Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is getting positive reviews, but no one’s playing it

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League didn’t do itself any favors in the leadup to its launch, but now that it’s out, strange things are happening. Rocksteady’s third-person shooter is getting favorable reviews, but at the same time, very few players were eager to Kill the Justice League on the opening weekend.

Many of us thought Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League would be dead on arrival thanks to the PR suicide that was the game’s pre-launch campaign. With red flags waving left and right leading to unfathomably low expectations, surely the only way to go was up. We’re happy to report that so far, Kill the Justice League seems to be proving its doubters wrong, as it’s receiving very positive user reviews—but alas, there’s much to be desired in terms of its playerbase.

Steam reviews for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League are currently sitting at 85 percent approval, which translates to a “very positive” overall rating. High approval on Steam is usually rare, and only the best games tend to approach these numbers. This is a far cry from the disaster many saw coming before launch. So far, so good, but not all Steam numbers for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League are positive.

The number Rocksteady and Warner Bros. care about most—the player count—was woefully disappointing on the opening weekend. In what was supposed to be a push for relevance, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League only pulled in 13,500 players at its peak. If you think this doesn’t sound too low, keep in mind that The Day Before, which was an all-around disaster, had nearly 40,000 players at its all-time peak.

While this huge discrepancy seems strange at first, it’s not hard to explain why Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League isn’t attracting many players, despite how the few people playing it seem to be having a good time. Entertainment PR exists for a reason: It needs to sell a product before that product is out, and no PR campaign in recent memory has done more damage to its product than Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Going from “dead on arrival” to mostly positive reviews is a good start, but Rocksteady will have to live up to its promises of quality post-launch content if Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has any hopes to stay afloat long-term.