I think you overestimate the capability and willingness of the average Discord user to go through that. Majority are not technical, they have no idea what self hosting is, what a VPS is, etc.

Also self hosting creates an issue of balkanization. Everybody will have to join everybody else’s server. Too much effort. The closest we can probably get is the Mastodon model.

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david_shaw 33 minutes ago | parent [-]

I agree that most Discord users do not want to self host. However,

> Everybody will have to join everybody else’s server. Too much effort.

This is already the model. Everyone has "their own" discord server, and you have to connect to it manually via an invite. That would actually be the exact same usage.

	▲	pjl0 10 minutes ago \| parent \| next [-]
		You can connect directly to other discord users with no mutual servers. You can make chats and calls with users with no mutual servers. You can make group chats and group calls with users with no mutual servers. You can screenshare in these calls, stream to the group, etc, all just by being Discord users. No need for a server.
	▲	spartanatreyu 15 minutes ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Clicking a link (discord's approach) is very different from downloading a different piece of software and setting up a new account for each gaming group