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Last year more co-op games were released on Steam, and sold on Steam, than in any other year.
That’s according to a new report by VG Insights, which notes a growth in the number of co-op games being released, and the number being sold.
According to the report, a total of 799 co-op games were released on Steam in 2023, more than in 2022 (701 games), 2021 (650 games) and 2020 (647 games).
This number is roughly in line with the total number of games released each year overall – 5.7% of games released in 2023, 2022 and 2021 were co-op games.
However, the report finds that even though many players turned to co-op games in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, co-op games continue to make up a large percentage of the total games sold on Steam. Last year, of all the games sold on Steam, 36% were co-op games.
The report notes that 2024 is set to buck the trend, with nearly half of all Steam games sold – 46% to date – featuring a co-op element.
While these numbers are clearly skewed by the success of Palworld and Helldivers 2, which combined account for 75% of co-op games sold this year so far, the report also notes that even among smaller indie games co-op titles tend to sell better.
According to the report, the average co-op game sells around 40,000 units on Steam, whereas the average non co-op game sells 5000 units.
It also notes that the bottom 25% of co-op games sell twice as well as the bottom 25% of non co-op games, and the top 25% of co-op games sell more than 300,000 units over their lifetime.
In total, 106 co-op games on Steam have sold more than 5 million units over their lifetime.
According to the report, developers who add co-op features to their game can benefit in numerous ways. Players who want to play with their friends will help to sell multiple copies, and stand-out moments are more likely to be shared on social media.
It also suggests that co-op games make for entertaining content during livestreams, and their gameplay loops tend to be fun for a longer time.