Windrose, a pirate-themed survival game developed by Uzbekistan’s Kraken Express Studio, has become a genuine sensation in the global gaming market. The project generated $30 million in revenue within just 10 days of its early-access release.
Attracting over 10 million players during its debut, the game has recorded one of the fastest growth rates in the history of the survival genre on the Steam platform. Analysts at Alinea Analytics noted that this performance represents the strongest category debut since the global phenomenon Palworld. Based in Tashkent and consisting of a team of just 60 developers, the studio has proven that creating a major hit does not always require a massive budget.
The commercial success of Windrose is clearly reflected in its technical and marketing metrics. According to data from Anons, the game reached a peak concurrent player count of over 200,000. In terms of sales velocity, the project is outpacing major industry titles such as Dune: Awakening, RuneScape: Dragonwilds, and Grounded 2, selling at more than twice their rate.
By mid-April, over 1,500 positive reviews had been recorded on Steam, with players specifically praising the game’s unique water physics and its complex, “Souls-like” combat mechanics. The foundation for this high level of interest was laid during the Steam Next Fest, where a demo release prompted 474,000 users to add the game to their “wishlists.”
Audience analysis indicates that Windrose has successfully achieved a seamless synthesis of genres. Approximately 60% of its players had previously engaged with Valheim, 56% with The Forest, and 48% with Palworld. Furthermore, the pirate setting resonated with nearly 40% of the Sea of Thieves fan base. The combination of open-world exploration, base building, and a four-player cooperative mode served as the primary driver behind this global success.
This result signals that the game dev industry in Uzbekistan has reached a new level. We previously reported on Pivot.uz about Uzbekistan’s Doomers Entertainment studio launching its own game on Steam.
