Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, the result of Splitgate 2 being un-released, re-released, and ultimately bolted onto the previous game, has failed to match the historical highs of the IP, stoking discussions around its low Steam player count (731 at the time of writing according to Steam Charts, and 720 according to SteamDB). In response, developer 1047 Games has issued a statement regarding “Steam Charts Conversations,” essentially arguing that Steam player counts aren’t everything.
“Steam Charts don’t measure fun,” the statement begins. “They show one number, on one platform, at one given moment.” 1047 Games is unequivocally correct; the visibility of Steam figures, compared to the black boxes of consoles, often breeds skewed discussions and an unhealthy and unhelpful obsession with imagined losers and winners arbitrarily measured in concurrent players. That being said, a statement like this is kind of doomed to be, shall we say, not overburdened with winning energy.
“Over the past six months, we rebuilt Splitgate from the ground up because we believe in the game, our team, and our community. The 1047 team remains committed to delivering the best version of Splitgate possible.” It’s worth noting that in June 2025, the 1047 team became a bit smaller following a “small” batch of layoffs, which also saw the founders forego salaries “as we lock in”.
“To our amazing community: thank you. Your feedback and passion have helped make Arena Reloaded better every day,” 1047 concludes. “And to everyone who hasn’t played yet: Arena Reloaded is free, the gameplay’s the best it’s ever been, and we’d love for you to jump in and form your own opinion. A lot of passionate people worked very hard on it.”
You will never catch me celebrating hard times for passionate people who worked very hard on a game, but you also won’t catch me acting surprised by this state of affairs, because boy was 2025 a messy year for Splitgate. It arguably began with CEO Ian Proulx’s Summer Game Fest appearance, remembered not for Splitgate 2 news but for inflammatory comments on the FPS space and a choice of hat described charitably as tone-deaf. But this was setup at most; it was Splitgate 2 itself, criticized by fans as a downgrade, that really spiked it. (Our Splitgate 2 review was neither scathing nor glowing.)
1047 Games agreed with players and took Splitgate 2 back into beta to improve it, admitting it “launched too early” and hoping to do better the second time. That didn’t pan out, just as the re-release gamble didn’t pan out for the likes of Multiversus and Crucible. Then, in one additional act of confusion, the Splitgates were combined into Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, which, well, has now prompted a statement about Steam Charts discussions. Splitgate was highly praised, genuinely massive on Steam and beyond at one point, and now the whole thing is just kind of muddy.
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