Top Online Games for PC

In other words, it’s difficult to find big releases that aren’t online games for PC, mainly because they have some features that require you to be connected to the server.

So, to keep this list somewhat contained we will only focus on those titles that require an Internet connection to be played as intended. The entries in this list are based on the current number of active players, as well as the all-time high active players.

Online Casino Games

Almost 10% of the gambling population plays on online casinos and sportsbooks. This is around 155 million active players, while the number of people who casually gamble, is significantly higher. There are thousands of brands out there that distribute gambling content, but the number of companies that develop these games is significantly lower.

Players usually choose operators based on their region, and based on the available games, bonuses, supported payment methods, etc. It’s easy to find available operators through sites that review online casino and list all of the relevant info. Because there are thousands of casino games available it’s difficult to get an accurate player count for each one. So, they were all bundled together like this. 

Fortnite

The Battle Royale genre is still strong. There are many casual gamers, professional players, eSports stars, and streamers who love this genre, and the most-played Battle Royale title is Fortnite.  According to Activeplayer.io the number of active users on an hourly basis is over 1.2 million, while the number of monthly players is more than 220 million.

This isn’t too surprising for one of the best free online games for PC. The title receives a lot of attention thanks to streamers and consistent content updates. The game is dynamic and fast-paced, and it awards creative thinking and precision. On top of all that, it’s available on all gaming platforms apart from iOS.

Minecraft

Another amazing cross-platform experience that was originally launched in 2009. It’s rare for free pc games online to have cross-generational appeal, but Minecraft pulls it off. It’s because it encourages players to be creative when interacting with this world. The design has become iconic, and we can see many games trying to copy this style. A good example would be Casino Boss Simulator, a recently released casino management simulator that is very popular on Steam.

As far as player count goes, the number of hourly active users is close to 970,000. Also, over 170 million people play this game actively on a monthly basis. Minecraft's heydays aren’t behind it, in fact, they may yet reach new heights.

League of Legends

An undisputed champion in the MOBA genre, League is as strong as ever. The first version was launched in 2009, and it was one of the high-quality free games online PC players could access. What’s more, it’s still free and it has significantly evolved since then. You could argue that the barrier to entry is higher nowadays, but that doesn’t seem to impede the new player acquisition. The matchmaking algorithm is designed to ensure a fair matchup player skill-wise, so casuals should have a win rate of around 50%.

There are over a million players who are active each hour, and the current number of active users is over 130 million. 

World of Warcraft

All of the above-mentioned IPs are free online games for PC, so they are incredibly more accessible compared to a game like World of Warcraft. The all-time high number of subscribers was 12 million, and it was back in 2010. Now don’t confuse the number of active subscribers with the number of active players.

Blizzard has stopped sharing the data on active subscribers because it isn’t an accurate reflection of the player count or the game’s performance. Arcades and playrooms where many teens play together use a single subscription per PC. This means that hundreds of players can share a single subscription. In the same vein, a lot of WOW players have alts or multiple characters, and all of these alts are viewed as active players.  Also, with an active subscription a user has access to both retail and Classic WoW.

With all of that out of the way here are the stats. The average number of active monthly users is around 9 million. However, that number tends to surge whenever a new expansion goes live, and the current WoW expansion Dragonflight is in its late stages. 

Conclusion

If you judge the quality of the game based on player count then these entries would be the some of best online games for PC. As stated at the beginning, a lot of titles support online play, it’s just that they aren’t designed as an ongoing experience. Baldur’s Gate, Elden Ring, FIFA, and others are all games online PC players love, but they only become relevant once a new DLC drops. Usually, they have an incredibly high player count on the release, and receive a lot of praise, but after a month or so, they drop off in popularity.

Author: Giorgos Manousos is a gambling expert from Athens who works as the chief editor at GamblingOrb. He’s been gaming since his teens and loves to share his perspective on the topics that have to do with modern forms of gaming entertainment in general. He is an avid poker player who used to compete in tournaments regularly.