God of War Ragnarok finds huge Twitch success, but can’t topple Elden Ring

God of War Ragnarok’s arrival has shaken up the gaming world in 2022. It found massive success on Twitch as hundreds of thousands watched their favorite streamers play, but it’s still trailing its Game of the Year rival: Elden Ring.

God of War Ragnarok was one of 2022’s most anticipated titles, and it certainly delivered. With players being thrown back into the Nine Realms, many couldn’t have asked for anything better five years after the last installment.

It’s not just players diving into the game on PlayStation either. In fact, many are kicking back and watching their favorite streamers tackle it on Twitch and YouTube.

Many top names have dedicated mammoth broadcasts to completing the game. Felix ‘xQc’ Lengyel basically did it in one sitting, and he’s not alone with Ruben Doblas ‘Rubius’ Gundersen and Ben ‘CohhCarnage’ Cassell among the top names who have streamed God of War Ragnarok in its launch week.

Across the first three days, more than 11 million hours of God of War Ragnarok gameplay has been watched on Twitch. This includes a peak of 460,000 viewers as many closed in on the final hours of the game — putting it at 42nd all-time.

It peaked at third in terms of categories, and still comfortably sits near the top of the Twitch charts days on. However, its launch is not the biggest on the streaming platform this year as Elden Ring still has that record on lock.

Elden Ring peaked at 875,000 viewers, nearly double what God of War Ragnarok got in its launch week. It also had twice as many channels streaming the game, and it was in the top Twitch categories for the months that followed. Even now, it still gets around 10,000 peak viewers a day.

Cyberpunk 2077’s launch in December 2020 still has the single-player records down pat as 1.1 million tuned in on its first day ⁠— although that ended up being an unmitigated disaster for CD Projekt Red with the game barely functional and bug-riddled for most.

God of War Ragnarok still has some wiggle room for boasting big Twitch numbers, and it’ll likely feature high at the end of November in the monthly rankings. 

It may have fallen shy of its biggest Game of the Year rival in that department, but gameplay-wise, it’s neck and neck between the two as awards season nears.