Highlights
- Steam hit a record $1.6 billion in December revenue, reaching $17.7 billion for 2025.
- Arc Raiders surged with 1.2 million holiday sales, while Counter-Strike 2 topped the charts.
- Massive Winter Sale discounts fueled this historic PC gaming performance, beating 2020 highs.
2025 might have been a mixed bag for the world, but for PC gaming, it ended on a spectacular high. Valve’s Steam platform has reportedly closed out the year with a financial performance for the history books, smashing its own all-time revenue records. Driven by a massive Winter Sale and the unstoppable momentum of new hits, the storefront generated a staggering $1.6 billion USD in gross revenue during December 2025 alone. According to new data from Alinea Analytics, this wasn't just a good month; it was a "perfect storm." The $1.6B figure represents a massive milestone for the platform, marking a 22.7% increase compared to December 2024.
Perhaps most impressively, this performance surpasses the previous all-time high set during the peak of the pandemic in December 2020, which saw $1.4B in revenue. The surge helped lift Steam’s full-year revenue to $17.7B, a solid 15% growth from the previous year. While the rising tide of the annual Winter Sale lifted many titles, Arc Raiders emerged as the season's breakout star. As the report puts it, the "brakes are broken on the Arc Raiders train."
The cooperative shooter sold an impressive 1.2 million copies on Steam between December 21 and January 4 alone. On Boxing Day, the title saw a massive spike, shifting approximately 250,000 units in a single day. This holiday boost pushed the game’s total lifetime sales past the 12 million mark, with nearly 3.2 million players checking in during the break. In terms of raw revenue, Arc Raiders secured the second spot on the charts, generating an estimated $32M during the two-week holiday period.
Steam
Deep Discounts and CS2 Dominance
Beyond the new blockbusters, deep discounts played a crucial role in driving this record-breaking month. Detroit: Become Human saw a major resurgence, selling nearly 993,000 copies after being discounted to just $4. Similarly, the survival game Icarus moved 735,000 units after its price dropped from $35 to a tempting $3. Other heavy hitters also contributed to the momentum, with PEAK selling 779,000 copies, pushing its lifetime sales over 16 million, and a discounted Battlefield 6 moving 706,000 units.
Despite the influx of new hits and massive sales volumes for other titles, the evergreen tactical shooter Counter-Strike 2 remained the absolute king of revenue. It held the top spot even against the surge of holiday purchases, proving once again that its dominance is constant, as reported by PC Gamer.
With over a million active players flocking to the store in December and a library refreshed with 19,200 new games throughout the year, Steam’s unchallenged lead in PC gaming signals a very strong start to 2026.
