Lethal Company was one of the most successful new games on Steam last year, a feat made even more impressive by the circumstances of its development.
According to analyst firm VGI, Lethal Company was the third biggest release of 2023 by unit count, and the ninth biggest by revenue. That puts its sales figures just behind Baldur's Gate 3 and Hogwarts Legacy, and above games like Overwatch 2 and Starfield. When you count revenue, Lethal Company's smaller price tag means it's slipped further down the pecking order, but it's still gone toe-to-toe with the likes of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Cities Skylines 2.
VGI states that Lethal Company made $52 million last year. That's impressive given its late October release date and that aforementioned price tag, but it's also almost incredible when you consider its development. This is a game made and published by a single developer, Zeekers. They got their start in gamedev via Roblox, and now, if you take into account Steam's 30% revenue cut for most games, is likely to have made in excess of $35 million from Lethal Company.
- Balatro's first few hours generated over $600,000, "far more money" than the roguelike's creator had ever made: "It is the most surreal day of my life"
- Lethal Company creator shouts out another viral co-op hit that already has 28,000 Steam reviews, says it has "the most funny objective for a horror game"
If that figure is even remotely accurate, it makes Lethal Company's efforts truly astounding. Almost every other game in the top ten is part of an established series of franchise - the only exceptions are Starfield, which has Bethesda's name on the box, and Sons of the Forest and Cities Skylines 2, both of which are sequels to games that are thought of as market leaders in their relatively niche but passionate genres. For any indie game to have cut into this top ten is astonishing, but for that game to have been made by a single person is almost incredible.
Spurred on by a lot of streamer attention, Lethal Company is indicative of the fact that some of the biggest hits can seemingly come from nowhere. It's not that long since the likes of Valheim and Among Us exploded onto the scene, and while Lethal Company has more in common with one of those games than the other, it doesn't take away from the power of these indie sensations.
