While not disclosing that e-mail is optional is a dark pattern, it's still better than what almost every other site does, which is making it a hard requirement.

Another dark pattern on Reddit is that the web version only allows you to open content in their app. If you already have a compatible third party reddit app installed, "open in app" just sends you to the Play store. (Normal behavior is that if you have an app that can open those links, that app opens).

I think Reddit has realized that they have more savvy users who would flee if forced the official app, risking the same fate as Digg, but they're trying to push every other user into their ad-infested app.

Ironically, the harder a company tries to push their app, the more obvious it is to me that I cannot under any circumstance allow it to be installed on my phone. They're clearly trying to do something (almost certainly against my interest) that they can't do without the app.