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Kyuu 1 day ago
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chakkra said:
Kyuu said:

Steam top sellers and rankings are public information just like concurrent players. Helldivers 2 has been in the top 100 (typically in the top 50 and in the top 3 with every big update) for 129 consecutive weeks, while Palworld just re-entered the top 100 (currently 4th). Helldivers 2 also held its players better relative to its opening, but again, the comparison isn't exactly fair to Palworld which was in early access, and things may change going forward.

Revenue is a better sales metric than concurrent players. Palworld had an explosive start but it's clear that Helldivers 2 outlegged it until now.

I still lean towards Palworld being the bigger surprise, but an argument can be made for Helldivers 2 which achieved something that not a single sequel I know ever did. Helldivers 2 will sell like 6 times more than the first game, and generate like 20 or 30 times more money 🤑 Granted it costs a lot more to maintain and update, being a live service game and all that.

Please correct me if I'm wrong but I was under the impression that any content that Palword has received in the past two years have been free content? If that's the case, then you are basically comparing revenue from pure units solds of one game to revenue from traditional online monetization of the other.

It's a bit of an apples to oranges comparison, but it doesn't really matter. Palworld's free content constitutes its appeal and therefore helps it selling (increasing revenue). If Pocketpair had microtransactions, revenue and sales may have been worse and the hype would have completely died for all we know. Palworld being priced $10 lower may also be a contributing factor as to why it sold well. Steam games typically generate a lot more money during heavy sales, so the lower price may or may not be a revenue advantage. Different games have different "sweet spots" and Pocketpair went for the model that they think best suits their game.

Helldivers 2 was estimated to have sold less than 5 million in the first month.
Palworld sold 15 million on Steam + 10 million players on Xbox in its first month.

Since then, Helldivers 2 added an estimated 15-22 million copies sold (not "players" bullshit). Palworld added up to 15 million players (including GamePass). So Helldivers 2 was probably selling better outside month 1 even without the higher pricetag and micotransactions factored in (Which I don't see why they shouldn't be factored in. Why do some people act like mtx, expansions, etc aren't measures of success?)

In the end they're two different games doing different things and both impressed in their own ways. But now that Palworld is fully released, it might just be the next Fortnite! (not happening but... who knows?!).