If you’re the type who doesn’t care about Battlefield, October 10th is just another day. However, it’s become quite hard to find someone who isn’t entranced by EA’s latest release.
Battlefield 6 smashed through the top of the Steam charts yesterday, and considering how the EA servers crumbled under the load, it’s safe to say the console launch was also a big hit.
It’s not unusual for games to hit an insane peak upon release, but actually maintaining that is reserved for legendary territory. As the dust settled after day one, it looks like Battlefield 6 is on course to be an all-time success.
The Battlefield 6 Effect
According to Steam data (via SteamDB), Battlefield 6 hit its peak within an hour of the game’s official release yesterday. The shooter clocked an insane 747,440 concurrent players, which (as spotted by Okami13_) makes it the most popular full-priced shooter ever. If we include free games, only PUBG and Counter-Strike 2 sit ahead of it.
That said, as much as the launch day stats are impressive, a lot of the people who were logged into the game last afternoon were hit with this engaging thing, as experienced by yours truly:
I don’t doubt that queues are a necessary evil—I’d much rather have a smooth playing experience once the ordeal is over rather than get in quick and be hit by the Gods of Lag. What wasn’t as fun were the regular errors with ‘whoops, scan this QR code’ that would send you back to the end of the queue.
However annoying it was, the real achievement by Battlefield 6 came today. As of the time of writing, the game currently has 625,892 players, and a 24-hour peak of 695,849. Unlike yesterday, just about all of these people are busy slugging it out in the virtual battlefields (and probably ignoring teammates in need of a revive; you know who you are).
During a meeting with investors earlier this year, EA executives set a lofty goal of 100 million units sold for Battlefield 6. We don’t know exactly where the counter is at, although SteamDB does have the game at the very top of the sales charts right now.
With the recent change in ownership, EA no longer has to answer to a fragmented choir of investors, but that also means we have no real insight into the company’s targets for Battlefield 6. For now, what can be said with certainty is that a whole lot of people are playing it, and most seem to be enjoying it based on its Very Positive (83%) Steam rating.
Users who purchased it via the EA App have been less fortunate, with many unable to launch the game at all. According to director Vince Zampella, following some yelling, the situation has been solved today.
Battlefield 6 is out for PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5.
- Released
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October 10, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, In-App Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
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Battlefield Studios
