In the wake of worldwide shutdowns and self-isolation as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, companies like Microsoft have announced increased console usage and game playtimes. Yesterday, Psyonix Studios Co-Head Corey Davis announced on Twitter there were nearly 500,000 active Rocket League players across all platforms as the game's 14th competitive season began.
Davis gave out this number in response to eSports consultant Rod Breslau posting an image of concurrent player tracking on Steam that shows Rocket League hitting a number well above its average over the past year. Breslau says this is the game's highest all-time peak player count, comparable to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive reaching a million concurrent users.
The soccer-like competitive game, in which players attempt to make goals with a large ball using rocket-powered vehicles, has been incredibly popular since it launched on PlayStation 4 and PC in 2015, and has been ported to the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. Coronavirus concerns have left many stuck at home without work, and that has apparently given plenty of them an excuse to break out Rocket League.
One has to wonder whether that number could have been even higher. Psyonix stopped supporting the Mac and Linux versions of Rocket League as of its update on March 10, but clearly that has not deterred players on other platforms.
Rocket League is available now on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch.