Steam Tops 40 Million Concurrent Players For First Time As We All Jump On to Play Monster Hunter Wilds

Steam, the go-to platform for PC gamers, has shattered its own record for concurrent users, reaching an unprecedented high of over 40 million players. This milestone was achieved over the weekend, perfectly aligning with the launch of Monster Hunter Wilds on February 28, with Steam registering 40,270,997 simultaneous users, surpassing the previous record of 39.9 million set in February 2025.

According to SteamDB, Steam's concurrent user record, which many consider a barometer of Valve's platform success, has been broken nearly every month since May 2024. The concurrent peak has surged from 35.5 million to 40.2 million in just over six months. Notably, this figure includes idle players—those with Steam running but not actively engaged. However, the number of users actually playing games has also set a new record, increasing from 12.5 million to 12.8 million.

Steam's user peaks have consistently risen throughout 2024, with records broken twice in March and again in July. The recent peak is largely attributed to the release of Monster Hunter Wilds, which saw a 24-hour peak of 1.38 million players. Other titles like Counter-Strike 2, PUBG, Dota 2, and Marvel Rivals also contributed significantly, with 24-hour peaks of 1.7 million, 819,541, 657,780, and 268,283 players, respectively.

Despite its popularity, Monster Hunter Wilds has received a 'mixed' user review rating on Steam, prompting Capcom to release official guidance addressing PC performance issues. Additionally, Capcom has revealed preliminary information about Monster Hunter Wilds Title Update 1, which will introduce an endgame social hub.

To kickstart your journey in Monster Hunter Wilds, check out guides on what the game doesn't explicitly tell you, a comprehensive breakdown of all 14 weapon types, and our ongoing walkthrough. There's also a multiplayer guide to help you play with friends, and instructions on transferring your character from the open betas.

IGN's review of Monster Hunter Wilds awarded it an 8/10, stating: "Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge."