Breakdown
- Fallout Shelter currently has more players than Starfield
- The free-to-play management game has shot up in player numbers in recent weeks
- Sadly, Fallout Tactics hasn't seen the same success
Fallout Shelter, a 2015 free-to-play management game, currently has more active players than Bethesda’s Starfield.
The resurgence in popularity for Bethesda’s Fallout series is almost unparalleled. Following the release of Fallout Season 1 on Amazon Prime, players have flocked back to the series.
Fallout’s new popularity has resulted in over a million players returning to Fallout 76 in a single day, technical hell for modding site Nexus Mods and now renewed life for Fallout Shelter.
Available on all modern platforms, Fallout Shelter was met with mixed reception on launch. While a cute vault management game, the title’s heavy monetisation was criticized, especially as the game continued in life.
On PC alone, Fallout Shelter player numbers have bested Starfield with over 7,000 players in a 24-hour period. In comparison, Starfield has seen just over 5,500 players in the same timeframe. With Fallout Shelter also being available on mobile and consoles, this number is likely far higher.
It’s worth noting that not all Fallout games have seen such a huge resurgence from the release of the TV show. For example, the underrated Fallout Tactics has only seen a total of 168 players in a single day. In comparison, Fallout 2 (the best Fallout game) has received a peak of 2,158 players all playing at the same time since the show’s release.
With the Fallout 5 release date still many years away, fans are flocking to past games in the series. While rumors of a Fallout New Vegas 2 have been thrown around, it seems that players will have to wait a long time for a new Fallout game.
As for Starfield fans, huge game-changing updates are on the way. While we’ve yet to hear any confirmation of the Shattered Space DLC release date, there is new content in the works for Bethesda’s sci-fi RPG.
Hopefully, Bethesda's sweeping updates for Starfield will be able to breathe new life into the game and fix some of its core issues. After all, Starfield isn't terrible, it's just a bit confused.