launch the new mouse at Logitech G Play in September.

It's unknown if there will be any physical changes to the mouse, and obviously, the rumors are unconfirmed, but the supposed leaker says that the mouse will not get a new sensor, at least not a full Hero 3 update, but it will get an upgraded MCU, and tweaks to the HITS haptic feedback and adjustable actuation system. Since Logitech launched the X2 Superstrike, a number of other mouse makers have entered the magnetic mouse switch market, so Logitech will have more competition than last time. At the time of writing, gamers are asking for improved skates and a redesigned shell, mostly to reduce weight and rebalance the weight so that the second-gen Superstrike isn't as front-heavy.

Jsaux, the maker of a smorgasbord of functional and decorative Steam Deck accessories, has just provided an update on its previously announced Steam Machine faceplate project, which it has revealed to potentially be coming in three separate iterations. On the brand's Discord, it recently held a poll asking for community feedback on three separate versions of the faceplates: one with a large monochrome e-ink display akin to Valve's initial prototype, another with a smaller color e-ink display with a knob and additional buttons on the front, and another with a large color dot matrix display.

It's unclear whether Jsaux will release all three versions of the display, but judging by the response on Discord, both versions of the e-ink faceplate were popular, although the full-size monochrome e-ink display ended up winning the popular vote with 49% of the votes preferring that version. It's worth noting that Jsaux's Discord poll simply asked which version of the display faceplate the accessory maker should launch first, and not which version it should launch at all, suggesting there is at least some intention to launch all three versions.

Discord has been available on Linux for a number of years, but it's never been the smoothest experience—the Flatpak is often the focus of complaints, and the .deb installation comes with all the hassles of managing and updating the installation manually. In an announcement published to the official Discord YouTube channel, however, Discord has announced that it is introducing more comprehensive Linux support, starting with new packages and official support for both Fedora and Arch Linux, which should cover just about every mainstream platform that Discord might be installed on.

The Discord Linux client is also receiving a bunch of bug fixes and updates, not the least of which is proper hardware accelerated video encoding support for AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA GPUs. Screen and game capture now also use Gamescope or Vulkan directly, reducing the overhead and allowing games to use more of the available hardware that might otherwise be used by Discord. In the announcement, Discord more or less confirms these Linux changes came as a result of adoption of the Valve Steam Deck. Discord will also now automatically update, and it will be available to install via the Fedora RPM. Other miscellaneous updates include Wayland idle protocol support, universal hotkey support for push to talk, and audio and video capture improvements.

It was recently leaked that Xbox Game Pass would likely become part of bundle deals with the likes of Netflix and potentially other partners, and, as per a recent announcement by both Discord and Microsoft, one of those partners is Discord. The occasionally controversial gaming-first communications platform will now include Game Pass with its paid Nitro subscription service. The Xbox Game Pass subscription included with Nitro is a slightly cut-back version of Xbox's service—Discord calls it a "starter edition"—and it offers "50+ PC and console games." Game Pass is also only included on the full-fat $9.99 version of Nitro, not Nitro Basic, although that's likely still a deal for some PC gamers, depending on taste.

The Nitro plan included with Game Pass has more severe limitations, though, the most notable of which is the lack of online multiplayer on consoles and a 10-hour monthly limit on cloud game streaming. Game Pass will also be directly integrated into the "Now Playing" statuses on Discord. Nitro subscribers will be able to launch Game Pass games directly from Discord—likely by first launching the Xbox app—if they see a game their friend is playing and want to join in. Discord Nitro users will also now have access to discounts of up to 30% on Logitech G, SteelSeries, and KontrolFreak products as of the new Nitro update, which is rolling out to Nitro users in waves "over the coming weeks."

Quantic Dream today opens a new chapter as Spellcasters Chronicles enters Early Access on Steam, now available to players worldwide. Spellcasters Chronicles is a free-to-play, 3v3 team-based action strategy game built around aerial combat and strategic deckbuilding. Players wield the power to soar across the battlefield, cast devastating spells, and summon powerful creatures and Titans to shift the tide of the battle.

The game's Early Access represents an open Workshop, a collaborative space where players are invited to actively shape the evolution of the game alongside the development team as a living, evolving experience shaped by community feedback. Unlike previous Closed Beta tests focused on performance work and technical stability, this phase shifts the focus toward gameplay depth, balance iteration, progression systems, and long-term feature development.

