Key Highlights:
- Watch Dogs 2 Steam player count has surged nearly ten years after the game’s original release.
- Ubisoft’s open-world adventure recently recorded more than 16,000 concurrent players on Steam.
- A 95% discount appears to be the biggest reason behind the dramatic resurgence.
The Watch Dogs 2 Steam player count has climbed to levels not seen since the game’s launch, with Ubisoft’s open-world adventure enjoying an unexpected resurgence almost a decade after it first arrived on PC.
According to recent Steam figures, the game reached a peak of 16,138 concurrent players over the past 24 hours. That’s remarkably close to the 18,139-player peak it achieved when it launched on Steam in November 2016.
The biggest reason behind the sudden spike appears to be Steam’s latest sale. Watch Dogs 2 has been reduced by 95%, bringing its price down to just £2.49 / $2.49 and making it one of the platform’s biggest bargains.
The steep discount has encouraged thousands of players to return to the game, while many newcomers are experiencing Marcus Holloway’s hacking adventure for the first time.
Set in a vibrant recreation of San Francisco, Watch Dogs 2 follows Marcus as he joins the local DedSec hacker collective to expose corruption and challenge powerful technology companies. Alongside the main story, players can explore a large open world packed with side missions, hacking abilities and cooperative multiplayer activities.
Many fans continue to regard Watch Dogs 2 as the strongest entry in Ubisoft’s hacking series. Its lighter tone and colourful setting helped distinguish it from the darker original game, while its gameplay and world were generally received far more positively than Watch Dogs Legion, which launched in 2020.
Some players have also suggested that anticipation surrounding Grand Theft Auto VI may have contributed to the renewed interest. While there’s no evidence to confirm that theory, both games share modern open-world settings, extensive exploration and a focus on player freedom. I don’t subscribe to that for one second though, the game’s 95% off and at a new historical low, I mean come on!
I myself played Watch Dogs 2 when it originally released, and it’s one of the few Ubisoft open-world games I’ve happily returned to more than once. Marcus is a likeable protagonist, San Francisco remains an enjoyable world to explore, and the hacking mechanics still feel fresh today. At £2.49, it’s an easy recommendation if you’ve never picked it up before.
The increase in players has also been accompanied by a wave of positive recent Steam reviews, suggesting the game continues to hold up well despite approaching its tenth anniversary. Speaking of Steam, make sure you pick up atmospheric horror Nightbell before it’s too late.
With the Steam sale still live for a limited time, it’ll be interesting to see whether the Watch Dogs 2 Steam player count can climb even closer to, or perhaps even surpass, its original launch peak.