Steam, the leading digital game distributor for PC gamers, has shattered its concurrent user record, surpassing 40 million players for the first time. This milestone was achieved over the weekend, coinciding with the Friday, February 28th launch of Monster Hunter Wilds. Steam recorded 40,270,997 simultaneous players, eclipsing the previous record of 39.9 million set in February 2025.
SteamDB data reveals a remarkable trend: almost every month since May 2024, Steam has broken its own concurrent user record, climbing from 35.5 million to 40.2 million in just over six months. While this figure includes idle users, the number of actively engaged players also reached a new high, jumping from 12.5 million to 12.8 million.
Throughout 2024, Steam witnessed significant player peak surges, breaking its record twice in March and again in July. The latest peak is largely attributed to Monster Hunter Wilds, which saw a 24-hour concurrent peak of 1.38 million players. Other titles also contributed to the overall surge, with Counter-Strike 2 reaching 1.7 million concurrent players, PUBG at 819,541, Dota 2 at 657,780, and Marvel Rivals at 268,283.
Despite its success, Monster Hunter Wilds has received mixed user reviews on Steam, prompting Capcom to release official guidance on PC performance issues and announce details for Title Update 1, which will introduce an endgame social hub.
To enhance your Monster Hunter Wilds experience, explore our resources: uncover hidden tips in "What Monster Hunter Wilds Doesn't Tell You," master all 14 weapon types with our comprehensive guide, follow our detailed walkthrough, learn how to play multiplayer with friends, and discover how to transfer your beta character.
IGN awarded Monster Hunter Wilds an 8/10, praising its improvements while noting a lack of significant challenge: “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.”
