Steam Game Releases Reportedly Increased by 93% Between 2020 and 2024

The video game industry is experiencing a historic surge in output, with the number of games released on Steam nearly doubling in just four years. According to a new report by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, the amount of games available on the platform rose from 9,656 titles in 2020 to 18,626 in 2024 as show in SteamDB, a staggering 93% increase.

This influx reflects how much the industry has changed in just half a decade. Developers are no longer competing only with other game studios, but also with streaming services, social media, and live-service games like Fortnite, which demand long-term player attention.

For gamers, this boom is arguably a positive. With a greater variety of titles at different price points, plus the rise of cloud gaming, it’s easier than ever to enjoy games across multiple platforms, even devices not designed for traditional gaming.

For developers, however, the situation is far more complex. Releasing a new game today means vying for visibility against hundreds of titles launched every month, creating enormous challenges for marketing, discoverability, and long-term success.

While few studios would openly attribute layoffs or closures directly to oversaturation, Schreier notes this “too many games” dilemma is one of the underlying realities shaping the industry. Smaller studios, in particular, struggle to cut through the noise when big-budget AAA projects and live-service giants dominate player attention.

It’s not necessarily a “problem” in the traditional sense, it’s also a reflection of the industry’s rapid growth. But this new normal represents a very different landscape from 2020, one where developers must adapt strategies to stand out in an increasingly crowded marketplace.

Do you think this flood of new releases is good for gamers, or does it risk overwhelming both players and developers?