Steam brought Valve $15 billion in 2026, with Crimson Desert alone earning $203 million

Valve continues to post record numbers through Steam. According to market analysis from Alinea Analytics lead Rhys Elliott, the platform pulled in roughly $15 billion in gross revenue over the first eight months of 2026 alone, already topping the full-year total for 2023.

Among the fresh IPs launched this year, Crimson Desert from Pearl Abyss stands out, having outpaced nearly every other new franchise at the register.

Elliott calls Steam "Valve's functional monopoly on the PC market" in his breakdown, noting that the platform revenue for 2026 is up around 15% compared to last year. He predicts the yearly total will cross $20 billion for the first time ever.

The revenue jump didn't come down to one runaway hit – several big games contributed instead.

Elliott points to a handful of top earners on the platform:

• Forza Horizon 6 – an estimated $210.5 million

• Crimson Desert – $203.3 million

• Resident Evil Requiem – $200.9 million

Meccha Chameleon was the only other completely new IP to land in Steam top six earners, pulling in around $89.8 million.

That number still falls well short of what Crimson Desert managed, cementing its place as the most successful debut of the year on the platform.

Most of Steam money, though, doesn't come from new releases at all – it comes from what's being called mid-market games. That bucket includes aging AAA titles like GTA 5, Fallout 4, and Lost Ark, alongside genuinely mid-tier games that just sell consistently well.

Elliott pointed to Mortal Shell 2 as an example of the latter, adding that games like it still can't compete on volume with mainstream hits such as Forza Horizon 6.

The broader new-release market tells its own story too. The top 100 new games of 2026 by gross revenue brought in about $2.4 billion combined, roughly 15.9% of all Steam revenue over that stretch.