Although a reminder that video games are more popular than ever really isn’t needed, Valve’s Steam storefront has gone and broken its all-time concurrent user record yet again. A peak of 26,401,443 logged into Steam simultaneously at roughly 2 pm GMT/6 am PST today.
Steam data aggregator Steam Database shared the news in a tweet authored earlier, noting that this surge past the 26 million mark shatters the 25.4 million record set roughly a month ago.
Steam continues shattering its concurrent users records, right now at 26.3 million users! 🚀
Previous record was 25.4mil on January 2nd. https://t.co/D6WDHbz0B4 pic.twitter.com/DSLzDfECPE
— SteamDB (@SteamDB) February 7, 2021
Besting Steam’s concurrent user record has become par for the course over the past year, initiated in the early days of the pandemic when an, at the time, staggering 18.8 million were online concurrently, before jumping past 20 million in March and rising steadily to today’s new record. With the ongoing pandemic and extended lock-downs across the globe, and half the world staying indoors to avoid the chilly winter air, we have a pretty big hint as to why the record fell today. 26 million people judiciously decided to spend their Sunday gaming. The weekend undoubtedly helped.
What Are 26 Million People Playing on Steam?
The figure doesn’t relate to how many players are in-game, but rather the number of people with the storefront open. Among those actively playing, Steam stats reveal perennial platform darlings Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, the resurgent Rust, Grand Theft Auto V, and PUBG are luring in the most players today. As of writing, there are currently over 1 million playing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Respawn’s Apex Legends is having a great day as well, with a peak of over 180,000 players, presumably drawn back in thanks to the recent launch of Season 8.
Rather interestingly, no new big-name releases feature in the top-ten other than Viking-survival sim Valheim, which launched in early access this week. January tends to be pretty sparse on that front, and players have seemingly turned to comfort picks for their Sunday dose of escapism.
