Path of Exile 2 and Marvel Rivals ignited the gaming world with spectacularly successful launch weekends. Let's delve into the impressive achievements.
A Half-Million Strong Player Base
A Weekend of Record-Breaking Launches
The weekend saw two monumental game releases, each attracting a staggering 500,000 players on their respective launch days. Marvel Rivals, a free-to-play team-based PVP arena shooter, opened its doors on December 6th. Path of Exile 2, an action RPG, followed closely on December 7th, launching in Early Access.
Path of Exile 2's Early Access launch was nothing short of phenomenal, peaking at 578,569 concurrent players on Steam alone. This is particularly noteworthy given its paid Early Access status. Twitch viewership for the game exceeded 1 million on launch day. The game's immense popularity even temporarily overwhelmed SteamDB, the database tracking Steam statistics, leading to a humorous acknowledgment from SteamDB itself.
Even before launch, Path of Exile 2 surpassed 1 million pre-orders, a number that rapidly escalated in the hours leading up to launch. The influx of players purchasing Early Access caused the developers to implement a last-minute database upgrade to handle the unprecedented traffic. Despite these efforts, some players encountered login issues and disconnections, highlighting the game's intense anticipation and high demand.
Read Game8's review of Path of Exile 2's Early Access version!
