Are players returning to Starfield? Reports suggest a rise in numbers after the latest update

Starfield witnessed months of lull after an all-time high concurrent player count of 330,723 at the time of release. But the numbers are finally picking up, and credit for it goes to the latest Starfield update, 1.11.36!

The update, one of the biggest to date, introduced a wide array of new features, bug patches, and the much-loved Frame Rate Target on Xbox.

Increase in Starfield’s player base reported across PC and Xbox

When I started looking at the numbers, it was evident that the rise was across both Steam and Xbox. While the data isn’t extremely accurate, when a similar pattern emerges for days at a stretch, we can rely on it, as is the case with the increase in Starfield’s player base.

For Steam, I went with SteamDB. Over the weekend after the 1.11.36 update, the concurrent player base rose to 11,933 on Sunday, i.e., May 19, 2024. When comparing it with the previous Sunday’s (May 12) figure of 9047, we get a 31.9% increase. Similarly, for the Sunday before that (May 5), the concurrent player base was 10,139, thus translating into a 17.7% increase.

So, based on these figures, Starfield’s PC player base has gone up by roughly 15%-35% over the last few weeks!

As for Xbox, there is no such reliable source of information. But when looking at the Most Popular Xbox Game Pass games, Starfields has made significant progress and now sits comfortably in the top 20. That does indicate a rise in player count!

Besides, a report by TrueAchievement suggests that Starfield registered a 72% increase in Xbox players after rolling out the 1.11.36 update. If that’s true, the developers would be mighty impressed by the results because the update was primarily centred around the Xbox console.

Players find the 60 FPS update surprisingly good

For these new figures to be factually correct, there must be positive activity across dedicated and general forums. That’s where I looked next and found that players were all praises for the latest Starfield 1.11.36 update. Here’s what a few said,

LITERALLY i feel the same. It’s A NEW GAME for me. Im amazed, this got me back. I feel like Starfield got re-released again.

The 60FPS is ungodly jarring. It’s literally like playing an entirely new game.

I’m so happy with the new performance update on console! I’m super immersed now because of the smooth 60fps! Feels amazing! Maybe late, but still a good job, Bethesda! Thank you. Now I can raise my personal rating of this game from 7 to 8!

I quit before the patch & replayed Borderlands 3 & was shocked by how much more sharp & clear it was considering that game was originally made for last generation consoles. Back now after the patch & it’s so, so much better.

Based on the available information, we can conclude that many returned to Starfield after the 60FPS update, and, as a result, there was a rise in concurrent player count.

Now, I can’t help but wonder whether future updates, if as big, could help Starfield regain the lost glory!

For the unversed, Starfield is coming to PlayStation this year, so another rise in player count is on the horizon.

What’s your review of the latest Starfield update? Share with our readers in the comments section.