Once Human Dominates Steam Next Fest with Massive Surge in Wishlists

NetEase's upcoming third-person shooter, Once Human, boasts over 15 million global pre-registrations, a significant achievement highlighted by its success at Steam Next Fest. However, a closer look reveals a disparity between PC and mobile platforms.

While pre-registrations are impressive, only 300,000 translate to Steam wishlists. This, coupled with NetEase's historically mobile-centric approach and the prioritization of a PC-first release for Once Human, underscores the challenges of achieving comparable discoverability on PC compared to mobile.

NetEase's strategy isn't necessarily misguided; Once Human remains highly popular on Steam, attracting the largest player base during Steam Next Fest. Nevertheless, the contrast highlights the significant difference in reach and visibility between the two platforms, with mobile still holding a considerable advantage.

While NetEase's focus on a PC audience is understandable, the figures demonstrate a clear disparity in audience size and discoverability between PC and mobile gaming. Even a large developer faces significant hurdles in replicating mobile success on the PC platform.

In the meantime, while awaiting Once Human's release, explore our curated lists of the best and most anticipated mobile games of 2024 for some engaging alternatives. These lists feature hand-picked titles offering top-tier mobile gaming experiences.