Discord will pull the plug on the Nitro Games catalogue, a subscription service perk that offered free games to Discord users as part of the company's $9.99-a-month premium tier. This means Discord is bowing out of the subscription gaming landscape, crowded by some fierce competition including Xbox Game Pass, Uplay+, Origin Access, and others.
Discord released the small bundle last year but, as Discord now reveals, it did not gain significant traction from users.
Discord Nitro Games Are Going Away
"While we and some of you love these games, the truth is the vast majority of Nitro subscribers didn't play them," Discord says in an announcement. "So, after careful consideration, we won't be hitting continue when these contracts come up for renewal."
The company will shut the whole thing down come Oct. 15. Discord knows this sudden removal may steer some subscribers, both existing and potential new ones, away. As a compromise, Discord says it will offer refunds to anyone who wants it.
While the free games service is going away, Nitro will remain. Launched in 2016, Nitro is a premium-tier subscription that's up from the standard, free version of Discord. It will remain available as an option for power users who want access to extra features.
Upcoming Enhancements
As Discord itself said, not a lot of people were enthusiastic about the now-doomed service, which is to say it won't be missed that greatly. Existing users have new reasons to celebrate, however. Moving forward, Discord says it will focus on creating "more features, fun, and enhancements" for Discord Nitro subscribers. Perhaps to offset the loss of free Nitro games, Discord says it's going to launch a doubled upload size of 100 MB for Nitro $9.99 subscribers.
Apart from that, the company says it'll also work to "make your Nitro boost more powerful," starting by reducing the "number of boosts needed to reach Level 3 by more than half — from 50 to 20." Boosts, for the uninitiated, allow users to support their community by unlocking a number of perks including emoji slots and audio quality upgrades.
Discord Nitro users can still play Nitro games until Oct. 15, at which point they'll be promptly removed. The library includes more than 60 titles available to play. Games purchased through Discord's marketplace are unaffected by this change. Nitro Game Perks, too, will stay.
Are you a Discord Nitro user? Are you personally disappointed or neutral about this forthcoming change? As always, if you have anything to share, feel free to sound them off in the comments section below!
