Banana Game Sees Sharp Decline in Steam Player Numbers

After reaching its peak in June 2024, the game Banana on Steam has experienced a noticeable decline in concurrent players. Let's delve into the reasons behind its rise and fall in popularity.

Banana Game Steam Charts Show Massive Decline

It’s a Clicker Game About Bananas…

Launched on April 23, 2024, Banana is a free-to-play clicker game that quickly gained fame for its simplicity and unique financial incentives. Players click on a banana image repeatedly, but the real attraction is the ability to acquire virtual banana items and sell them on the Steam Community Market. Some rare items, such as the "Special Golden Banana," have fetched high prices, with one selling for $1,378.58. The game's all-time peak of 917,272 players in June 2024 showcased its meteoric rise, but since then, it has struggled to maintain those numbers. According to SteamDB, the game saw a significant decline in concurrent players from November 2024 up to the present.

The surge in popularity was driven by the allure of earning Steam Wallet funds with minimal effort. Developer Hery described the game as a "legal 'Infinite money glitch'" in a June 2024 Polygon interview. However, this also attracted automated bots designed to farm valuable drops, artificially inflating the player count. In response, the developers implemented bot prevention measures in May 2024, but it remains unclear how many of the 100,000+ players are genuine.

Following the peak, the game's concurrent player count began to decline. By July 2024, the average number of players had dropped to 549,091, and this downward trend continued. November 2024 saw a significant drop from 400,000 to just over 100,000 players. Despite a brief surge at the start of 2025, the game has not recovered to its previous highs.

Currently, Banana holds steady with 112,966 concurrent players and ranks 7th on Steam's Most Played Games list. However, a sudden dip to around 50,000 players was observed on March 16th, 2025, between 17:00 and 23:00 UTC. The cause of this drop is uncertain, and it's challenging to determine if bots played a role. The overall trend of decreasing player counts is likely due to the game's novelty wearing off.

The developers have been proactive, regularly updating the game with trading cards, event drops, and quality-of-life improvements. They've also engaged the community by allowing user-generated banana art through the Steam Workshop, with creators earning a percentage of sales. While these efforts are commendable, it remains to be seen if they can help the game regain its former glory without the assistance of bots.