Helldivers 2 has surpassed 200,000 concurrent players on Steam, according to WGB.

Helldivers 2 continues to exceed expectations, boasting an impressive peak player count of over 200,000 on Steam. According to SteamDB, the game achieved a concurrent player count of 203,644 on February 14th at around 02:50 UTC. This milestone makes it the largest Sony Studios launch on PC and the second biggest Steam launch of the year so far, with Palworld holding the top spot.

The remarkable success caught both Sony and Arrowhead off-guard, leading to some server issues due to the overwhelming demand. Arrowhead had anticipated their servers could handle up to 250,000 concurrent players and 20,000 login attempts per minute. Although the launch was initially rocky, Arrowhead swiftly responded with patches and increased server capacity to address the challenges, including issues with progress tracking.

Johan Pilestedt, CEO and creative director of Arrowhead Game Studios, shared that Helldivers 2 had achieved approximately a million sales within just a week of release. He also emphasized the importance of earning the right to monetize games, stating that while players have the option to support the title through microtransactions, there is no pressure to do so.

Despite the inclusion of microtransactions and Warbonds, Helldivers 2 maintains a fair approach, with a wealth of free content on the horizon. Additionally, the game’s evolving player base has positively impacted its Steam reviews, transitioning from ‘mixed’ to ‘mostly positive’ following the initial launch challenges.

On a personal note, I’ve been thoroughly enjoying Helldivers 2 with friends, reveling in its straightforward co-op gameplay, exhilarating action sequences, and moments of comedic friendly-fire.