Looking at recent Steam player statistics, it seems several gamers have stopped playing PSO2: NGS, however loyal gamers believe that the game is not dead.
Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis (PSO2: NGS) is a popular video game that invites players to create and control a character in an open world. You have to complete quests, farm gear, defeat enemies while enjoying several in-game modes and events.
Since it was initially released in 2020, it is considered an older video game, and some players looking to pick up the game are naturally curious to know whether the game is considered dead – after all, no player wants to join a sinking ship.
Why do games die?
The video gaming world is ever expanding, which means there are several new video games released yearly. Gamers tend to want to play the latest video games, as they provide better graphics, storylines, gameplay and combat systems.
Since there are new games released regularly, gamers tend to forget about older video games, such as PSO: NGS. When a lot of gamers stop playing an old video game, it is considered to be dying as it was not as popular compared to when it was just released.
There are, however, some video games that have stood the test of time, which means that even though they might be a few years old, they are still considered one of the best and most popular games of all time. However, not all video games are fortunate enough to follow this route.
Is PSO2: NGS dead?
In 2020, SEGA, the game’s developer, released the game eight years after its official announcement. Although the world waited eight years for the game, it received positive reviews.
PSO2: NGS held up well against the test of time, and fans across the globe took to their computers and consoles to celebrate the magical escape from the 2020 pandemic.
Although the game was fairly successful, it was plagued by several ills. The toxic fanbase, market scalpers and unloading eight years of content within a few months, burned out players and caused unhealthy habits.
Gamers wanted to ‘keep up with its content’, which caused many people to stop enjoying PSO2: NGS as it became like work. The pacing of the game was extremely off and many gamers stopped playing the game because of it.
The toxic fanbase did not only happen in-game, as Discord servers and private friend groups made their own group chat servers.
These servers were full of abuse, personal attacks and improper behaviors. Although these groups were created with good intentions, they ended up wrecking the community instead.
Several PSO2: NGS players could not enjoy the game due to toxic players. Despite these factors, the game kept going, mainly due to fashion and lobby grinding.
The game is considered in a dying state, as a sad, cold wall of endgame content promises, but ends up being buggy and unpolished.
SteamCharts
SteamCharts is an ongoing analysis of Steam’s concurrent players. It provides gamers insight about how many players are enjoying a game, how many stopped playing the game and how many new players started playing the game.
The following table provides PSO2: NGS stats:
| Month | Average Players | Percentage gain or loss |
| Last 30 days | 2,481 | The game lost 1.25 percent players. |
| February 2023 | 2,512 | PSO2: NGS gained 9.09 percent players. |
| January 2023 | 2,303 | 10.68 percent of players stopped playing the game. |
| December 2022 | 2,578 | The game gained 14.49 percent players. |
| November 2022 | 2,252 | 6.94 percent players stopped playing PSO2:NGS. |
| October 2022 | 2,240 | The game lost 6.73 percent of players. |
What players have to say
On a Reddit forum, one player asked if PSO2: NGS is really dead. A player, known as DragspearYT, mentioned that the game is not dead at all. The SteamCharts only indicate the number of players who enjoy the game through their Steam accounts.
Therefore, they do not consider the gamers who play the game through the Windows Store, Epic Store, PlayStation and Xbox. He mentioned that the game is not dead, but it is a fresh game.
This is allegedly why most people will reopen the game when more content is added to satisfy them.
DragspearYT also stated that loyal players still enjoy the game even when it is considered an old game.
PSO2: NGS boards and forums
According to SteamCharts, the game lost more players than it gained players. This could be why the PSO2: NGS boards, forums and Discord servers are no longer active.
Most players left the game as it became boring, however, they tend to reopen and enjoy the game once new content has been released.
It is therefore likely that the boards, forums and Discord servers will become more active when more people are playing PSO2: NGS.