On August 31, No Man’s Sky recorded a peak player count of over 93,000 active users on Steam, the highest the game has achieved since 2018. According to SteamDB, that number climbed even higher, reaching a 24-hour peak of 98,285 players, placing it as the third-highest concurrent player total in the game’s history.
The surge follows the release of the Voyagers content update on August 27, which introduced customizable Corvette ships, among other gameplay enhancements. This fresh content has successfully drawn back lapsed players while sparking new interest from first-time explorers.
A Comeback Story Since 2016
When No Man’s Sky first launched in 2016, it was criticized for its technical issues and vast but empty universe. However, developer Hello Games refused to abandon the project. Over the years, the team released a steady stream of free content updates and ports across multiple platforms, including the Nintendo Switch 2, transforming the game into one of the industry’s greatest comeback stories.
Player Count Milestones
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2016 Launch Peak: 212,613 concurrent players
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2018 NEXT Update: 97,723 concurrent players
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2025 Voyagers Update: 98,285 concurrent players
Before Voyagers launched, Steam’s average player count for No Man’s Sky sat between 5,000 and 10,000 daily. The recent update multiplied that activity nearly tenfold.
What’s Next for No Man’s Sky
Despite the excitement, the Voyagers update still has issues, particularly with the new Corvette ship system. Hello Games has already rolled out an Experimental content update for players to test and provide feedback on upcoming fixes.
With No Man’s Sky enjoying its strongest numbers in years, the game has proven once again that it remains one of the best open-world exploration games available. Fans are now eager to see what Hello Games has in store for the galaxy’s future.