Path of Exile 2 and Marvel Snap Release to Fanfare

Path of Exile 2 and Marvel Rivals delivered explosive weekend launches, captivating a massive player base. Let's delve into the details of their remarkable achievements.

A Half-Million Strong Debut

A Weekend of Gaming Triumphs

The weekend witnessed the highly anticipated releases of two major titles, each attracting an impressive 500,000 players on their launch days. Marvel Rivals, a free-to-play team-based PVP arena shooter, opened its doors on December 6th. Path of Exile 2, an action RPG, followed closely on December 7th, launching in Early Access.

Path of Exile 2's Early Access launch was nothing short of phenomenal, reaching a peak of 578,569 concurrent players on Steam alone. This is a remarkable achievement, especially considering the paid Early Access model. Twitch viewership for the game soared past 1 million on launch day. The sheer volume of players even temporarily overwhelmed SteamDB, the popular database site, leading to a humorous public acknowledgment from the SteamDB team.

Even before its official release, Path of Exile 2 had already surpassed 1 million pre-orders, a number that continued to climb rapidly in the hours leading up to launch. This unprecedented demand forced the developers to implement a last-minute database upgrade to handle the influx of new players purchasing Early Access. Despite these server expansions, players experienced some initial connectivity issues, including disconnections and login queues, a testament to the game's immense popularity and anticipation.

Read Game8's review of Path of Exile 2's Early Access build!