GameMaker sees 63% surge in new users aged 13-17 after making engine free for non-commercial use

GameMaker is one of the most accessible game engines. And the team has found that more and more young users are trying out the engine thanks to its free license tier.

In November 2023, GameMaker introduced several changes to its pricing model, making the engine completely free for non-commercial use.

Since then, the percentage of new users aged 13-17 has increased by 63%, while the 18-21 age group has grown by 49.6%. As GameMaker announced in a press release on July 11, this is based on responses from 1,000 new users (and compared to the last survey conducted in 2023).

“Making a video game should be as accessible as sharing a video or social media post online,” GameMaker head Russell Kay said in a statement. “Free access and easy to use tools are clearly important elements for those just starting out on their game development journey, so we’re proud to be supporting these young creative minds as it can only mean good things for the future of games.”

According to the team, the number of games created with GameMaker has also increased by 20% in the last six months.

The free license allows users to develop projects for PC, mobile, and web platforms, as well as publish them on the GX.games platform. The license is for non-commercial use and doesn’t allow games to be exported to consoles.

GameMaker has two other license tiers: Professional ($99.99, one-time payment) and Enterprise ($79.99 per month, allows export to consoles).

“The free version serves as an entry point for beginners, a one-time commercial fee is for the curious ones, while the subscription-based enterprise tier provides a scalable option for more experienced developers and professionals,” Kay explained last year.