The PlayStation 5 received a brand-new open-world game called Active Matter on September 15 that is now earning rave reviews, with its average user score currently sitting at 4.5 out of 5 on the PS Store. Some PlayStation 5 users had already wishlisted the game after it was compared to popular titles such as ARC Raiders and S.T.A.L.K.E.R., but its strong early reviews could now help it reach a wider audience.
Despite coming from a new development team, Active Matter follows in the footsteps of some of the biggest names in popular genres, including PvPvE extraction shooters, first-person shooters, and exploration-focused open-world games. However, the team appears to have risen to the challenge, delivering a visually impressive game with no major performance issues that many players say is also fun to play.
PS5’s New Game Active Matter Gets 89% Positive Reviews
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Image via Matter Team -
Image via Matter Team -
Image via Matter Team
According to PlayStation Store data from September 17, roughly two days after Active Matter‘s global launch, the game received 78% five-star and 11% four-star ratings from users. While the number of reviews is still in the hundreds, this is an impressive milestone for a non-AAA game with a limited marketing budget. Interestingly, Active Matter is also performing well on other platforms, with the Xbox Series X/S version receiving a similar 4.5 out of 5 stars and the Steam release sitting at Mostly Positive reviews at the time of writing.
Active Matter’s Player Count Could Be a Telltale Sign of Long-Term Success
While there are no reliable sources for estimating Active Matter‘s concurrent player count on PS5, SteamDB data can provide a useful point of reference. According to the website, the game reached its peak concurrent player count shortly after launch, when nearly 3,000 players were online at once. That figure could rise in the coming days as more fans of open-world FPS games discover Active Matter. But even if the game settles at around 2,000 to 3,000 daily concurrent players on Steam alone, that would still be a considerable achievement for the development team in today’s crowded gaming market.
At the time of writing, only two critics appear to have reviewed Active Matter, with both scores currently listed on OpenCritic. One gave the game a 9 out of 10, while the other scored it a 6. This wide gap could make it difficult for prospective buyers to determine whether the game is worth purchasing, so they may want to wait and see if more outlets review it in the near future. It is also worth noting that Active Matter‘s PS5 version is available in three editions, with the $29.99 Standard Edition being the cheapest and the $99.99 Deluxe Edition the most expensive. There is also a PC-exclusive Elite Edition priced at $140, which includes the Deluxe Edition perks along with two additional codes for the Standard Edition.
Active Matter‘s early-access phase began some time ago, although it was limited to publisher Gaijin’s PC launcher. Developer Matter Team appears to have used player feedback from that period to polish the final release, resulting in smooth and acceptable performance across all platforms, including PlayStation 5. With the game now enjoying a strong reception from players, its long-term success will depend on how the team expands the Active Matter universe while avoiding the pitfalls that have negatively affected the player base of other extraction shooters, such as ARC Raiders.
