As I write this sentence, the most recent co-op journey recreation from Hazelight, Cut up Fiction, hasn’t even been out for 48 hours. But based mostly on participant depend numbers, Metacritic rankings, opinions, and participant scores, it’s already considered one of EA’s most profitable and critically acclaimed video games in years. And hopefully, EA and different publishers be taught a factor or two from the co-op recreation’s success.
After being revealed simply 12 weeks in the past on the Recreation Awards in December, Cut up Fiction launched on March 6 to rave opinions. Our personal Kenneth Shepard discovered the sport to be extremely ingenious and well-made, calling it a “victory lap” from studio Hazelight which has been producing wonderful co-op video games for a few decade now. I’ve been enjoying it with my spouse over the previous couple of days and I’ve to agree. It’s a very unbelievable recreation that’s full of lots of of cool moments and concepts. And it appears we aren’t alone in loving Cut up Fiction as a result of trying round at ever publicly out there metric readily available, the sport is a smash hit.
Spectacular Steam numbers and Metacritic scores
First, lets have a look at Metacritic, which is a helpful if flawed metric of how properly a recreation is doing total with critics throughout a number of websites and retailers. The evaluation aggregator has Cut up Fiction, as of March 7, sitting at 91 on PS5 and 92 on Xbox and PC. That’s rattling spectacular, and it’s sufficient to make it 2025’s highest-rated recreation so far. Nevertheless it’s additionally an enormous deal for writer EA, as Cut up Fiction is EA’s first online game to attain a 90 or greater on Metacritic in 13 years. The final time that occurred was in 2012 with Mass Impact 3.
Subsequent, we are able to have a look at Steam and the way many individuals are enjoying the sport on Valve’s widespread PC storefront. In keeping with the ever-reliable SteamDB, just some hours after launch, Cut up Fiction had over 190,000 lively concurrent gamers. Wowza! Meaning it was as widespread as Steam giants like GTA V, Rust, and Marvel Rivals. That prime quantity additionally set a document for EA. Cut up Fiction’s peak participant depend of 197,000 is the second highest concurrent quantity EA has achieved on Steam. Solely Apex Legends, a free-to-play battle royale shooter, has carried out higher.
It must also be famous that not like most different EA video games, Cut up Fiction (like 2024’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard) doesn’t require you to put in and use a separate EA launcher to play. That is additional proof that ditching third occasion launchers is a brilliant transfer for any writer.
EA and Hazelight are additionally in all probability actually pleased that Cut up Fiction is receiving constructive opinions from gamers on Steam. The brand new co-op recreation at present has a 94 % constructive person ranking on Steam. That makes it EA’s fifth most well-reviewed Steam recreation, solely barely behind one other Hazelight co-op banger, It Takes Two.
Will EA and different publishers be taught a lesson?
Whereas we should wait and see how properly Cut up Fiction sells, all of the at present out there information exhibits that this can be a large house run for EA. It’s but extra proof that smaller, extra centered video games (relative to stuff like GTA 6 and Starfield) can succeed and blow up in an enormous means. And also you don’t must spend three years advertising and marketing a recreation for it to search out success.
I additionally suppose that EA made a sensible transfer when it determined to not lock Cut up Fiction behind some third-party launcher on PC. As a substitute, you purchase the sport on Steam and simply play it. Easy, simple, and a way more interesting supply for the typically fickle PC playerbase. And let’s not overlook that Hazelight (an impartial studio, however one which depends closely on EA’s cash) with the ability to spend a decade now making smaller co-op video games has allowed the staff extra time to be taught and enhance at their craft collectively, which suggests future video games are more likely to be higher.
Now, will EA and different publishers watching be taught a lesson from Cut up Fiction’s success? Will they permit studios extra probabilities to make smaller video games and never burn thousands and thousands on years of promoting or lay off individuals the second one thing doesn’t hit as massive? In all probability not. Nevertheless it would be good to see somebody on the market be taught a lesson from Cut up Fiction’s house run success.
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