Gaming communities have evolved beyond forums and leaderboards. Community is now a crucial part of a $196 billion industry: 84% of gamers feel that games connect them with peers. In fact, for 77% of Gen Z gamers, online gaming communities aren’t just spaces to play - it's where they feel most comfortable expressing themselves.

That’s why gaming communities on platforms like Discord offer game studios an umissable opportunity to build consumer loyalty and drive value. But real community isn't just about community leaders deciding how things should be: it's about developing a conversation between all members.

That's the guiding principle of Community Knowledge Management (CKM).

"With Community Knowledge Management we understand and believe that people have knowledge, stories and understandings to share," explains community-building expert Rosie Sherry. "Perspectives matter. We learn from each other. It is bottom-up rather than top-down."

With CKM in mind, gaming studios and brands in any vertical can build happy, healthy Discord servers that turn thriving fan engagement into a value-driving flywheel of tangible marketing and monetisation results.

What is 'Community knowledge management' (CKM)?

Rosie Sherry defines CKM as the collaborative collection, curation, and preservation of community knowledge. It’s not just about storing information - it’s about organising that info meaningfully so members (and community managers) can access it when they need it, fuelling growth and learning. CKM empowers communities to become interactive 'brains' whose thoughts are made up of collective insights and values.

When applied to the world of gaming communities, CKM means creating spaces where players share strategies, provide feedback and build a repository of trusted knowledge. In turn, community managers can make data-driven decisions and deploy proven engagement strategies in real time - a two-way conversation that transforms passive forums into vibrant hubs of collaboration, trust and insight.

Communities become dynamic, knowledge-driven ecosystems that players find both enjoyable and useful. They love to hang out here with their fellow superfans, deepening their emotional connection to a game, studio or whatever passion unites them and forms genuine friendships.

So what are the benefits of CKM and what challenges does it address?

Why CKM matters for gaming communities

77% of global players agree that video games bring different types of people together, according to research by the Entertainment Software Association. These diverse global communities thrive on connection and trust. Here’s how CKM contributes to their success:

1. Transforming static forums into dynamic hubs

CKM takes communities beyond the forum model, which in the past tend to look like an impenetrable jumble of the same questions and discussions being repeated, which could lead to members drifting away. But when conversations are organised and knowledge archives are readily available to all, you can employ gaming community engagement strategies to drive Discord community growth by nurturing a rich ecosystem of insight and creativity.

The perfect place for this to happen is on Discord, a chat app specifically designed for voice, text and video conversations neatly organised into channels. A Discord server takes forums to the next level.

Take the Helldivers 2 community, where brilliantly organized channels and top-tier engagement strategies empower teamwork among players and members, promote camaraderie and keep superfans returning for more. This community is a great example of how to fine-tune user experience to stay ou of users’ way so they can focus on engaging. New arrivals immediately enjoy an easy, low-friction experience from day one. That's CKM in action.

2. Fostering belonging and trust

Gaming communities are built on shared experiences - the shared experience of loving a game. CKM ensures these experiences are recorded, celebrated and preserved. From in-game experiences like videos or killstreaks to user-generated content and DLC, contributions from players foster a sense of ownership that strengthens bonds, builds player trust in gaming communities and fosters loyalty in gaming.

3. Enabling smarter community decisions

When community managers employ effective CKM, they gain a high-level view of player needs and trends. Data-driven community management in gaming means useful player insights for game studios, helping to inform and inspire the next strategy. Those insights guide you in the community and outside: helping admins and mods resolve conflicts, helping community managers imagine events that resonate with the player base, and helping developers think up new releases and content.

Just look at gaming platform Roblox, which gives users tools to create, share and monetise their own games. As a portal to user-generated games made by fellow players, Roblox encourages a sense of ownership and trust among gamers.

The human touch in an AI-driven world

AI tools are powerful when employed in the right places. But AI in gaming community management has limits when faced with the complex, contextual and ethical needs of human communities. So human moderation for Discord servers will always be essential - except manually overseeing a growing community is a huge amunt of work.

Fortunately, CKM bridges this gap by integrating human insight with AI capabilities.

