We're Having a Total War With Pathfinder?
This market analysis examines the performance and anticipation of premium PC and console games during late August 2021. Utilizing proprietary Steam Hype data, wishlist rankings, and platform-specific sales charts, the assessment provides a snapshot of the competitive landscape across Steam, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and the Epic Games Store.
The primary focus is on upcoming Steam releases, specifically highlighting Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. As a sequel in the undersupplied deep fantasy CRPG genre, the title entered its launch week with approximately 250,000 to 300,000 wishlists and a high Hype ranking of #33. Other notable upcoming titles include the Steam debut of A Total War Saga: Troy, which previously saw 7.5 million redemptions during a free promotional period on the Epic Games Store, and the pastoral adventure Lake. Long-term projections for the next 90 days identify major upcoming blockbusters such as New World, Battlefield 2042, and Age of Empires IV.
Current market performance data shows Aliens: Fireteam Elite leading Steam’s global top sellers with 15,000 peak concurrent users and strong positive sentiment. Psychonauts 2 also demonstrated robust Steam performance despite its day-one availability on Xbox Game Pass, achieving 7,000 peak concurrent users. Conversely, King’s Bounty II experienced a polarized reception, maintaining sales momentum despite a 54% positive review score due to criticisms regarding its departure from franchise traditions.
Cross-platform trends reveal that the Quake remaster performed well on both Switch and Xbox, while Madden NFL 22 dominated Xbox downloads. On the Epic Games Store, the survival co-op title VoidTrain emerged as a significant success, reaching the second position in revenue. The analysis concludes that while AAA blockbusters maintain high visibility, niche genres like realistic simulators and specific indie titles continue to find significant traction through specialized platform audiences.
