How many members does r/gamedev have?

r/gamedev has about 2M members (as of July 2026).

How active is r/gamedev?

r/gamedev gets roughly 51 new posts per day (measured July 2026).

Strictly limited

Promoting on r/gamedev: Rules and What Gets Removed

r/gamedev is a large community for people making games to discuss programming, design, writing, art, game jams, postmortems, marketing, and industry experience.

members

~51

posts / day

2008

created

community rules

Can you promote your product in r/gamedev?

You generally cannot promote your product in r/gamedev. Rule 4 says, "This community is not for self-promotion" and that posts with only links to social media or game pages "will result in a ban." Narrow exceptions exist when a link has a valid game development purpose, such as seeking feedback, sharing a post mortem or analytics, sparking discussion, or offering a learning opportunity.

The rules that cover promotion

Rule 3: No Showcasing Projects

"Regardless of its development stage, this subreddit isn’t the place to showcase your project or artwork."

Rule 4: No Blatant Self Promotion - Context-Driven Link Sharing Only

"Posts with only a link to social media, game pages, or similar will result in a ban. This community is not for self-promotion."

Rule 4: No Blatant Self Promotion - Context-Driven Link Sharing Only

"links are allowed if they serve a valid purpose, such as seeking feedback, sharing a post mortem or analytics, sparking discussion, or offering a learning opportunity"

Quoted from the subreddit's own rules, snapshot from July 2026. Read all 8 rules on Reddit

What gets removed

Project or artwork showcases, Rule 3
Posts with only a link to social media, game pages, or similar, Rule 4 says this will result in a ban
Off-topic or low-effort content, at moderators' discretion under Rule 2
Soliciting employment or collaboration, Rule 5

Safer ways to show up

Ask for feedback in a way that adds value to the community, Rule 4 says sharing for feedback is encouraged when it adds value
Share a post mortem or analytics if the link supports discussion, Rule 4
Post something that offers a learning opportunity or knowledge related to game development, Rule 4
Use r/indiegames, r/playmygame, r/gamedevscreens, or the r/gamedev Discord for showcasing and feedback, as suggested in Rule 3

Whatever the written rules say, the pattern that gets promo removed everywhere is the same: batches of similar comments, reused wording, and necro-posting on old threads. A promotional mention only has value if it survives, so pace matters more than volume. We measured this the expensive way: 70% of bought pool comments were removed within two weeks. See also how to find customers on Reddit without getting banned.