5 jobs · 16 apps
Best open source software for gaming communities
For a gaming community, a self-hosted stack starts with Pterodactyl for game servers, Mumble for voice and chat and Discourse for forums.
Run the whole community yourself: game server panels, voice and text chat, forums, game streaming and a retro game library.
Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily
Top picks
- Rank 1:
Pterodactyl
pterodactyl/panel
Management panel for game servers, with an intuitive UI for end users.
Active · last commit Oct 21, 2026
Game ServersPHPDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. Pterodactyl has 9,433 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 95 commits in the last year.
- Rank 2:
Pelican Panel
pelican/panel
Web application for easy management of game servers, offering a user-friendly interface for deploying, configuring, and managing servers, server monitoring tools, and extensive customization options…
Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Game ServersPHPDockerStands out for the most recent release (v1.0.0-rc.2, October 2026). Pelican Panel has 2,411 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 438 commits in the last year.
- Rank 3:
PufferPanel
pufferpanel/pufferpanel
Game server management panel designed for both small networks and game server providers.
Active · last commit Oct 25, 2026
Game ServersGoStands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. PufferPanel has 1,761 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license and had 98 commits in the last year.
At a glance
Open source software for gaming communities compared
Picked by hand for each job from apps whose own description or topics match it, in curated order inside each section, with GitHub data from October 2026; an app appears only once.
| App | Stands out for | License | GitHub stars | Commits (12 mo) | Last commit | Docker image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pterodactyl | the most GitHub stars | MIT | 9,433 | 95 | Oct 21, 2026 | Yes |
| Pelican Panel | the most recent release (v1.0.0-rc.2, October 2026) | AGPL-3.0 | 2,411 | 438 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| PufferPanel | a permissive Apache-2.0 license | Apache-2.0 | 1,761 | 98 | Oct 25, 2026 | No |
| LinuxGSM | a permissive MIT license | MIT | 4,913 | 216 | Oct 23, 2026 | No |
| Mumble | the most commits in the last 12 months (599) | BSD-3-Clause | 8,370 | 599 | Oct 27, 2026 | No |
| Stoat | – | AGPL-3.0 | 2,679 | 33 | Oct 7, 2026 | Yes |
| Fluxer | – | AGPL-3.0 | 10,691 | 3,025 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| Element | – | AGPL-3.0 | 13,620 | 3,192 | Oct 28, 2026 | No |
| Rocket.Chat | – | MIT | 46,344 | 2,486 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Discourse | – | GPL-2.0 | 48,023 | 7,492 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
1 of 5 · 4 picks
Game server panels
- 1
Pterodactyl
Management panel for game servers, with an intuitive UI for end users.
Game ServersDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. Pterodactyl has 9,433 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 95 commits in the last year.
- 2
Pelican Panel
Web application for easy management of game servers, offering a user-friendly interface for deploying, configuring, and managing servers, server monitoring tools, and extensive customization options…
Game ServersDockerStands out for the most recent release (v1.0.0-rc.2, October 2026). Pelican Panel has 2,411 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 438 commits in the last year.
- 3
PufferPanel
Game server management panel designed for both small networks and game server providers.
Game ServersStands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. PufferPanel has 1,761 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license and had 98 commits in the last year.
- 4
LinuxGSM
CLI tool for deployment and management of dedicated game servers on Linux: more than 120 games are supported.
Game ServersStands out for a permissive MIT license. LinuxGSM has 4,913 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 216 commits in the last year.
2 of 5 · 5 picks
Voice and chat
- 1
Mumble
Low-latency, high quality voice/text chat software.
Team ChatStands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (599). Mumble has 8,370 GitHub stars, uses the BSD-3-Clause license and had 599 commits in the last year; it replaces Discord.
- 2
Stoat
Stoat is a user-first chat platform built with modern web technologies.
Team ChatDockerStoat has 2,679 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 33 commits in the last year; it replaces Slack and Discord.
- 3
Fluxer
Instant messaging and VoIP platform built for friends, groups, and communities (alternative to Discord).
Team ChatDockerFluxer has 10,691 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 3,025 commits in the last year; it replaces Discord.
- 4
Element
Fully-featured Matrix client for Web, iOS & Android.
Team ChatElement has 13,620 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license and had 3,192 commits in the last year; it replaces Slack and Discord.
- 5
Rocket.Chat
Communications platform that puts data protection first (alternative to Gitter.im and Slack).
Team ChatDockerRocket.Chat has 46,344 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 2,486 commits in the last year; it replaces Slack and Discord.
3 of 5 · 4 picks
Forums
- 1
Discourse
Advanced forum / community solution based on Ruby and JS.
Social & ForumsDockerDiscourse has 48,023 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 7,492 commits in the last year; it replaces Reddit.
- 2
Flarum
Delightfully simple forums. Flarum is the next-generation forum software that makes online discussion fun again.
Social & ForumsFlarum has 16,433 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 15 commits in the last year; it replaces Reddit.
- 3
NodeBB
Forum software built for the modern web.
Social & ForumsDockerNodeBB has 15,243 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 3,424 commits in the last year; it replaces Reddit.
- 4
Lemmy
Link aggregator for the fediverse (alternative to Reddit).
Social & ForumsDockerLemmy has 14,651 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 330 commits in the last year; it replaces Twitter / X and Reddit.
4 of 5 · 1 pick
Game streaming
- 1
Sunshine
Remote game stream host for Moonlight with support up to 120 frames per second and 4K resolution.
Game ServersDockerSunshine has 42,731 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 858 commits in the last year; it replaces Steam Link / GeForce Now.
5 of 5 · 2 picks
Game libraries
- 1
RomM
ROM manager for organizing, enriching, and playing retro games, with support for 400+ platforms.
Game ServersDockerRomM has 14,075 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 6,144 commits in the last year; it replaces Steam Link / GeForce Now.
- 2
Gameyfin
Video game library manager with automatic scanning, web access, downloads, and plugin support.
Game ServersDockerGameyfin has 1,113 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 28 commits in the last year; it replaces Steam Link / GeForce Now.
Is there a self-hosted Discord alternative?
Yes. Stoat, Fluxer, Element (Matrix) and Rocket.Chat cover text chat, and Mumble covers low-latency voice. See the Discord alternatives page for the full list.
Is Pterodactyl free?
Yes. Pterodactyl is open-source software released under the MIT license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan.
Can I run this stack with Docker?
11 of the 16 apps here publish Docker images, including Pterodactyl, Pelican Panel and Stoat, so most of the stack can run side by side with Docker Compose on one server. Size the server for the heaviest app and add off-site backups.
How is this list ranked?
Picked by hand for each job from apps whose own description or topics match it, in curated order inside each section, with GitHub data from October 2026; an app appears only once.
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