• AI challenges: AI struggles with nuanced decisions, trust-building and ethical moderation, all of which are critical for vibrant communities.
• Human-led CKM: Community managers and members bring depth, empathy and trust to CKM.

The sweet spot is a combination of AI-driven tools, like data analytics or content tagging, guided by CKM practices. Smart automated tools backed by human moderation is key to maintain authenticity and trust even while scaling up.

So what does CKM look like in practice?

Discord engagement tips for game studios

There are various crucial ways CKM can elevate gaming communities:

1. CKM in player feedback management

Curated player feedback is really useful to guide game development. When players chat with each other in a safe space, studios and developers see the elements of a game that players love. This information can guide the creation of updates, sequels or DLC. A two-way conversation creates a feedback loop of trust and engagement that strengthens the community, draws in more members and in turn guides future updates.

2. Enhancing engagement

CKM helps identify what excites players. It pays to see that members love tournaments, lore discussions and collaborative projects, so you can create targeted, engaging initiatives that keep players buzzing and potentially extend the life of a game without having to continually release new content.

3. Building loyalty through context and attribution

Acknowledging player contributions fosters loyalty. When a community member comes up with something cool, CKM ensures those ideas, strategies and insights are properly credited. That's great for building trust with players.

4. Maintaining safe and inclusive spaces

Inclusivity and pro-active safeguarding are vital for gamers, who want safe spaces. With CKM’s emphasis on context and collaboration, gaming communities can set ethical standards and uphold inclusivity. Moderation becomes more time- and cost-effective when you deploy effective tools such as bots, customised notifications and automated mod features.

CLM and future gaming communities trends

The gaming industry is set to grow 6% by 2028. As part of this growth, one of the most important future trends in gaming communities is the continuing rise of social spaces. When you’re focused on building sustainable gaming ecosystems, CKM offers a path forward for studios and gaming brands looking to stay relevant and impactful. Here’s what the future holds:

1. Holistic ecosystems

Gaming communities will go beyond being nice-to-have 'features' to become essential, cross-functional tools. CKM will integrate seamlessly into broader ecosystems, supporting both players and businesses.

2. Inclusive and safe spaces

With CKM practices, brands can create environments that prioritise safety, inclusivity and ethical interaction. These spaces will reflect the diverse backgrounds, needs and voices of players.

3. Long-term value

CKM isn’t just about the now - it’s an investment in the future. With players and consumers already complaining of subscription fatigue, there's a need for clear, sustainable value in community models. By embracing CKM, gaming communities can ensure these spaces remain vibrant, trustworthy and essential, driving ROI now and into the future.

How Levellr puts CKM at the heart of community

A big factor in deploying CKM effectively is using the right tools. Levellr, which recently earned a $1.75m investment from gaming insiders, helps brands build and grow communities using our powerful yet easy-to-use tools - all designed with CKM in mind.

Levellr's extras turbocharge your Discord set-up, empowering community leaders to maximise your ROI and drive tangible value:

• Real-time analytics: Levellr provides insights into player behaviour, helping you understand what drives engagement at any given moment - and respond with value-driving strategies when it counts.
• Curation and moderation tools: By aligning with CKM principles, Levellr helps curate knowledge and maintain safe, inclusive spaces.
• Enhancing brand trust: Levellr empowers brands to avoid the pitfalls of AI, like spreading unverified content, while still leveraging in-depth data analytics and automated tools.

By integrating tools like Levellr, gaming brands can build interactive hubs that reflect your community's unique needs and values.

Become a leader in the community space with Levellr

Studios and brands that draw on CKM will position themselves to be leaders in the community space. CKM transforms gaming communities into thriving hubs of trust, collaboration, and innovation, driving long-term value by fostering belonging, engagement, trust and growth.

Expert community managers can guide you in building and growing a thriving, value-driving space for all. At Levellr, we work with a range of clients in multiple verticals and industries, from gaming to music and beyond, helping you drive tangible marketing ROI and monetisation value through meaningful emotional connection with fans.

Contact Levellr today to discover how our gaming community management tools can help you build thriving gaming communities on Discord that foster fan engagement, drive ROI and strengthen player loyalty.