Destiny 2 popularity is “snowballing” ahead of The Witch Queen release
Destiny 2 appears to be hitting its stride as new reports indicate popularity is “snowballing” with each new seasonal update. The game’s player count on Steam is rocketing up ahead of The Witch Queen release.
Although Destiny is winding down the latter stages of its first decade, Bungie’s hit FPS appears to be more popular than ever. With a shift to the free-to-play model and continuous seasonal updates, more players are reportedly jumping in than any year prior.
Described as a “snowball” effect byForbes’ Paul Tassi, each new content drop is building a bigger community than the one before it.
What began as just over 130,000 players on Steam at the launch of Season of the Chosen, has now steadily climbed to just shy of 180,000 players in Season of the Lost, according to theSteam Database.
So, according to@Charlemagne_Bottracking, Destiny 2’s popularity is actually…snowballing
The first month of Splicer was more popular than the first month of Chosen. The first month of Lost is looking to be more popular than the first month of Splicer
— Paul Tassi (@PaulTassi)August 23, 2025
“Data suggests that each of the past few seasons of Destiny 2 this year has started out stronger than the last,” further evidence from Destiny statisticianCharlemagneadded.
With year over year growth, and even season over season growth, Destiny 2 has only surged in popularity.
Now, with The Witch Queen looming, it’s fair to assume Bungie’s next major content drop may be the biggest launch in Destiny history.
Obviously, it’s worth noting that these figures are purely from Steam. They fail to take into account console players, and even those on Stadia. Though with the seasonal model in place, similar trends could be present on every platform.
First Destiny 2 expansion in new era launches with historical low player count
How many people play Destiny 2? Player count tracker (March 2025)
Destiny 2 is on the cusp of a second golden age but it faces one big roadblock
So although we’re in the midst of Destiny’s longest gap between expansions, with Witch Queen delayed into 2022, the community is thriving like never before.
Steam player count on the launch day of each#Destiny2season in 2021:
Season of the Chosen: 132,225 (Feb 9)Season of the Splicer: 157,679 (May 11)Season of the Lost: 178,241 (Aug 24)
(viahttps://t.co/g4mlT0C8Bg)pic.twitter.com/Eo8WEV0eGD
— Destiny Bulletin (@DestinyBulletn)July 20, 2025
Smaller content drops throughout each given season, new passes to grind through, fresh loot, and limited-time events are all continuing to engage veterans and entice newcomers alike.
With the current trajectory, as Destiny 2 comfortably sits among Steam’s Top 10 with each passing month, Witch Queen could see more engagement than any previous update.
