Once-popular F2P games that are now almost dead
Free games are wildly popular by nature, especially at launch, allowing anyone with the right gaming platform and an internet connection to download the game and jump straight into the fun, all at no cost.
In recent years, many more games have released as free-to-play or have subsequently made the switch, building on the success of the model, which sees money primarily made from microtransactions and battle passes. As competition gets even fiercer and time goes by, many once-popular free-to-play games have seen dramatic drops in player counts and are all but dead.
7 Kingdom: Classic
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2015
63,740*
129*
Kingdom: Classic is a cozy management game that harks back to the days of internet browser games. It’s a 2D sidescroller set in a fantasy medieval realm, complete with beautiful pixel art.
Players will take on the role of king or queen and must make every coin count as they gallop through the procedurally generated world. Although the game peaked quite high in late 2017, there are now only around a hundred players at a time.
6 Splitgate
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2019
67,724*
824*
There are many excellent free-to-play shooters on the market, which means that any new shooter must feature unique twists to attract players. This is something that Splitgate managed to achieve with the incorporation of portals, similar to those found in the iconic Portal series.
With portals, players can surprise enemies with flanks and soar across the map, but sadly, Splitgate’s own heights were soon cut short and hardly anyone is playing these days.
5 Blessing Released
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2020
76,273*
1,197*
Bless Unleashed is an MMORPG originally released for consoles but soon made its way to PC. Despite enjoying a few months of popularity after release, Bless Unleashed soon saw its player base decline.
While the game doesn’t have many flaws, there are plenty of fantastic MMORPGs to compete with and Bless Unleashed doesn’t seem to have offered anything too unique.
4 Realm Royale Reforged
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2018
104,557*
908*
Realm Royale was one of many great battle royale games to be released after the genre’s big boom. Like Fortnite, it’s a third-person shooter with cheerful cartoon graphics. However, it differs from the giant in many ways.
For example, players can choose from a variety of classes, including mage, hunter, warrior, assassin, and engineer, all of which dictate how the game is played. The game also has a medieval fantasy aesthetic that includes mounts that players can travel on. However, despite having enjoyed some popularity, Realm Royale Reforged is now all but dead.
3 Z1 Battle Royale
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2015
150,179*
1,365*
Z1 Battle Royale, formerly known as H1Z1, is considered the first proper battle royale game, emerging from a king of the hill mode for H1Z1. For many years it enjoyed great success before being overtaken by games like PUBG: Battlegrounds and Fortnite.
While the game looked like it would soon be dead, a new management team is trying to restore the game to its classic roots and a small resurgence in returning players has been seen. Like any video game remake, only time will tell if the Z1 Battle Royale will be able to return to its former glory.
2 MultiVersus
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2022
153,044*
467*
MultiVersus took the gaming world by storm in July 2022 with its incredible cast of crossover characters. In this fighting game, players can play as a variety of unlikely heroes, from LeBron James and Batman to Arya Stark from Game of Thrones and even Bugs Bunny.
Even complete with themed stages, this wasn’t enough to keep the interests of its player base and MultiVersus has since seen a crushing drop in player counts.
1 Dota Underlords
Release year
All-time maximum Steam player count
Maximum number of Steam players in the last 30 days
2019
202,254*
2,677*
Dota Underlords is an auto-battler, or automatic chess game, and uses characters and themes from Dota 2. At launch, the game, which was inspired by a community game mode for Dota 2, managed to attract many players, but interest soon decreased.
One reason why Dota Underlords is almost a dead game is that it can’t compete with the size and success of Teamfight Tactics, which is League of Legends’ take on the genre. TFT has a lot more depth, which players will need advanced tips for.