The massive success of Valheim continues. Iron Gate AB's exploration and survival game launched less than three weeks ago, but the title has already become an instant hit. The co-founder behind Valheim's development team is humbled by what has transpired, as such skyrocketing success can be rare in gaming. Valheim seems to break its own milestones on a near-daily basis, and that is again the case with its concurrent player count.
Just a few days ago, Valheim posted a peak concurrent player count of 391,325 on Steam. That number was more than Grand Theft Auto 5, PUBG, or Apex Legends. Recently Valheim smashed past those numbers yet again as it continues to be one of the most popular games in the world.
There were 481,836 concurrent Valheim players at its peak today on Steam, according to SteamCharts. That is nearly a half of a million players enjoying a title that many did not even realize existed just about a month ago. That number will likely stay around that high or continue to rise as well, as three million copies of Valhiem were sold in the first 17 days the game had been on sale.
One of the things that helps Valheim find success is that it is a gratifying game to stream and watch. There are plenty of content creators to enjoy playing Valheim through Twitch, YouTube, and other popular streaming platforms. Very similar to games like Minecraft, Rust, DayZ, or ARK: Survival Evolved being popular to stream, Valheim provides the ability for content creators to share all sorts of styles, whether that be tips on the games or simply having fun with the community while playing a long session.
Valheim is perhaps the biggest surprise hit of 2021 thus far. Much like Fall Guys or Among Us of 2020, or PUBG and Fortnite before it, there are not many who considered the idea that Iron Gate AB's survival game would be this big of a success in 2021. Perhaps this is the new normal in the industry. Beyond the expected Mario, Legend of Zelda, Call of Duty, or Grand Theft Auto sequels, perhaps small-scale titles that become grand-scale hits are what the gaming world is leaning more toward in greater numbers. In many ways that is a good thing, and with the current trajectory of Valheim, the game looks like it will continue to rise to great heights.
Valheim is available in Steam Early Access on PC.
Source: SteamCharts