Vlve’s gaming giant, Steam, shattered records over the weekend of March 1-2, 2025, crossing 40 million concurrent users for the first time in its 21-year run.
The milestone, peaking at 40,270,997 players on Sunday, was powered by the blockbuster launch of Monster Hunter Wilds on February 28. SteamDB charts reveal 12,812,379 users were in-game—another all-time high for the platform.
Monster Hunter Wilds Fuels the Fire
Capcom’s action-RPG, released across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series S/X, hit the ground running with 1 million concurrent players on Steam on launch day. This explosive debut propelled it past iconic titles like Cyberpunk 2077, Elden Ring, Hogwarts Legacy, and Baldur’s Gate 3. Now ranking fifth among Steam’s most-played games, Monster Hunter Wilds trails only PUBG: Battlegrounds, Black Myth: Wukong, Palworld, and Counter-Strike 2.
Steam’s upward climb was evident in February, when it logged 39.9 million concurrent users. The latest leap cements its dominance over Epic Games Store and Microsoft Store.
Steam vs. Epic: A Numbers Game
While Steam celebrates its concurrent users milestone, players are online simultaneously. Epic Games Store reported a 2024 peak of 37.2 million daily active users, averaging 31.5 million.
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Epic also boasted 295 million PC users last year, but its metric differs from Steam’s real-time tally. Steam’s 40 million mark underscores its unrivaled grip on the PC gaming market.
