As the new year continues, many are hoping that certain “trends” or “beliefs” that were prominent in 2024 can simply “go away.” One of those “beliefs and trends” is that of live-service gaming. While there are some big hits in that space right now, including a huge one featuring Marvel Comics characters, the subgenre as a whole has been incredibly hit-or-miss, and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon. Even when you have big names like Destiny 2, the player base doesn’t last as long as you might think, and we have the numbers to back that statement up.
To be blunt, Destiny 2 as a whole has struggled mightily in recent years, and even its launch wasn’t as grand as some at Bungie or Sony would’ve wanted. Then, when it was clear that the “final DLC” was coming, players started to abandon ship for one reason or another, which caused serious turmoil within Bungie. It gets even worse, though, as an analyst from Forbes noted that as of last June, the player base on Steam has dropped by 90%! That was basically when “The Final Shape” dropped, and it’s been basically downhill since then:
So, what does this prove? First, it proves that Bungie needs to do something big soon, or else it’ll be in more trouble than it’s already in. Second, it highlights a theme that’s going on with Sony and its live-action titles.
You’ll recall that the publisher launched Helldivers 2 in February 2024, and while it raced off to one of the hottest starts in recent memory, the dropoff of its player base was just as profound. It had a 90% drop off in just a FEW MONTHS after its launch, and Arrowhead Games has been scrambling to try and get the player base back ever since.
Then, there was the Concord disaster. That game was in development for about eight years, was the “pet project” of a higher-up at Sony, and was billed as the “next big sci-fi adventure,” yet fans knew it would fail almost immediately. Sure enough, it was shut down within just two weeks because no one was playing it. After that, reports came out about the terrible working conditions and the “toxic positivity” that was forced on them to restrict what could be done to fix the game.
The lesson here is that while live-service models might be appealing, it doesn’t mean they’ll work, and Sony needs to learn that quickly if it’s going to advance in any meaningful way going forward.
