Slime Rancher 2 managed to sell 100,000 copies in six hours

Slime Rancher 2 has sold 100,000 copies in just six hours, according to game director Nick Popovich.

Popovich, who's also co-founder and CEO of Slime Rancher developer Monomi Park, said the studio hoped it might hit that milestone in 24 hours, but that the sequel quickly exceeded those expectations.

"I had a pipe dream in my head that we could sell 100,000 copies of Slime Rancher 2 in the first 24 hours if the stars aligned. And we did that in less than 6 hours," he wrote on Twitter. "No idea where this crazy train is headed but so grateful to have a chance to ride it. Thank you all so very much."

Slime Rancher 2 launched on September 22, 2022, for Microsoft Windows and Xbox Series X | S and was also published by Monomi Park. The original game debuted in 2017 and has sold over 5 million copies to-date.

Homeward bound

Speaking at GDC in 2019, Popovich suggested the original Slime Rancher found success because it opened itself up to players and gave them a place to call home.

He said that friction in video games can be a huge dealbreaker for some players, noting that it's important people can become invested in an experience without needing to overcome an intimidating array of hurdles.

"The idea that friction exists in the game creates friction in the mind of anyone playing your game," he explained at the time. "The solution to this is to give your game a place to call home."

For Popovich, the notion of "home" encompasses "any environment, mode or activity in a game that allows for relaxed, low-consequence play but still issues meaningful rewards or progress."

Applying that concept to other releases, he said the swinging mechanic in Marvel's Spider-Man might be "home" for players invested in that title, because it serves as a low-stakes break in proceedings that lets players discover new rewards and challenges while having fun.

"Offer home, and I firmly believe it will allow players to engage with your game more easily," said Popovich. "Home is what gets people in the door, but its also a comfy couch players can return to."

Given that Slime Rancher 2 has seemingly hit the ground running, it seems like Popovich was successful in lugging that metaphorical comfy couch over to the sequel's mysterious, slime-addled homestead.

Update: According to Popovich on Twitter, Slime Rancher 2 has now sold 300,000 copies overall, and reached the top spot on Steam's marketplace. "This was all achieved with ZERO crunch, while offering top tier benefits and unlimited PTO to our team," he wrote.