Live Steam player count comparison, updated every 10 minutes. Both are RPG games.
Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ is currently the more played game: 2,197 concurrent players on Steam right now vs 1,630 for Crusader Kings II — about 35% more players. Crusader Kings II counters with better Steam reviews: 91% positive vs 89%. Crusader Kings II is free to play, while Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ costs $49.99. Across all tracked metrics, Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ leads 7 of 8.
Coilr tracks charts like this for every game — and playtime history for your own library.
Tracked by Coilr since April 2026 · Steam polled every 10 minutes · methodology
| Metric | Crusader Kings II | Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ |
|---|---|---|
| Players right now | 1,630 | 2,197 |
| 24-hour peak | 2,029 | 2,310 |
| 7-day average | 1,440 | 1,711 |
| 30-day average | 1,440 | 1,711 |
| 30-day trend | — | — |
| Peak (tracked) | 2,029 | 2,310 |
| Steam reviews | 91% positive | 89% positive |
| Recent reviews (3 mo) | 84% positive | 92% positive |
| Total reviews | 73,755 | 116,063 |
| Owners (SteamSpy est.) | ~2,000,000 | ~2,000,000 |
| Release date | Feb 14, 2012 | Oct 9, 2017 |
| Price | Free to play | $49.99 |
Full stats: Crusader Kings II · Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ · add more games to this comparison →
| Month | Crusader Kings II | Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg | Peak | Avg | Peak | |
| Apr 2026 | 1,100 | 1,284 | 1,504 | 1,548 |
| Jul 2026 (so far) | 1,455 | 2,029 | 1,733 | 2,310 |
Monthly average and peak concurrent players on Steam, from Coilr's own tracking (10-minute polls, hourly beyond 30 days).
Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ currently has more players: 2,197 concurrent players on Steam vs 1,630 for Crusader Kings II — about 35% more players.
Over the last 30 days Crusader Kings II averaged 1,440 concurrent players and Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ averaged 1,711. By that measure Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ is currently the bigger game.
By Steam review score, Crusader Kings II rates higher: 91% positive across 73,755 reviews vs 89% across 116,063 for Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™. Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ has the larger player base right now (2,197 vs 1,630 concurrent). Player counts, ratings, price and trend are compared side by side above.