Stellar Blade debuts on PC with a peak of 100,000 players

Stellar Blade, after making an impact on the PlayStation 5, arrives on Steam and is already positioned among the biggest releases from Sony Interactive Entertainment on PC in terms of initial performance. With a peak of almost 100,000 simultaneous players, the game from the South Korean Shift Up quickly reached the top of the best-sellers list on the Valve platform, surpassing all other single-player titles from Sony released on the digital store.

With its release on PC on May 30, 2025, Stellar Blade expanded its audience by standing out as the game that generated the most revenue on the platform that day, surpassing heavyweight names in less than 24 hours. The title has obtained 96% approval in user reviews, reflecting the positive reception from the new community.

This performance marks a significant turnaround in Sony's portability strategy, whose previous attempts to bring single-player experiences to Steam — such as Days Gone, God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart —, although praised, did not reach the same number of simultaneous players at launch.

Success on PC reignites the debate about the appeal of more stylized experiences, even in a market saturated with open worlds and generic shooter games. Stellar Blade focuses on fast combat, direct inspiration from Bayonetta and NieR: Automata, atmospheric soundtrack, futuristic scenarios, and a protagonist character with strong visual presence — including aesthetic controversy, often debated on social media.

In its analysis for the console version, the Eurogamer website highlighted:

"Stellar Blade may not be everything I wanted, but it's everything I needed, an action and stylish game that made me feel all the fun I felt when I played the best titles of the PlatinumGames genre, to the point of making me think of much more than NieR: Automata or Bayonetta. It made me think of Vanish, Blade Runner, The Matrix, and Evangelion. The themes are tough and intense, approached in a slightly lighter tone than Yoko Taro did in his Japanese work, in a plot that arouses curiosity and gameplay that is easy to learn, but hard to master."

In addition, the PC port came with graphical improvements, ultrawide support, unlocked frame rates, and command customization options, contributing to the good technical reception. The performance places Stellar Blade at a new level among oriental games that successfully crossed the barrier of console exclusivity.

The next challenge for Shift Up and Sony will be to maintain engagement and ensure long-term support — something that can decide whether the game will remain among the greats or fall into oblivion after its initial peak.