Shortly after Discord announced a plan to expand its use of Persona age verification globally as part of its new "teen-by-default" account settings, it has confirmed in a recent FAQ page update that it will not require age verification for "90%+ of users" after facing significant backlash. The social media platform explains that it will be going ahead with its teen-by-default, but that most users just don't access age-restricted content or because the internal age verification systems will be able to automatically determine age without any user action. Discord's CTO, Stanislav Vishnevskiy, said in a blog post that "we knew this rollout was going to be controversial. Any time you introduce something that touches identity and verification, people are going to have strong feelings," but effectively explained that the original announcement was misinterpreted or explained badly. He goes on to say that Discord was evaluating Persona for biometric age verification data in an experiment in January, but has since decided not to proceed with the Persona partnership because it did not meet the bar of requiring on-device verification. He does, however, say that Discord will require age verification via k-ID in countries like Australia, Brazil, and the UK, where laws require it and do not allow Discord's internal estimation system. Discord will also be introducing a new "spoiler" channel option, which will allow communities to stop using age-restricted channels to avoid discussions about spoilers and politics.

At the same time, however, it was revealed in a post on Bluesky that Twitch has adopted Persona as an age verification system for Twitch Partners in order to receive payment. The age verification process required users to submit a selfie along with an image of a government ID card, passport, or driver's license. This report of mandatory Persona age verification on Twitch comes shortly after it was reported that hackers had discovered an exposed frontend for Persona that both demonstrated the platform's lackluster security and revealed ties to the US government and a potential mass-surveillance apparatus, although these were partially explained as an upcoming partnership with the government to verify the identities of remote federal workers. It's unclear how widespread Twitch's use of Persona is at this point in time, but a number of creators have made their voices heard via an open letter in Twitch's User Voices feature in light of the recent controversies surrounding Persona.

Highguard players recently noticed that the game's official website was offline, leading to widespread speculation that the ailing game was silently shutting down shortly after the studio laid off "most" of its development team. However, according to a response from one of the developers on Discord, the site being down isn't an indication of the future of the game, with the implication being that resources are being redirected towards the game content itself, while the site will be reworked and "simplified" before it is put back online.

"Not sure on the timeframe, but basically needs to be transferred and simplified. Low priority atm (reputational damage already done). Now we just need to focus on delivering updates and content to improve," explains the developer in a response to a question about the site being down, implying that the studio is still investing some resources into keeping the game alive, even if much of game's development team is no longer there. This isn't the first time we're hearing of planned new content, as a former developer at Wildlight revealed that the company had already been working on a lot of new, unreleased content that was to land post-launch.

Following Discord's introduction of digital ID and face scanning requirements for some online servers, many users have started exploring alternative communication platforms. As a result, the well-known TeamSpeak software has experienced a significant increase in new users. In the United States, TeamSpeak's current hosting capacity has reportedly been maxed out, with all servers operating at full capacity. Despite this, the company has announced plans to expand by adding additional Frankfurt-3 and Toronto-1 instances to accommodate new users. Currently, only a few regions still have available capacity, including Amsterdam-3, along with the newly announced Frankfurt-3 and Toronto-1.

Discord has revealed that its new age verification requirements will take effect in early March 2026. These settings will automatically place all existing and new Discord accounts into a mode that filters out content unsuitable for minors, creating a "teen-appropriate experience." Users who wish to access age-restricted content will need to complete an age verification process, which involves either uploading a scan of a government-issued ID or using facial recognition to confirm their age. However, not all users will need to undergo this process, as Discord will also implement an age inference model. This model will analyze user accounts by examining the types of games played, the amount of time spent on Discord, and the times users are active to determine if they are adults. Discord states that the new system aims to provide strong protections for teens while allowing verified adults more flexibility. As users seek software that doesn't restrict their online experience, migrations are expected, and TeamSpeak is the "old reliable" alternative that the community leans on.

Discord recently announced its age verification system, which would set all current user accounts to a teen-appropriate account mode by default unless the user's age is verified by an inference model or by submitting a selfie video or government ID. The backlash in online circles was notable, with some decrying the move because of privacy concerns after Discord's age verification partner already suffered a leak in October 2025. The announcement also reportedly resulted in a surge in searches for alternatives to the platform.

According to Google Trends search analytics, the search volumes for "Discord alternative" skyrocketed immediately after the announcement of the new age verification policy on February 9. Popular related searches also show a rise in search popularity for alternatives like Matrix, Root, Stoat (previously Revolt), Ventrilo, and even TeamSpeak, while a post in r/pcmasterrace on Reddit suggesting that gamers need a "proper Discord alternative" has 16,000 upvotes and over 2,000 comments, with most commenters in agreement, and many suggesting Stoat for its open-source development. Others have chimed in lamenting not only the age verification requirements but also the decline in quality of Discord and the aggressive monetization that has become popular on Discord lately.

