Gray Zone Warfare is a tactical first-person shooter that has been doing well on Steam with rising player numbers despite its various issues.
The game came out in early access on Steam last week and immediately sold thousands of copies. The success that Gray Zone Warfare has so far enjoyed doesn't seem to be slowing down as its player count on Steam is starting to outpace those of some of the biggest titles in the genre.
Gray Zone Warfare's Success
(Photo : MADFINGER Games / Screenshot taken from Steam)
Developed by MADFINGER Games, Gray Zone Warfare puts a twist on the typical FPS title and casts players in the shoes of a soldier who was deployed to an island at the behest of a mysterious client.
That particular island was only just recently evacuated and takes the form of an MMO-style open world. In it, soldiers can group up or go alone against various NPV and real-player enemies to engage in tactical firefights with a realistic bent, according to PCGamesN.
The game's realism extends to both player health and combat as Gray Zone Warfare models bullet ballistics emphasizes firearm customization, and lets players receive wounds that would harm their ability to fight and move around.
The premise of Gray Zone Warfare has been received fairly well by the players and made it hit a peak of 72,548 players in a 24-hour window. It is already outpacing its closest competitors, Arma 3 and Ready or Not.
Read Also: Baldur's Gate 3 Dev Says Game Had Deeper Co-op Conversation System That Was Cut
The former, in comparison, had a peak of 18,871 players in a 24-hour window while the latter had a peak of 6,965 players over a 24-hour window. Adding to the fact that Gray Zone Warfare was only released on Apr. 30, 2024, the numbers that it has put out since are rather impressive.
When it first launched, Gray Zone Warfare received a mixed response from players primarily due to its optimization issues on older hardware. This had proven to be quite a crucial thing for many players worldwide but the developers worked hard to address the issue, said Insider Gaming.
Fixing Various Issues
Another thing that made the game popular was that at the time of its launch, a competitor, Escape From Tarkov, suffered massive criticism. This was due to the developers locking a new PvE mode behind a $250 paywall, a decision that was later reversed.
But what sets apart MADFINGER Games' title is a cooperative element that is not found in any other major game in the extraction shooter genre. Before even heading out into the world, players will have to choose one of three factions.
This is a very important decision as the game will only let you group up with other players who join the same faction. Also, the option to change factions will only be available after a full server reset which only happens "every few months."
However, MADFINGER Games said that they are currently working on a new feature that will let players wipe their character entirely to switch factions whenever they want, albeit starting over from scratch, according to PCGamer.
Related Article: Tamagotchi Finds a New Lease in Life as Toronto Club Revives Classic Japanese Game
