GameMaker drops the fee for releasing games on its new runtime

Developers working with GameMaker will be able to build and sell commercial games on the new GMRT runtime from January 1, 2027, without buying a Professional license. Builds for desktop systems, mobile platforms, web and GX Games become free. At the same time, the company is opening access to the runtime's source code on every tier.

Right now the scheme is different: the free version of the engine only allows non-commercial projects, and the right to sell a game requires a one-time payment of $99.99 for a Professional license. After the switch to the new model, the mandatory fee will remain only for those shipping on consoles.

Only consoles will require payment

Export to consoles still requires an Enterprise subscription and verified developer status. That rule applies to both runtimes, and the company has no plans to change tier pricing. The platforms GameMaker lets you publish games to from a single codebase include Windows, macOS, Ubuntu, Android, iOS, web, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch.

Professional owners keep the right to commercially distribute games built on the old GMS2 runtime, and additionally receive its source code. Studios not ready to port a years-long project to the new technology stay on the previous terms.

"From the very beginning, GameMaker has aimed to make game development more accessible and more flexible for every creator. As GMRT enters beta on new platforms, we are expanding the set of what we give developers," said Russell Kay, head of GameMaker.

The sources will open, but there will be no free license

The engine announced access to the runtime code back in the spring of 2026: the sources of the desktop, mobile and web versions of GMRT were promised to all users — with the right to read, modify and build them on their own. Enterprise holders additionally get the console portion opened for the platforms they have been verified for. Now the GMS2 runtime code for Professional holders is being added to that.

GMRT is not becoming an open project in the usual sense. The spring announcement specifically stipulated that commercial distribution of games requires a valid license, and the terms for working with the code are described in a separate GameMaker source code use agreement.

The practical benefit is still notable: a team gets the ability to investigate runtime bugs on its own and tailor it to a specific project. Until now, access to the sources was listed among the Enterprise tier's features.

The old runtime is frozen, the bet is on GMRT

The decision fits into a generational shift inside the engine. In the spring of 2026, GameMaker declared the GMS2 runtime functionally complete: new features are only being considered for GMRT, while the old execution environment receives only SDK updates and critical bug fixes at least until the first quarter of 2028.

The company calls GMRT a next-generation runtime, and the changes concern the production process first of all:

• GM CLI — a set of console tools that allows building projects and working with them outside the editor, via an API and the command line, which simplifies automated builds; the toolkit is being released under the Apache license;
• expanded 3D work: loading models from glTF, a scene graph, reworked matrix and quaternion math, basic animation;
• JavaScript and TypeScript as full-fledged languages alongside GML, with C# interop next in line.

The runtime is leaving beta platform by platform: desktop systems first, then mobile and console. The LTS26 support cycle started in May 2026 and will end in early 2028, with the next releases scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027.

The engine has been getting cheaper for creators for years now

The current step continues the line GameMaker has followed since YoYo Games came under Opera's management. The engine has long been available free for non-commercial use, and the previous subscriptions for small teams were replaced by a one-time Professional purchase for $99.99 — with discounts and credit for what was already paid provided for holders of older tiers. Now this payment disappears too, but only for projects on the new runtime.

The changes are probably tied to how competition among engines has shifted. Godot is distributed under a free license and has noticeably gained in popularity amid the dispute over Unity's install fee, which the company later abandoned; Unreal Engine takes royalties once a project crosses a revenue threshold. Against that backdrop, a one-time payment at the entrance looked like a weak spot for GameMaker: a beginning creator ran into a bill for the right to sell their first game.

If the trend holds, the engine's monetization center of gravity will shift toward the console segment and large studios, while the mass audience arrives for free. Code that is open for reading adds one more scenario: third-party patches and builds may appear around GMRT, and the engine will have to decide how to take community work back into the main branch — GameMaker itself mentions that possibility. The audience for it is there: the toolkit has passed the 12 million downloads mark, and Spelunky, DELTARUNE and UFO 50 were made with it.

Community reaction

The reaction to the announcement came the same day and was broadly welcoming. Under GameMaker's post and in quote replies, independent developers are delighted: from the start of 2027 the new GMRT runtime can be used to sell games without a professional license, and the source code becomes available at every level except consoles. Those who run courses and make games call the news incredible and are already estimating whether they will manage to ship a first game next year. The objections are quieter than the enthusiasm, but they exist. Someone who recently paid for a license jokingly asks why they paid, then immediately adds that the step will help many newcomers. Others want to know whether the fee for the old runtime will remain and what the point of a professional license is if commercial release on the new one becomes free. Individual voices consider open code reading insufficient and demand the engine be made genuinely free.

"This is incredible! The new version of GameMaker will be free for commercial use!"

— @_NoNexD (X)

"So why did I pay three hundred reais? Very glad about this initiative: it will help a lot of people."

— @luidda25 (X)

"For the love of God, make it free software and finally open the code."

— @folhaswwww (X)

What lies behind dropping the $99.99 license — pressure from Godot and Unity, weak subscription sales, a course set on console export?