The growth of esports in 2017 was no secret, with some huge stories coming out of the industry over the course of the year.
Steam recently shared with the world their best sellers of 2017, and esports runs rampant in the upper echelon of their sales charts.
The list, ranking games Platinum (highest), Gold, Silver or Bronze (lowest) based on sales, sees several top competitive titles in high demand throughout the year.
Major esport titles such as Dota 2, Rocket League and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, where top players can earn millions of pounds all reside in Platinum, alongside H1Z1 and Rainbow Six Siege which both have a growing esport presence as developers and fans alike continue to support the game.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds also finds itself near the top of the list. It quickly became something of a fan favourite throughout the year with some of the world’s biggest organisations acquiring a team in the game.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is also in Platinum and, despite the game itself not being competitive, was the birthplace of the Gwent card game. Gwent has made moves towards being a successful esport in its own right, with highest-earning player Fred “Freddybabes” Bird earning over $86,000 (£63,400) in 2017 alone.
Call of Duty: WWII also sits in Gold, despite its competitive scene being played entirely on PS4.
These figures show a clear trajectory in the impact of esports on gaming, as more casual players look to competitive titles to fulfil their gaming requirements.
It is worth noting that this list does not include games that are not available on Steam, such as League of Legends and Overwatch, arguably two of the biggest esports in the world right now. With those two factored in, we would likely see even more esport dominance at the top of the charts.
Esports Insider says: This news shows a great improvement in the merging of casual gamers with esports. Every year some of these titles hand out millions of pounds in prize money and this level of importance and investment in gaming is clearly impacting the esports industry. With games such as PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Rocket League growing an organic competitive foundation purely through customer demand is incredibly encouraging to the future of the industry, as is the continued success of established titles such as Dota 2 and CS:GO.