Discord will be the latest social media platform asking for government identification or a facial scan in order to access content deemed not safe for minors. In a new blog post, Discord has announced "teen-by-default" settings, which will go into effect in "early March 2026." The new settings will set all existing and new Discord accounts to the "teen-appropriate experience" mode, which will filter out all content inappropriate for minors. Discord users who wish to access age-gated content will need to go through an age verification process, which will involve uploading a scan of a government-issued ID or by scanning their faces to verify age. This policy has already been in place in the UK and Australia since 2025, but this move will see the change roll out globally. This may not be necessary for all users, since the social media platform will also be implementing its age inference model, which will analyze user accounts—looking at the types of games users play, the amount of time users spend on Discord, and what time they are active—to determine whether they belong to adults. Discord claims the new system is being implemented in the name of "giving teens strong protections while allowing verified adults flexibility."

Discord says that the selfie video used for age verification never leaves the user's phone, and that all processing is done locally. ID documents, on the other hand, are processed by a third party service provider, and documents are "deleted quickly—in most cases, immediately after age confirmation." Discord divulged in a support page that it uses k-ID for age verification, and even in the short time that the age verification system has been a requirement, there have already been reports of privacy breaches—in one instance, up to 70,000 user profiles (emails, names, and other contact information), along with government IDs and credit card information were reportedly accessed by hackers in October 2025. This age verification system mirrors the system adopted by Roblox not too long ago, and the online response has been similarly pessimistic.

Recently, GOG, the game storefront and distribution platform, took some heat over the inclusion of AI-generated art in promotional imagery for a New Year sale. It received so much backlash online that an employee in the marketing department took to the GOG forum to respond the same day news broke, however, now, GOG has issued an official response in its Discord server for GOG Patrons (courtesy of Kotaku).

In the lengthy response, the GOG representative explains that the art was indeed AI generated, although this had been confirmed previously, but they explain that the banner was a WIP (work in progress) asset and was never meant to be shared. GOG also says that it "failed on at least two levels: Quality-control of the asset that landed on the front page, and then reacting quickly enough when we noticed the error." The rep goes on to acknowledge its community's disappointment in the use of AI, but says that GOG is a very small team that has been testing different technologies and tools that allow the team to do more with fewer hands. The full statement is available below, but it essentially seems as though GOG is incorporating generative AI into its workflows, despite the negative backlash, internally, externally, and even from the gaming industry at large.

The Finalmouse Centerpiece is a 65% Hall effect keyboard with transparent keycaps and a display under those keycaps, and it captured the imagination of many a gamer and keyboard nerd when it was first announced back in 2022. Since then, the keyboard has been affected by multiple delays, and even since production has been underway, there have been plenty of complaints about the speed at which the company can get out pre-orders. Those same complaints have just been met with a response that effectively calls customers impatient and appears to dismiss their concerns.

In a recent Discord message, shared by @Cager_CA on X, Finalmouse effectively confirms that production of the Centerpiece keyboard is slow, telling buyers who have expresses concerns over the pace of delivery that Finalmouse "was not founded to chase calendars, appease impatience, or shave meaning from creation in order to meet an arbitrary date," explaining further down that "each unit is completed and shipped only when it meets the standard we set—not the standard demanded by noise, deadlines, or convenience." He also goes on to say that there will likely be further delays thanks to the imminent Chinese New Year celebrations, which routinely result in production line shutdowns across large swathes of the Chinese production industry as workers head home to celebrate the festivities. This response was largely met with skepticism, with many calling out the focus on quality and craftsmanship, alleging that Finalmouse has a reputation for delivering gaming mice with poor QC.

We recently reported on a series of firings at Rockstar, which resulted in accusations of union busting from the affected employees and the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain and a subsequent open letter from over 200 Rockstar North employees demanding that the fired employees be reinstated. Following the aftermath of the firing, the matter was brought up in a session of the British parliament, to which Keir Starmer responded that ministers would "look into the particular case" of alleged union busting. Rockstar, for its part, insists that the employees were fired due to "gross employee misconduct," with Rockstar claiming that confidential information was leaked in a public forum—in this case a Discord chat—although the union fighting on behalf of the employees denies these allegations.

