In the first week after its release, Atomic Heart, a Russian sci-fi shooter set in an alternate Soviet landscape, became the biggest new project for Xbox in 2023. It even outpaced Hogwarts Legacy, the popular wizarding adventure, according to early data from Real Achievements via Portal.
Atomic Heart hit Xbox Game Pass last week, and week one player activity positions it as the most played new title on Xbox for 2023. The game quickly drew a large audience right after launch.
Studio Mundfish’s shooter surpassed not only Hogwarts Legacy but several other Game Pass entries, including GoldenEye 007 and Hi-Fi Rush, in the initial days after release.
During the first seven days, around 120,000 players joined Atomic Heart. That figure topped Hogwarts Legacy by roughly 20,000 players. GoldenEye and Hi-Fi Rush each attracted about 70,000 players in the same period.
Even with the fresh appeal of a Russian development team, Atomic Heart faced strong competition from High on Life, a title that drew about 160,000 players in 2022, setting a high benchmark for Game Pass debuts.
Still, Atomic Heart demonstrated strong early appeal on the service, outperforming a number of major releases from the previous year. The shooter, set in an alternate USSR, drew crowds that surpassed titles such as PowerWash Simulator, Deathloop, A Plague Tale Requiem, Tunic, and Scorn in terms of initial player counts.
Former blogger Dan Allen shared a video featuring actors portraying the main characters of Atomic Heart, adding another layer of promotional momentum to the launch period.