Split Fiction: A Major Hit in Co-op Gaming
Split Fiction, the latest cooperative game from writer-director Josef Fares and his studio, Hazelight Studios, was launched on March 6. The game had a remarkable opening weekend, attracting significant attention and a large player base.
On March 9, Split Fiction hit an impressive peak of 259,003 concurrent players on Steam, making it the second-highest concurrent player count for any game published by Electronic Arts (EA). It was only surpassed by Apex Legends, the free-to-play battle royale game. These statistics come from SteamDB and were highlighted by several gaming news sites.
To give more context, here’s a list of the top five EA games on Steam by peak concurrent players:
- Apex Legends – 624,473
- Split Fiction – 259,003
- Battlefield V – 116,104
- EA Sports FIFA 23 – 110,878
- EA Sports FC 25 – 110,026
Interestingly, EA had previously avoided releasing its games on Steam, opting instead for its own digital platform. However, EA returned to Steam in 2019, which has likely contributed to the success of its newer titles.
Fares’ previous game, It Takes Two, reached a peak of 71,039 concurrent players, making Split Fiction’s numbers particularly impressive. The game is receiving enthusiastic reviews across the board, with GameSpot awarding it a perfect score of 10 out of 10. It also holds an aggregate score of 91 on Metacritic, making it EA’s first game in over a decade to achieve a score of 90 or higher; the last was 2012’s Mass Effect 3.
It is worth noting that not every player of Split Fiction paid for the game directly. The game includes a Friend’s Pass feature, allowing one person to buy the game while friends can join in without purchasing their own copy. Additionally, Split Fiction is available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, meaning that the Steam numbers reflect only a portion of its overall popularity and reach.
While Sony and Microsoft do not disclose concurrent player statistics, Hazelight recently announced that Split Fiction sold over 1 million copies within the first 48 hours of its release. This is particularly impressive considering the immense success of It Takes Two, which sold around 23 million units.
In comparison, the development budget for Split Fiction was reported to be “almost double” that of It Takes Two. This suggests the expectations for the game are quite high.
Josef Fares previously gained recognition for his game Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons before founding Hazelight. The studio has become well-known for developing cooperative games, with Split Fiction being its latest title following A Way Out and It Takes Two. All three games have been published through EA’s EA Originals label, but Hazelight operates independently.
Fares is known for his critical stance on microtransactions and live-service games, which are common in the gaming industry, particularly among larger publishers like EA. Although Split Fiction has just launched, it remains to be seen what Hazelight’s next project will be and whether they will continue their partnership with EA.
In addition to gaming, Hazelight is teaming up with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to create an It Takes Two movie for Prime Video, further expanding their influence in the entertainment realm.