A new phenomenon on Steam: Indie game takes the internet by storm with 150,000 concurrent players, breaking a spectacular record.

March 5th was considered one of the most exciting days in the gaming world, with a series of new products launching simultaneously.

Initially, attention was focused on Marathon – a multiplayer extraction-style shooter developed by Bungie, which had been teased for years. However, contrary to many predictions, the game that truly exploded on Steam was an indie title: Slay the Spire 2.

In a very short time after its early access opened on Steam, Slay the Spire 2 has proven its incredible appeal to gamers.

According to statistics from the platform, the game reached over 100,000 concurrent players in less than an hour after its Early Access release. This number continued to increase rapidly, reaching approximately 135,000 after 90 minutes and surpassing 150,000 concurrent players shortly thereafter.

This achievement puts Slay the Spire 2 far ahead of many big names released on the same day. Meanwhile, the highly anticipated blockbuster Marathon only recorded around 86,000 concurrent players on Steam at the same time. This significant gap surprised the gaming community, as an indie game could crush a heavily promoted AAA project.

In fact, the above results are not entirely surprising considering the impact of the first game. Slay the Spire launched as Early Access in 2017 and quickly became a phenomenon in the indie gaming world. The game almost laid the foundation for the modern roguelike deckbuilder genre, where players combine deck-building strategy with challenging dungeon crawling gameplay. Before this game, the blend of card strategy and dungeon crawling was still a rather niche idea.

In the sequel, developer Mega Crit continues to expand the game's scope with a host of notable improvements. Slay the Spire 2 features five playable characters, including two entirely new characters introduced for the first time. In addition, the card system and relics have been overhauled, offering players more diverse strategies as they conquer the deadly tower – a familiar symbol of the series.

Another notable new feature is the co-op mode, allowing up to four players to cooperate in climbing the Spire. This is a feature the community has been waiting for since the first game, promising a completely new experience compared to traditional single-player gameplay.

Before its release, Slay the Spire 2 garnered over 100,000 wishlists on Steam, demonstrating high expectations from the community. However, reaching 150,000 concurrent players on its first day of Early Access is still an incredibly impressive achievement, making the game one of the most successful indie game launches on Steam in recent times.