PoE2, Marvel Rivals Captivate Gamers in Epic Weekend Premiere

Path of Exile 2 and Marvel Rivals ignited the gaming world with incredibly successful launch weekends. Let's delve into the details of these impressive achievements.

A Massive Player Base

A Weekend of Record-Breaking Launches

The weekend saw the simultaneous launch of two highly anticipated titles, each attracting a staggering 500,000 players on their respective launch days. Marvel Rivals, a free-to-play team-based PVP arena shooter, debuted on December 6th, followed by Path of Exile 2's Early Access release on December 7th.

Path of Exile 2's Early Access launch on Steam alone peaked at an astounding 578,569 concurrent players. This is a remarkable achievement, especially considering the paid Early Access model. The game's Twitch viewership also soared, exceeding 1 million concurrent viewers on launch day. The sheer volume of players even temporarily overwhelmed SteamDB, the popular database site, leading to a humorous acknowledgment from SteamDB itself.

Prior to launch, Path of Exile 2 had already surpassed 1 million pre-orders, a number that rapidly increased in the hours leading up to the game's release. This unexpected surge of players purchasing Early Access prompted a last-minute database upgrade by the development team to manage the influx of traffic. Despite these server expansions, players still experienced some login issues and disconnections, highlighting the immense anticipation surrounding the game's release.

Read Game8's review of Path of Exile 2's Early Access build for a comprehensive overview!