One year after its official launch on PlayStation 5, Steam, and Xbox Series X/S, Bad Guitar Studios’ FragPunk still hasn’t reached the ideal player count to compete with other FPS hero-shooters in the market. This has raised concerns among fans, with many expressing fear that the game might eventually be pulled from stores.
On the game’s subreddit, players often talk about how fun FragPunk is and how satisfying its Shard system feels. However, these discussions are frequently interrupted by posts sharing Steam stats, with players growing anxious about the game’s declining numbers.
At launch, FragPunk peaked at 113,000 players on Steam, which was impressive for a new hero-shooter. But after just a few months, the excitement faded. These days, the game averages around 3,000 daily players, sometimes dropping below 2,000 even on weekends. Even with the release of Season 2, the player count has not seen a noticeable increase.
Many players have pointed to weak marketing as a major issue. FragPunk seems focused on attracting players who are already loyal to other hero-shooters like VALORANT or Overwatch 2, instead of bringing in a new audience. Bad Guitar Studios appears more interested in pulling from existing communities rather than building their own. Some fans have also questioned the value of sponsored content with popular streamers like TenZ and Shroud, noting that even these high-profile names have not significantly boosted the player count.
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+ 2Fans have voiced their frustration because they genuinely believe the game is a fun and compelling shooter. Some even feel it could rival VALORANT if it managed to reach a broader audience.
It’s becoming clear that FragPunk needed stronger word-of-mouth to build momentum. In a market crowded with competitive shooters, it is difficult for newer titles to gain traction, especially when other games with similar systems already have established communities.
As a fan of hero-shooters like Overwatch 2, Marvel Rivals, and occasionally VALORANT, I found FragPunk to be an exciting take on the genre. It felt like a more chaotic, high-energy version of VALORANT, which was a game known for its slow and methodical engagements.
click to enlarge + 2While the game has a strong competitive edge, it lacks the casual appeal that helps bring in and retain new players. The Shard system is well-designed, and the art style is eye-catching, but without a growing player base, matchmaking takes longer and players start to leave. Some subreddit posts reflect this frustration, with users openly announcing their decision to quit the game.
Overall, FragPunk gets a lot right in terms of gameplay and design. The real challenge now is maintaining a healthy player count to support stable matchmaking and an active community. Without that, it risks following the same path as many other live-service games that failed to survive, and here's hoping Bad Guitar Studios would keep supporting the game until it grows its audience organically.
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