Steam Users Spent Surprisingly Little Time Playing New Games in 2024

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Summary

  • Only 15% of Steam playtime in 2024 was dedicated to new games, a slight increase from 2023.
  • Steam users spent 47% of their time on games 1-7 years old, and 37% on games over 8 years old.
  • Steam Replay shows individual playtime stats, revealing preferences for older games over new releases.

As a seasoned Steam user with decades of gaming under my belt, I must admit that the latest statistics have caught me off guard – but not entirely surprised. Year after year, I find myself returning to those classic gems in my library instead of diving headfirst into the newest releases.

It turns out that Steam users devote a smaller portion of their gaming time to brand new games than one might anticipate, with just 15% of total playtime dedicated to fresh releases. This detail, along with some other intriguing insights into what Steam players prefer to enjoy on the platform, has been disclosed in Steam’s end-of-year statistics for global users.

Among the numerous PC gaming platforms available, Steam stands out as the most widely used and enduring one, boasting an extensive collection of games for players to explore. This vast library spans both recent favorites and a substantial archive of classic games. Despite jokes among Steam users that they tend to purchase games without first playing them, it appears that this year, older titles have garnered more attention than the latest releases.

The 2024 Steam Replay is now available, which breaks down individual users’ statistics on the platform, showing them the titles and genres they spent the most time on, as well as other details. On the global side, Steam revealed that only 15% of the time spent playing on the service was dedicated to 2024 games. However, that doesn’t mean that everyone was catching up on 2023 hits, as only 47% of the time spent playing was on games that released in the last one to seven years. The other 37% of playtime was dedicated to games eight years of age or older.

Comparing Annual Steam Statistics

Contrary to what might appear as minimal, Steam experienced a significant boost in the amount of playtime dedicated to new games compared to the year 2023. In 2023, players predominantly favored older games, with merely 9% of their time spent on games released that same year, 52% on titles under eight years old, and a substantial 38% on games older than that. However, 2024 came very close to surpassing the record set by 2022, where an impressive 17% of playtime was dedicated to games launched in 2022, while only 19% was spent on games between one and seven years old, with a striking 64% playing games that were at least eight years old.

2024 saw many notable PC games, ensuring players had an abundance of fresh titles to play. Yet, as previously stated, Steam boasts a vast library of games to explore, and its frequent sales help revive older games by offering discounts during those promotional periods. Despite the continuous release of new games annually, it appears that the sheer number of games released in this decade, not to mention those launched over the past 25 years, leaves some room for improvement when it comes to providing a significant variety of fresh experiences.

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2024-12-21 03:23