The new year has arrived. Steam data for early 2026 is officially out, and the results paint a chaotic picture for the PC gaming market. Valve’s platform saw over 19,000 new titles in 2025 alone. Now, the dust has settled. While familiar titans remain, new contenders are shaking up the rankings.
ARC Raiders Claims the Revenue Throne
Embark Studios has started 2026 with a massive win. Their extraction shooter, ARC Raiders, currently stands as the number one best-selling game on Steam by revenue. It officially launched on October 30, 2025, and has shown impressive staying power since.
Notably, ARC Raiders beat out Counter-Strike 2 for the top spot. However, Valve’s charts include hardware. Consequently, the Steam Deck holds the second spot, pushing Counter-Strike 2 to third.
The top 10 best-selling products on Steam right now are:
| Rank | Title |
| 1 | ARC Raiders |
| 2 | Steam Deck |
| 3 | Counter-Strike 2 |
| 4 | Marvel Rivals |
| 5 | Baldur’s Gate 3 |
| 6 | Warframe |
| 7 | Battlefield 6 |
| 8 | Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 |
| 9 | Dispatch |
| 10 | Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora |
The list highlights a strong mix of 2025 releases and older blockbusters. While Battlefield 6 and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora made the cut, indie hits like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 are also competing with the giants.
Counter-Strike 2 Dominates Player Counts on Steam
Revenue is only half the story. When looking at daily active players, Counter-Strike 2 remains the undisputed king. In the last 24 hours, the shooter peaked at 1,515,495 concurrent players. This massive figure puts it over 800,000 players ahead of the runner-up, Dota 2.
Free-to-play titles dominate this chart. However, ARC Raiders defies the trend. It sits in fifth place and is the first paid game on the list.
The top 10 most-played games (Daily Players) are:
| Rank | Title |
| 1 | Counter-Strike 2 |
| 2 | Dota 2 |
| 3 | PUBG: Battlegrounds |
| 4 | ARC Raiders |
| 5 | Rust |
| 6 | Bongo Cat |
| 7 | Apex Legends |
| 8 | Wallpaper Engine |
| 9 | Stardew Valley |
| 10 | Delta Force |
Battlefield 6 Falters While Others Rise
The data reveals a worrying trend for DICE. Battlefield 6 launched in late 2025 as a major blockbuster. However, its player count has dropped substantially since launch. It currently clings to the bottom half of the top 10 most-played list. Time will tell if future updates can reverse this decline.
Conversely, the charts fluctuate rapidly based on region. Real-time data periodically highlights other popular titles like Rust, Path of Exile 2, and even Bongo Cat, which missed the daily top 10.
As we move deeper into 2026, the schedule is packed with new releases. These upcoming titles could shift the balance. Yet, for now, ARC Raiders proves that a premium live-service game can still thrive in a free-to-play world.
