Destiny 2 has entered a new phase with its first post-Light and Darkness expansion, The Edge of Fate. However, this update has recorded the lowest peak concurrent player count for any Destiny 2 expansion so far, which could indicate some challenges ahead for the game’s ongoing content strategy.
On Steam last night, The Edge of Fate peaked at just under 100,000 concurrent players, specifically 99,193. To put that in perspective, it’s less than a third of the launch peak for The Final Shape expansion a year ago, which had around 314,000 players despite technical issues on launch day. It’s also well below the previous lowest record set by Beyond Light, which had over 240,000 concurrents.
- Lightfall – 316,000 players
- The Final Shape – 314,000 players
- The Witch Queen – 290,000 players
- Beyond Light – 242,000 players
- The Edge of Fate – 99,000 players
It’s worth noting that this data comes from Steam only, but it’s reasonable to assume similar trends on consoles. Launch day usually represents the highest player count, so this figure likely reflects the expansion’s peak.
Interestingly, predictions made before the launch estimated a peak of about 114,000 concurrent users, so the actual number fell short of that. The 99,000 figure is only slightly above the concurrent player count for last October’s Revenant episode launch, which isn’t very encouraging for a full expansion. Yikes.
Is this a disaster? It’s certainly concerning. Bungie has been producing less yearly content for a somewhat reduced price, which might be an attempt to reduce costs. Whether this lower player count can be offset by increased player spending or other factors remains unclear since that data isn’t publicly available.
Looking ahead, the upcoming expansion, Renegades, is scheduled to arrive in approximately six months. It carries a Star Wars-adjacent theme that could attract more players, or not. If The Edge of Fate fails to resonate with the community, some players might decide to move on from Destiny altogether. Honestly, it’s understandable if fans feel uncertain about the recent changes Bungie has made to the game. I’ll have a review coming soon that goes into more detail on that.
Destiny’s current state seems to be the result of Bungie’s choice to keep delivering live content continuously, rather than taking a break to develop a new mainline sequel like Destiny 3. That approach might have limited the potential for a surge by a big player. Now, the question is what the new “normal” player count will look like for the Fate era and beyond.
