3 December 2025

Player Count for 2022 Co-Op Game Is Way Up on Steam

By newsgame

Warhammer 40K: Darktide‘s player count on Steam has surged after developer Fatshark released a free update that was teased in October. Warhammer 40K: Darktide has been one of the better-regarded installments in the franchise, and it has kept a steady player base since its launch in 2022. However, this recent spike in players shows that the game has the potential to become one of the most-played titles in the series.

Darktide is part of developer Fatshark’s Tide series, which began with Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide in 2015. Its core gameplay revolves around co-op combat against increasingly stronger hordes of enemies, a style reminiscent of classic games like Left 4 Dead. Recently, Fatshark gave away copies of Vermintide 2 to Steam users for a limited time, which triggered a major spike in that game’s player count. Now, another entry in the series is seeing a rise in players, even without any giveaways involved.

Why Space Marine 2 Fans Should Check Out Warhammer 40K: Darktide

With Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 3 in the works, fans of the franchise have plenty of incentive to jump back into another recent Warhammer game.

Warhammer 40K: Darktide Update Causes Surge in Player Count

As teased in a previous community post from developer Fatshark, Warhammer 40K: Darktide received a major update on December 2 that added free new content alongside paid DLC for a new class called Hive Scum. The patch includes a new mini-campaign titled Road to No Man’s Land, featuring three short chapters. It also adds a new voice profile for the Ogryn class, the Heavy, introducing a more aggressive personality. The update has clearly resonated with fans, as the game’s player count on Steam has jumped by about 355 percent since its launch, with over 30,000 concurrent players logging in to check out the new content. The last time Warhammer 40K: Darktide saw a surge on this level was in June 2025, when the Arbites class was introduced.

warhammer 40k darktide no mans land updateart

Warhammer 40K: Darktide Patch 1.10.0 New Content

New three-chapter mini-campaign: Rolling Steel, Excise Vault Spireside-13, No Man’s Land
New operation: No Man’s Land
New DLC: Hive Scum
New voice profile: The Heavy
In-game event: The Day of Atonement (December 4)

It also helps that Warhammer 40K: Darktide is currently 75 percent off on Steam, with most of its DLCs also available at much lower prices than usual. In other words, the free update combined with the steep discount has likely encouraged many new players to jump in and explore Warhammer 40K lore through this co-op experience. Many returning players are also gearing up to grind the upcoming anniversary event called The Day of Atonement. Starting on December 4, the event lets players complete missions to earn rewards, including Ordo dockets, Plasteel, Diamanite, and a cosmetic insignia.

Darktide‘s current Steam discount ends on December 11.

warhammer 40k darktide no mans land update map

Fans of the co-op FPS game seem to be enjoying the new update, as the latest Steam reviews reflect a positive response. On December 2, the day the No Man’s Land update launched, the game received more than 161 new reviews, with 71 percent praising the changes and free content. As for Darktide‘s overall average user score on Steam, it currently holds a “Mostly Positive” rating from nearly 100,000 reviews.

While it is not clear if developer Fatshark will continue releasing more free updates for Warhammer 40K: Darktide, the success of the last few major patches suggests that more surprises could be on the way. Many fans argue that a new enemy faction is what the game needs in 2026, while others hope the team keeps expanding the lore with more mini-campaigns. The current surge in Darktide‘s popularity shows that it is one of the Warhammer 40K franchise’s high-potential games and that it deserves more attention. And it remains to be seen what kind of roadmap Fatshark will reveal for Darktide‘s future.