That escalated quickly: Phantom Blade Zero only launched on October 29, 2026, and is already smashing the charts. On October 31, S-Game's action RPG climbed to 775,647 concurrent active players, according to SteamDB. This marks the highest peak for any pure single-player title released in 2026.
How Strong Is the Steam Launch, Really?
Just a few hours after launch, over half a million people were playing concurrently. The numbers continued to climb through the first weekend. For comparison: Slay the Spire 2 peaked at 574,638 concurrent players in March, meaning Phantom Blade Zero is roughly 200,000 above that. Even Cyberpunk 2077 only reached around 166,000 players in October 2026 – though this comparison is flawed, as Cyberpunk set its record years ago and is no longer a fresh release.
Important: This figure is solely from Steam. The game is also available on PlayStation 5 and the Epic Games Store. Therefore, the actual total number of concurrent players can only be estimated.
How Are Players and Critics Receiving the Game?
- 88 percent of current Steam reviews are positive.
- The PC version currently holds an 88 score on Metacritic.
- S-Game has not yet disclosed sales figures.
The context is intriguing: Even before release, the game topped the Steam bestseller list for several days, most recently even surpassing Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2. According to Alinea Analytics, over 300,000 pre-orders were made on Steam alone. So the hype was already there – but its strong continuation within the game itself is not a given.
What Does This Mean for Fans of Soulslike and Action Games?
From our perspective, this success primarily demonstrates one thing: The audience for challenging, sword-heavy single-player action is enormous – and it doesn't have to be from a studio in Japan or the West. This is S-Game's first major AAA project, and this launch is likely to provide significant momentum for the studio's future endeavors. For those still hesitant: With ratings around 88 percent, it's worth checking out, especially for anyone who enjoys boss fights and fluid combat systems. And for the competition, the bar for 2026 is now set quite high.
Source: PC Games
Have you played Phantom Blade Zero yet? Let us know in the comments what you think of the launch!
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