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Warframe and Overwatch Devs Push Back on Using Steam Charts to Judge Marathon

They argue concurrent counts on one PC storefront do not represent a multi-platform live-service game's overall audience.

Overview

  • Overwatch senior designer Dylan Snyder rejected posts claiming a 50% Steam drop for Marathon, calling the pile-ons “big unemployed, maidenless behavior.”
  • Warframe creative director Rebecca Ford highlighted how crowded Steam has become, noting 435 releases in 2013 versus 20,014 in a recent year and 80,000+ prior titles competing for attention.
  • SteamDB data cited in the debate shows 143,621 concurrents during Marathon’s Server Slam and an 88,337 all-time peak after the March 5 launch.
  • Developers stressed that SteamDB reflects only concurrent PC users and does not account for copies sold or console play on PlayStation and Xbox.
  • Coverage describes how player-count charts are being weaponized online, with comparisons to Slay the Spire 2’s 500,000+ concurrents and some posts pointing to reported review-bombing.