Introduction

At the bustling Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2025 in San Francisco, Joe Tung, the CEO of Theorycraft Games, stands calm and collected amidst the cacophony of the event. The atmosphere is thick with anxiety—developers are grappling with funding concerns, PR teams are frantically preparing for numerous releases, and industry professionals are passionately discussing AI trends, each with varying confidence levels. One question looms large over the conference: how can a creative team make its mark in an ever-crowding gaming landscape?

The Challenge of Standing Out

Tung understands that crafting a memorable gaming experience alone isn’t sufficient. Drawing from his extensive experience with industry titans like Bungie on Halo and Riot Games on League of Legends, he founded Theorycraft in 2020, aiming to create the 'deepest games in the world.' Their flagship title, Supervive—a unique blend of MOBA, battle royale, and hero shooter—aims to capture the attention of gamers hooked on League of Legends, Dota 2, and Apex Legends by promising both innovation and rich storytelling. As the game entered early access in November 2024, Tung's mission became clear: players need to discover and embrace Supervive.

Building a Community on Discord

'Success is about building a game that not only appeals widely but also engages players long-term,' Tung reflects. This challenge, he believes, is a concern many startup developers share. With countless games vying for attention, how can one possibly stand out?

Enter Discord. Since its inception, Theorycraft has utilized Discord as its central hub for communication and community-building, a strategy honed during the COVID-19 pandemic. As development for Supervive progressed, Discord became essential not just for hype-building but also for shaping game development through player feedback. Early playtests were conducted with Discord members, enabling direct communication between testers and the development team. Customized show matches streamed to the Discord community helped maintain excitement leading to future tests. Even Discord product managers participated in the playtests to create a tighter connection between the platform and the game itself.

Overcoming Initial Hurdles

'We put in an incredible amount of effort to build our initial community on Discord,' Tung shares, noting that reaching 100,000 Discord members before even entering alpha was no small feat. While many assume success comes easily, for Theorycraft, it has involved relentless effort.

Despite the high expectations based on the pedigree of its developers, interest in Supervive proved to be a nuanced challenge. The official announcement generated significant buzz within their Discord community but wasn’t a panacea. Now that Supervive is in early access, the survival of the title hinges not just on initial excitement but on the ongoing commitment of early players and the organic buzz propagated through Discord.

The Potential of Discord

With the industry saturated, Tung emphasizes the potential of Discord in connecting with core gamers. 'It offers a way for us to present our game to an audience that is not only qualified but more likely to engage with our content,' he explains.

During GDC, Discord unveiled its Social SDK, which provides developers with tools for deeper integration into games, including seamless chat features and inviting friends without leaving the game. Theorycraft was quick to integrate this technology into Supervive. 'The ability for players to message and invite each other without leaving their game is incredibly powerful,' Tung states, highlighting the potential for fostering immediate connections and seamless gameplay experiences.

Current Player Engagement

Currently, Supervive boasts an average of about 2,000 daily concurrent players—not the blockbuster numbers of some competitors, but certainly a solid foundation. User engagement on social platforms like Reddit, while passionate, is also tinged with anxiety as players question whether the game can gain traction leading up to its full launch. 'I’m really sad,' lamented one Redditor, reflecting common concerns about the game’s viability.

Looking Ahead

However, Tung maintains his composure under pressure. He remains positive about the possibilities that Discord collaboration presents for Supervive’s future, believing that the small size of Theorycraft enables more intimate development—something that can deeply resonate with players.

He asserts that nurturing long-term commitment among players will be achieved through tailored gaming experiences and regular competitive opportunities. 'While 'esports' might be an overly broad term, there are countless ways to create engagement,' Tung states. In today's landscape, where 'forever games' dominate, success hinges on community building just as much as game design. 'Nothing is more powerful than word of mouth,' he concludes, underscoring the impact of seeing friends actively engaged with a game.

Conclusion

As the gaming industry evolves, it will be fascinating to see if Discord indeed helps solve the ongoing discovery challenge faced by aspiring titles like Supervive, serving not only as a communication tool but perhaps as the crucial bridge to building a loyal gaming community. Will players embrace the innovation, or will it be just another game lost in the noise? Only time will tell.