Discord launches update that includes built-in YouTube watch together support, cheaper Nitro tier

Discord has announced and implemented several new features out of beta, including Activities and a new, reduced price Nitro tier.

The major highlight of this update is the new Activities feature, which consists of built in games and other social experiences meant to entertain groups in a single DM or voice channel. At launch, these include games like minigolf and poker, as well as integrated YouTube support for simultaneous watchalongs.

Alongside Activities is another major launch of a new tier of Discord's paid Nitro subscription service. Called Nitro Basic and priced at $3 a month, the service includes some of the most popular features from the higher Nitro tiers, including support for custom emoji in every server and DM you're in, the ability to upload and share files up to 50 MB, and a Nitro badge for your Discord profile.

Though the main new features are Activities and Nitro Basic, the voice, video, and text chat service also added new tools for server admins and app developers. The new App Directory tool is an easier method to have admins discover and implement bots for their servers to enhance functionality beyond what's integrated into the base service feature set. This is extended into Discord's new Premium App Subscriptions and Ecosystem Fund designed to allow bot developers to make money off of the work that they've developed and is popularly used across the service.

Most of these features have rolled out and are available now globally, with Discord Nitro Basic rolling out starting October 20th.

Further coverage: Discord blog post Ars Technica Engadget TechCrunch