Once Human is a big hit at Steam Next Fest, but wishlists are a drop in the bucket

NetEase's upcoming third-person shooter, Once Human, has achieved remarkable success, boasting over 15 million pre-registrations globally. This achievement is further highlighted by its strong performance during Steam Next Fest, where it attracted the most demo players. However, a closer look reveals a significant difference between its overall pre-registration numbers and Steam wishlist numbers—only 300,000 wishlists on Steam, compared to the 15 million pre-registrations across all platforms.

This disparity underscores the challenges faced by even major developers in achieving comparable levels of discoverability and popularity on PC compared to mobile platforms. While Once Human's Steam Next Fest success is undeniable, the significantly higher pre-registration numbers on mobile highlight the inherent differences in audience reach and engagement between these two gaming ecosystems. NetEase's strategic focus on a PC-first release for Once Human, while ambitious, showcases the considerable hurdle of transitioning a successful mobile-centric approach to the PC market.

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While NetEase's PC-focused strategy isn't inherently flawed, this data provides valuable insight into the contrasting landscapes of PC and mobile gaming. It emphasizes the potentially greater difficulty in achieving widespread recognition and player acquisition on PC, even for a well-established developer like NetEase.

In the meantime, while you eagerly await Once Human's release, explore our curated lists of the best and most anticipated mobile games of 2024. Discover exciting new titles and fill the gap until Once Human arrives.