Whether the UK parliament will actually uncover anything meaningful is unclear, although the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain's Game Workers division has filed a lawsuit against Rockstar Games alleging wrongful dismissal. In the press release about the lawsuit, the IWGB revealed that it had attempted to meet with Rockstar Games, although the game studio had declined the meeting request. This is also only the latest in a long line of layoffs that has plagued the gaming industry for the last few years, with an unofficial gaming layoffs tracker reporting that over 3,500 gaming employees have been laid off in 2025 so far.

Elgato, a Corsair brand, today unveiled Stream Deck Mini: Discord Edition, available exclusively at select retailers worldwide. Featuring Discord's iconic look, the device gives users instant, tactile control of their microphones, soundboards, and more in the app. Its six keys are fully customizable, expanding capabilities beyond Discord to music and games, with access to hundreds of plugins on Elgato Marketplace. Each special edition comes preloaded with essential Discord actions and includes a free month of Nitro, unlocking in-app perks. For Discord's millions of daily users, Stream Deck offers powerful new ways to talk, play, and hang out with friends, while making setups feel more alive.

The device marks Elgato's first-ever retail exclusive, a milestone that reflects Stream Deck's evolution from a tool for streamers to a fixture in online communities.

It seems as though Digital Extremes, the developer behind Warframe, and now Soulframe, is ready for a larger audience to try out the new sci-fi fantasy game. Soulframe is being pitched as a co-op action hybrid-MMORPG with challenging Soulslike combat mechanics and some elements borrowed from Warframe. After running closed alpha testing for what seems like an eternity—since late 2023, in reality—Digital Extremes recently announced that interested gamers would have a short time to claim Envoy access for early game testing by linking their Twitch account to their Soulframe account.

Digital Extremes has kept the scope of its early tests quite narrow until now, and opening the invitations to a wider audience is an indication that the game is starting to take a more cohesive shape, even if the move wasn't the original plan. According to the announcement on Discord and the Soulframe forum, anyone who links their Soulframe account to their Twitch account before April 29 at 3 PM ET will receive a Soulframe Preludes invitation via email. This announcement comes after technical issues plagued the Twitch Drop campaign that was active during Devstream 5 on Friday, 25 April. Players who already have a preludes access key be able to transfer their key to a friend or another person.

Hi everyone—I have some big news to share, so I'll cut right to the chase: we have hired a new CEO to lead Discord through our next chapter of growth and someday becoming a public company. I am thrilled to share that Humam Sakhnini will take on this role, and I will continue as a member of our Board of Directors and Advisor to the CEO. Read on for the details. Building Discord has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. From the very beginning, our mission has been about bringing people together around games. It's a mission I've dedicated my career to, and seeing it come to life through all of you and the impact we've made together has been nothing short of extraordinary. I've learned more than I ever imagined I would, and I'm deeply grateful for so many friendships, challenges, and achievements along the way.

As we enter our next phase, I've been reflecting on how I can best contribute to Discord's long-term success. The job of a CEO is constantly evolving, and over the years I have continuously "hired myself out of a job." Usually that means delegating work and then taking on different leadership challenges. However, as I look at what is needed of Discord's CEO over the next few years, I realize that it's time for me to literally "hire myself out of a job." One thing I know for sure: our company is bigger than any one person. Its future depends not just on me, but on a strong leadership team, a clear vision for what comes next, and all of your incredible talent, care, and hard work. Today's Discord has all of that. It's by far the best version of the company we've ever had. We have a clear strategy, new business lines to grow into, love and passion from our users, and an incredible team of people working tirelessly to deliver for them.

Over the past weekend we shared the first look at Marathon's gameplay in our livestream from Bungie headquarters, and now we're here to recap the highlights! In the Gameplay Reveal Showcase, we sat down with game director Joe Ziegler, franchise art director Joseph Cross, senior design lead Lars Bakken, gameplay director Andrew Witts, and senior social media manager Andy Salisbury to chat about everything from favorite Runners to gunplay to expanding the Marathon legacy. Want to see the full show? Check out the VOD below. It has all of the videos you'll see here, plus a bunch of extra details and fun moments with the team.

UP FIRST... Important dates and our first playtest
The Marathon Closed Alpha Test runs from April 23 to May 4, and Marathon launches on September 23, 2025. Wishlist on Steam to keep up with the latest news. Want to sign up for your chance to join the first playtest? Join the official Discord and follow the steps in the server to sign up. We'll be inviting players at the start of the playtest and throughout the playtest, so keep an eye on your inbox. The Closed Alpha Test will be available to players who are 18+ and located in North America. It'll be a fairly small playtest as we test our technical capabilities and gather important feedback before bigger tests. We know there are lots of you who won't be able to get in (yet), and we see you. Please hold tight! We'll be there soon