The Finals, a game from Embark Studios, was released on December 7 after an open beta phase last month. Having picked up so much popularity across November that it became the most wish-listed game on Steam, it has maintained that run and has attracted quite a lot of attention over the past five days.
It helped that its release was announced during The Game Awards 2023, its most popular edition yet with 3.6M Peak Viewers. What has also helped is the fact that this destructive, team-based multiplayer title's format of pitting teams of three against each other in a frantic first-person shooter, giving it a game show vibe, has attracted the fancy of players, including popular streamers.
However, the first day was pretty lukewarm, with players globally seemingly not aware that the game they had waited so long for had come out. It only started picking up steam on December 8, which remains its most popular day at 63K PV. A day later, with news about its availability the talk of the town, and its gameplay winning hearts, it did its best watch time so far at 883.1K Hours Watched.
Moreover, it hit 2.3K Peak Channels on December 9, two days after releasing officially on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. A major reason for that was the entry of Summit1g, one of the most followed gaming creators globally today who has quite a loyal fanbase, especially when it comes to his FPS streams. With so many star names now playing this game, it seems that many other internet personalities jumped onto the bandwagon to get a taste of the violence and high stakes on offer in The Finals.
It has to be noted by readers that the game actually hit its highest peak concurrent viewership of 124.1K people so far in March when the first beta was made accessible. The hype surrounding the game was pretty high, and that was what helped it become such an awaited product on platforms like Steam.
Of course, the likes of xQc, LIRIK, Alanzoka, and Shroud played a big part in this early success, as they emerged as the most popular and viewed broadcasters for the game on the purple platform. Even Fextralife, the gaming community and game news source run by a team of dedicated gamers, made the top ten of both lists, showing just how desirable and successful its initial run had become.
Crucially, it continues to be played and shared gleefully by the likes of Shroud, Summit1g, and LIRIK, who were the game's most watched and popular broadcasters in its first week post-official release. They have played a major role in The Finals reaching the top 20 games list by watch time on Twitch since December 7.
With most of its top content creators being English-speaking, it only makes sense that the language that has taken up most of its watch time between December 7 and 11 was also the same. Russian was the only other language to hit double figures on this pie chart, with the game seemingly finding as much, if not more, popularity among Asian audiences as in Europe and North America.
The Spanish and Portuguese communities, usually so crucial to the success of games and esports events, have not really taken to this title so far, despite these viewers being known for favoring FPS video games that have an element of chaos about them. Perhaps with time and as more people find out about The Finals, it will get more fans and players from these populations as well.
Lastly, comparisons to other big releases from 2023 may not read favorably, but this does not take away from a successful launch. Pitting it against fellow 2023 shooter alumni like Payday 3, Starfield, Metroid Prime: Remastered, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III paints a clearer picture, with its first-week numbers reading pretty favorably.
Considering the competition in its genre, whether the game can continue to create a mark and stay relevant over the next few months and in the new year remains to be seen. However, the kind of response it has been receiving from critics, influencers, and fans since its beta testing began earlier this year and the overall positive vibes around its official release have ensured it had the last laugh as the year comes to a close.
