Baldur’s Gate 3’s launch has been meteoric, with the game hitting over 500,000 concurrent players on Steam. According to Larian Studios, the developers weren’t expecting more than 100,000 players at any given time.
It’s fair to say that Baldur’s Gate 3 has been an instant hit. The long development cycle has paid off for Larian and it allowed the development team to create a game that’s really resonated with their audience and grown beyond it.
With over 500,000 concurrent players on Steam alone, it’s one of the biggest launches of the year and has eclipsed even some of the biggest multiplayer titles that hold onto massive and loyal player bases.
Swen Vincke, the founder and CEO of Larian, told his internal team to expect 100,000 players on Steam at the absolute most. It’s safe to say that expectation has been shattered.
Baldur’s Gate beats dev’s expectations by over five times
With the success of the first and second Divinity titles, it’s no surprise that Baldur’s Gate 3 has done well for itself. Larian have taken the formula from those RPGs and applied it to a beloved Baldur’s Gate series.
However, no one could have predicted the breakout success of Baldur’s Gate 3. It’s one of the most successful launches of the year, and has put this game at the same level as or even far ahead of some of the year’s biggest AAA releases.
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Swen Vincke, CEO and founder of Larian Studios, made a joke on social media about the need to stay away from the IT team for a while in relation to just how successful the title has been.
Probably should stay away from the IT team for a while – told them they should expect like 100k or so at max https://t.co/TY0aSrmWEx
— Swen Vincke @where? (@LarAtLarian) August 4, 2023
It’s also important to keep in mind that the 500K number is on Steam alone. That doesn’t include other PC marketplaces or console release.
Fortunately, Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t like other recent always online releases that have the potential to be bogged down by server issues. Despite the massive launch, players can still purchase the game and jump right in for themselves without any issues.
It remains to be seen if Baldur’s Gate 3 can gain traction and continue to shatter its own player count records. But even if the game has already hit its peak concurrent player count, it’s still been a massive success far beyond the developer’s expectations.