Beltmatic succeeded despite low early reviews on Steam

A Steam expert recently shared insights about game success on the platform. Chris Zukowski says developers need to get at least 250 reviews in the first month after launching their game. If they don't, he believes it's unlikely the game will be successful. Zukowski spoke at a panel during the Game Developers Conference. He noted that developers can quickly tell if their game is popular. If Valve sees that a game has potential, they will promote it. Zukowski examined games released last year, finding that 74% of successful titles made it within their first three months. He mentions exceptions, like the popular game Among Us, which gained fame two years after its launch. Despite this, Zukowski insists that most games do not experience such late success. He investigated over 114,000 games from last year and found only one that managed to rebound from a poor start: Beltmatic. Beltmatic, a factory simulation game, had only 51 reviews in its first three months. However, it eventually grew to 1,000 reviews after nine months, breaking Zukowski's expectations. He emphasized that such recoveries are rare. He advised those not reaching 250 reviews in the first month to shift their plans, as success is unlikely after that point. Zukowski's analysis reveals that the gaming market on Steam is thriving, but only 2.6% of titles earn over $250,000 in their first month. Even though many games struggle, there are still examples of success stories like Beltmatic.