Baldur’s Gate 3 exceeded $650 million in revenue on Steam in the previous year.
The game outsold its closest competitor, Hogwarts Legacy, by more than double. • Games without microtransactions dominated the list of bestsellers for 2023.
Baldur’s Gate 3 surpassed expectations, achieving substantial financial success last year, challenging the notion that top-selling games must include a battle pass.
Since its launch in August last year, Baldur’s Gate 3 has garnered immense popularity and critical acclaim, nearly sweeping The Game Awards.
Players have collectively spent over 8,000 years on the character customization screen alone, showcasing the game’s engagement. Larian Studios estimated that completing the game should take around 75 to 100 hours on average.
In 2023, the game generated $657 million in sales on Steam, the renowned online gaming store, according to VG Insights, a platform tracking Steam revenue.
Claiming the top-selling spot on the platform, Baldur’s Gate 3 outperformed its closest competitor, Hogwarts Legacy, by $316 million, as reported.
A notable trend among the best-selling games on Steam in the previous year was the “absence of microtransactions.” In-game purchases using real money, often providing players with cosmetic enhancements, were less prevalent among the revenue-generating games of 2023. Many successful games hailed from smaller developers and emphasized creativity.
The report highlighted a decline in the share of games with microtransactions that sold over one million copies, dropping from 33% in 2022 to 25% in 2023. It noted a shift towards “higher-quality premium games.”
This trend is surprising, given the industry’s dominance by microtransactions since at least 2017, particularly with the rise of free-to-play models epitomized by games like Fortnite. Despite the prevalence of microtransactions, Baldur’s Gate 3 demonstrated that success could be achieved through a different approach, contrary to the industry norm.