Steam reaches new concurrent user record of 20 million, likely due to coronavirus

As much of the world begins practicing self-isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, one industry is—not surprisingly—moving full steam ahead: gaming.

Games marketplace and library Steam hit an all-time concurrent player peak of just over 20 million yesterday, according to Steam Database. Steam’s record of 19 million users just two days ago has already been smashed.

Similarly, the most popular games on Steam has seen an upsurge in players. CS:GO inched up to 1,024,845 players for yet another record in recent weeks, Dota 2‘s peak player count went over 700,000 for the first time in four months, and PUBG has also seen 600,000 users log in.

The increase in Steam’s active user base are almost certainly to the renewed measures taken to combat COVID-19. High-density public places across the world are being shut down, entire countries are entering lockdown, and offices are sending workers home.

Related: Every esports event impacted by coronavirus | Shutdowns, audience limits, and more

With the coronavirus outbreak officially declared by the World Health Organization as a “pandemic”, it’s imperative for people to take the appropriate measures of minimizing contact with the outside world.

Thankfully, Steam’s robust platform and an endless library of games make it easy for people stuck at home to kick back and dive into video games online.