Once Human Feels Like It Should Be More Popular

Once Human is intriguing. When the free-to-play survival MMO launched in July 2024, it made an immediate splash by pulling in over 230,000 concurrent players on Steam. Since then, the game has surpassed 10 million downloads worldwide, supported by more than 30 million pre-registrations on mobile. Despite those impressive numbers, Once Human’s current population has stabilized at a healthy but modest average of 20,000 to 25,000 concurrent players, with daily peaks hovering around 35,000. Those are respectable figures. And yet, it feels like Once Human should be a much bigger deal.

What makes the game stand out is its world. Once Human has a strange, eerie atmosphere that feels hostile but alive. The environments are filled with bizarre creatures, warped landscapes, and unsettling phenomena that reinforce the idea that players are truly surviving at the edge of a collapsing reality. There is a base-building system that is robust, giving players the opportunity to carve out a small haven in the middle of the apocalypse. Cooperation, conflict, and competition all play an equal role in the experience, and the game encourages players to form alliances, raid one another’s strongholds, and fight over resources. Survival games often involve gathering, crafting, and fending off enemies, but Once Human takes things a step further by turning those enemies into dynamic threats that actively shape the game’s events.

A perfect example of this is the Blood Moon world boss. Rather than waiting in a fixed location for players to come to it, the boss hunts players across the server. Every time it kills someone, it grows stronger and steals that player’s event currency. The longer it survives, the more dangerous it becomes, building tension for everyone involved. When it is finally defeated, the player or group that lands the killing blow gets everything the monster has collected. These server-wide events are exactly what keeps MMOs exciting and unique.

Once Human is fun too, according to the players. On Steam, more than 71,000 players have left reviews, and the game currently sits at a “Mostly Positive” rating overall, with over 6,000 recent reviews marked as “Very Positive.” This means players are not only giving it a try but are sticking around long enough to recommend it to others. 

Still, there are reasons why the game may not have exploded into the mainstream. The onboarding experience is one of the biggest hurdles. When I played, I felt overwhelmed by a barrage of menus, currencies, pop-ups, and interconnected systems that are not well explained. Survival games are already a complex genre, and Once Human scares away casual players before they find their footing. Technical problems have also been a recurring issue, including lag and desync during major events.

Another common complaint is tied to monetization and cosmetics. While Once Human is not pay-to-win, some players feel that its premium skins and flashy outfits clash with the dark, grounded tone of the world. Bright neon colors and over-the-top cosmetics can break immersion, especially for those who are drawn to the gritty, post-apocalyptic setting.

Even so, I do not believe these criticisms overshadow what the game does well. Once Human is barely over a year old, and its developers continue to release new content, host events, and refine the experience. Its player base has remained stable rather than collapsing, which is a good sign for the game’s long-term health. If the team can smooth out technical problems, simplify the early game experience, and keep delivering meaningful updates, Once Human has the potential to grow.

So, if you are looking for a survival MMO, I think Once Human is worth your attention. There are bigger names out there, but this game appears to contain the systems, the atmosphere, and the community needed to succeed. It just needs time to put all the pieces together.