Avowed has found itself in a tough spot seeing how games are judged by the number of players nowadays.

In today’s gaming industry, player count is unfortunately the only lens through which the success of a game is judged. No matter how good a title, like the recently released Avowed by Obsidian Entertainment, might be, if it does not reach the top of charts like the ones on Steam, it will be considered decent at best.

Avowed is a recently released title | Obsidian Entertainment

Adding fuel to the fire, even streamers have started looking forward to judging games by their player count. While Asmongold might not be one of them, in one of his recent streams the creator shared his thoughts on Avowed performing not that well on Steam and why the player count on Xbox’s Game Pass should be magically ignored.

Asmongold on Avowed: Numbers matter

The gaming industry focuses more on numbers than anything in recent times | Obsidian Entertainment

Avowed is not a bad game at all, but as discussed before, the unfortunate nature of today’s gaming industry puts everything through the lens of numbers. What usually helps new releases overcome this challenge is releasing the game on multiple platforms and storefronts.

However, what good would that do if numbers under something like the Xbox Game Pass weren’t taken into account? Popular creator Asmongold stated the following in one of his recent streams, as seen in this Instagram post.

The streamer mainly focused on how the game has been performing on Steam charts, which did not go over 15,000 at the time. He also mentioned how other games, like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 also happened to be released on both platforms, but it ultimately did reach good numbers on Valve’s storefront as well.

For those who keep eyeing the Steam numbers, keep in mind it is not the only platform that Avowed is on. Additionally, apart from the Game Pass, the game is also being enjoyed by thousands of players who might have sailed the ‘high seas’, thanks to the absence of DRM or any other anti-pirating software.

How Xbox Game Pass Has Changed The Industry For Better

Xbox Game Pass is becoming more popular by the day | Obsidian Entertainment

Game Pass has become a dominant force in the gaming industry, with Microsoft pushing first-party releases directly onto the service. Many players now treat it as their go-to way to experience new titles, opting to download games from the Xbox app rather than purchasing them on Steam.

The most dominant title so far has been Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, released in October last year as one of the Day One releases the platform often offers to its subscribers. It happens to be one of the many benefits that Xbox Game Pass users enjoy.

Ultimately, the fixation on Steam numbers ignores the reality of a title’s true success. With the rise of Game Pass and digital distribution strategies, success is no longer measured solely by purchases on a single platform. If Avowed is performing well on Game Pass and engaging players through other means, then it’s accomplishing its goal.