Magic Arena breaks Steam player record after Final Fantasy release

Magic Arena, the digital version of Magic: The Gathering registered a new record of simultaneous players this Tuesday (10), with the arrival of the special collection in partnership with Final Fantasy. According to data from SteamCharts, the online platform reached a peak of 17,989 players connected at the same time, the highest number ever recorded on the platform since the game was released on Steam.

The previous record was set in August 2024, during the launch of Bloomburrow, when the number of concurrent players was 12,215. With the digital expansion of Final Fantasy, this figure was surpassed in the early hours of the day: at 1 pm (Brasília time), the total reached 17,261, being surpassed shortly after, with the new peak at 4 pm.

The number, however, only considers users of the Steam platform. There is still no consolidated data on accesses through Wizards of the Coast's own launcher, the Epic Games Store or mobile devices.

The repercussion was immediate on social media and forums. Users reported server instability, with difficulties logging in or staying connected. Wizards' own support team said it was monitoring the situation, attributing the problems to the high volume of accesses registered after the release of the new collection.

The digital launch marks the first expansion of the Universes Beyond line, focused on collaborations with other pop culture brands, in Standard and Pioneer formats, with the arrival of iconic Final Fantasy characters to the Magic: The Gathering* universe, including names such as Cloud, Midgar Mercenary, Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER and Lightning, Army of One.

With an impressive initial performance, Final Fantasy became Magic's best-selling set during pre-sales, a milestone that previously belonged to Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth, released in 2023.

Wizards of the Coast has yet to release official numbers on the total number of players on other platforms, but the expectation is that the impact of Final Fantasy will continue in the coming days.

Source: StarCityGames