Monster Hunter: World invites small teams of players to track and capture rare creatures on a lost continent. — AFP Relaxnews
Recently rejuvenated sci-fi exploration jaunt No Man's Sky and leviathan-tracking Monster Hunter: World conspired to further loosen the grip of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds at the top of the Steam chart come Aug 6.
A graphical overhaul, systems tune-up, and the implementation of a recognisable co-operative multiplayer feature have helped boost No Man's Sky to the top of the Steam charts following the July 24 release of its latest update, NEXT.
User reviews logged over the past two weeks have been mostly positive, and the effective No Man's Sky re-launch has coincided with a half-price sale on the 2016 debut.
It's a significant turnaround in reputation for the ambitious, small-team, universe-spanning title, which was largely unable to live up to pre-release hype in 2016.
In contrast, Capcom's Monster Hunter: World, the latest in a 14-year-old franchise known for favouring dedicated fans went beyond expectations. The giant developer came up with an accessible, enjoyable iteration that outsold all 10 Monster Hunter predecessors.
After an enthusiastic reception on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in January, Monster Hunter: World arrives on PC from Aug 9. Pre-release sales put it behind only No Man's Sky on Steam and the Humble Store alike, with a first and second place double on Fanatical courtesy of its Deluxe Edition.
Also doing well on Steam is Rend, a faction-based approach to the last-person-standing Battle Royale format that PUBG popularised, having entered its in-development Early Access phase on July 31.
On GamersGate and GOG, fantasy role-playing adventure Pillars Of Eternity II: Deadfire benefited from the Aug 2 addition of free challenge modes and a paid, snowy expansion called The Beast Of Winter, the first of three Season Pass components also included in the Deluxe Edition.
But it's team-based World War II battlefield game Post-Scriptum that's on top on GamersGate. Published by the developer behind modern combat title Squad (in third place). On Itch.io, where super low-budget horror riffs rule the day, the developer of Baldi's Basics In Education And Learning shows what an adventure outside the original game's school setting could look like, with a Baldi's Basics: Field Trip demo.
Steam* (steampowered.com)
1. No Man's Sky
2. Monster Hunter: World
3. PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds
4. Grand Theft Auto V
5. Rend
*Steam chart based on revenue rather than units.
Humble Store (humblebundle.com/store)
1. No Man's Sky
2. Monster Hunter: World
3. Monster Hunter: World – Deluxe Edition
4. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
5. EVE Online: Galaxy Pack
GamersGate EU (gamersgate.com)
1. Post Scriptum
2. Pillars Of Eternity II: Deadfire – Obsidian Edition
3. Squad
4. Pillars Of Eternity II: Deadfire
5. Starbound
Fanatical (fanatical.com)
1. Monster Hunter: World
2. Monster Hunter: World – Deluxe Edition
3. Street Fighter: 30th Anniversary Collection
4. Total War: Rome II – Rise Of The Republic
5. Fanatical Anthology Awesome Bundle 15 game bundle
GOG (gog.com)
1. Pillars Of Eternity: Deadfire – Obsidian Edition
2. Anno 1404: Gold Edition
3. Heroes Of Might And Magic 3: Complete
4. Pillars Of Eternity II: Deadfire – The Beast Of Winter
5. The Settlers: Rise Of An Empire – Gold Edition
Itchio's Most Popular (itch.io)
1. Baldi's Basics – Field Trip demo: Camping
2. Baldi's Basics In Education And Learning
3. Eggs For Bart
4. The Mannequin
5. Blind Date
— AFP Relaxnews
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