GameMaker's GMRT runtime goes free for commercial games

GameMaker, the engine behind indie hits such as Spelunky, Deltarune and UFO 50, is removing one of the main costs of selling a game made with it. Its next-generation runtime, GMRT, will be free for commercial use from 1 January 2027, owner Opera announced in a press release.

What changes

The runtime is the part of the engine that actually runs your game on each platform. From the new year, developers will be able to build and commercially distribute games on GMRT without buying a Professional licence. That covers:

• desktop (Windows, macOS and Ubuntu are among GameMaker's targets),
• mobile (Android and iOS),
• web,
• and Opera's GX Games platform.

On top of that, source code access to GMRT comes with every tier. GameMaker opened up GMRT's source earlier this year; the new model lets the community study the technology, modify it for a specific project and potentially contribute changes back.

What stays the same

• Consoles are not included. Exporting to PlayStation, Xbox or Nintendo Switch still needs an Enterprise licence and approval as a developer.
• Prices don't change for any tier.
• Professional licence holders can keep shipping commercial games on the older GMS2 runtime, and they also get access to the GMS2 runtime source code.

GMRT itself is still rolling out in beta across platforms, so teams with games close to release may want to stay on the runtime they know.

"From the very beginning, GameMaker has been committed to making game development more accessible and flexible for every creator out there," said Russell Kay, head of GameMaker.

Why it matters

Licence costs are a real barrier for hobbyists and students who want to put a first game on Steam or itch.io, and rival engines such as Godot are free and open source. GameMaker says it has been downloaded more than 12 million times; Opera bought it in 2021. Making the new runtime free to ship gives that audience one less reason to switch.

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