GameMaker's GMRT runtime will soon be free for all developers

Bryant Francis,Senior Editor,GameDeveloper.com

October 23, 2026

schedule2 Min ReadLogo via GameMaker, graphic by Africa Studio via Adobe Stock.

Developers working in GameMaker will soon be able to ship their games for free on platforms such as PC, mobile, browser, and GX Games. That's being made possible by a new update from the Opera-owned game engine developer which will make its relatively new GMRT runtime free to use starting in January 1, 2027.

Previously, developers needed to purchase a professional license to ship games on GMRT or GMS2, the previously-existing runtimes for GameMaker. The company announced GMRT in April 2026, which brought new types of tooling to the beloved 2D game engine, including support for workflows incorporating AI-based programming on Claude Code.

In a statement announcing the news, a company spokesperson said this change is part of the company's strategy to make indie game development on GameMaker "more accessible."

"Developers will have more flexibility in how they work with GameMaker and a simplified commercial model for their new projects," they stated. "The community will also be able to explore GameMaker’s technology, tailor it to their specific project needs, and even potentially contribute to it."

Developers who already have a professional license will still be able to distribute games using the GMS2 runtime, and will "benefit" from access to GMS2 runtime source code. Developers looking to ship on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, or Nintendo Switch 2 will still need to purchase an enterprise license.

This announcement from GameMaker comes at an interesting moment for game engine platforms, which have taken multiple diverging paths in the wake of the Unity Runtime Fee fiasco of 2023, all seeming to align around the idea of speedin gup game development. Industry titans Unity and Epic Games have announced integration of LLM-based coding support in the next versions of their game engines, though Unity is exploring other interesting new features such as using a browser portal to let developers update builds without having to boot up the full Unity development studio.

Epic meanwhile, is depreciating support for Blueprints in favor of Verse, a coding language meant to be used with LLM-driven coding workflows often referred to as "vibe coding." It also will fully merge Unreal Engine with Unreal Engine for Fortnite (UEFN).

Indie developers elsewhere have flocked to Godot, with many praising the open source engine for its ability to speed up workflows by quickly letting them move from scene editor to scene preview. Though Godot's popularity has increased, developer affection for GameMaker remains steady, as it remains a potent tool for making high-quality 2D games.

Developers looking to learn more about Godot's offerings and its plans for GMRT can visit the company website.

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About the Author

Bryant Francis

Senior Editor, GameDeveloper.com

Bryant Francis is a writer, journalist, and narrative designer based in Boston, MA. He currently writes for Game Developer, a leading B2B publication for the video game industry. His credits include Proxy Studios' 4X strategy game Zephon, Iron Anchor Studios' Down With The Ship, and Amplitude Studio's 2017 game Endless Space 2.

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