The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered launched big launch on Steam, where it enjoyed a peak concurrent player count of over 180,000 on release day.
After Bethesda shadow-dropped Oblivion Remastered yesterday, April 22, the game climbed to the top of Steam’s global top-selling games list, which is sorted by revenue. It’s ahead of the likes of Valve’s own Counter-Strike 2, viral hit Schedule I, and Blizzard’s Overwatch 2, which itself received a significant new update.
Oblivion remastered was also the fourth most-played game on Steam yesterday, behind only Counter-Strike 2, PUBG, and Dota 2. It’s currently the most-played single-player RPG on Steam, ahead of the resurgent Baldur’s Gate 3, and has a ‘very positive’ user review rating.
Steam stats do not tell the whole story, of course, and when it comes to Oblivion Remastered, there’s much more to its success. As a Microsoft-owned game (Microsoft owns Bethesda parent company ZeniMax Media), Oblivion Remastered launched straight into Xbox Game Pass for Ultimate subscribers. It seems likely the game will have many players through the subscription service alone.
And then there’s the PlayStation 5 and standard Xbox Series X and S release to add in. So, while neither Microsoft nor Sony make player numbers public, Oblivion Remastered’s true peak concurrent player count on launch day will be much higher than 180,000.
It seems like a big success already, although Bethesda is yet to announce a total player or sales number. And player numbers will surely get bigger as Oblivion Remastered heads into its first weekend on sale.
Oblivion Remastered, developed by remake specialist Virtuos using Unreal Engine 5, has a long list of visual and feature improvements. It runs at 4K resolution and 60 frames per second, as you'd expect, but other changes are more meaningful. Everything from the leveling systems to character creation, and combat animations to in-game menus have been improved. Meanwhile, there's lots of new dialogue, a proper third-person view, and new lip sync technology. The changes are going down well with fans, some of whom believe Oblivion Remastered would be more accurately described as a remake. Bethesda, however, has explained why it went down the remaster route.
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion launched in 2006 as a follow-up to fan-favorite Morrowind on PC and Xbox 360, with a PlayStation 3 release following in 2007. It’s set in the fictional province of Cyrodiil, and revolves around the player character's bid to defeat a fanatical cult that wants to open portal games to the demonic realm known as Oblivion.
We've got a comprehensive guide to everything you'll find in Oblivion Remastered, including an expansive Interactive Map, complete Walkthroughs for the Main Questline and every Guild Quest, How to Build the Perfect Character, Things to Do First, and much more.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
