Valve has released their annual Best of Steam 2023, a showcase of what was played most and made the most money broken down into roughly grouped tiers: Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. In a year of absolutely great games, some of these chart-toppers aren't surprises, but dang I'd never have guessed that Half-Life, the 1998 classic, would make the top tier of the most-played Steam Deck games by daily active players.
The list of top sellers by revenue is the usual mélange of the biggest free-to-play games on Steam alongside the largest releases, led by releases like Baldur's Gate 3 and Starfield. Perhaps the biggest surprise there is Sons of the Forest cracking into the same tier as big AAA releases. Nice to see for what was once a tiny studio! The most-played games are nearly the same list, except for one.
The section on New Releases by gross revenue is interesting, showing that more traditionally console-forward games like Jedi Survivor and Street Fighter 6 are finding real legs on Steam, charting alongside stuff like Baldur's Gate 3 and Remnant 2. There's also a real notice that people are definitely still buying games received badly: Payday 3 and Cities Skylines 2 are both in the top, Platinum, tier. Otherwise, to my surprise, Far Cry 6 only charted at Silver.
The top Early Access graduates this year, by revenue, include obvious ones like Baldur's Gate 3, Ready or Not, and Against the Storm—but also less-talked-about games. You might be surprised to learn that farm life sim Sun Haven and battle royale Farlight 84 make the top tier of earners. For my part, seeing small-team indies like World of Horror and Your Only Move is Hustle chart at all is heartwarming.
Finally that Steam Deck category, which is probably a better most played because it's by daily active players, not peak players. It's all pretty predictable, and makes sense: The Witcher 3, Dave the Diver, Vampire Survivors, alongside some of the most popular new releases and great, deck-friendly games of the last few years. Really predictable... except apparently a lot of someones, not including me, are playing a boatload of Half-Life. Like, straight-up Gordon Freeman in Black Mesa released in 1998 Half-Life. I am sure there's an explanation but I don't know it.
