Zombie MMO 'H1Z1' Sells 1M Copies On Steam

If there's one thing that surpasses the love of gamers for MMO titles, it's the pull of the zombie genre. When combined, these two elements make the perfect recipe for commercial success. There isn't a better example to illustrate this fact than Daybreak Studio's "H1Z1." John Smedley, the President of the company that was formerly known as Sony Online Entertainment, has just announced through Twitter that the game has surpassed a million units on Valve's Steam digital distribution platform.

This phenomenal sales landmark is remarkable considering the fact that "H1Z1" isn't even a full-priced retail release at the moment, according to PC Gamer. The game is currently in early stages of development through Steam's Early Access delivery system. In other words, it is available to gamers with an important caveat. The Early Access system is meant for those who don't mind paying a fee for trying out an unfinished/unpolished game that may be prone to bugs and other technical issues.

As expected, there were issues abound for "H1Z1" at the launch, which happened in January 2015. The developers hadn't factored in the massive demand for the zombie-themed MMO, which led to several server issues that prevented many gamers from playing the game during launch. The game's initial launch woes were compounded by Sony selling the company to an investment firm, as pointed out by Polygon. This led to layoffs even as the developer tried to address the numerous bugs and user complaints.

Daybreak Studio's has since then addressed technical issues and added a number of features to the game. This also includes the recent banning of over 5,000 "H1Z1" players who had resorted to cheating, in a bid to improve the game's balance and playability. One of the new features added was the Battle Royal mode, as reported by Gamespot. The company had initially planned to charge gamers for the last-man-standing mode with a paid monthly pass, but it changed its decision after gamers complained that it was too unpolished to be demanding money at the moment.

"What's clear is that you expect more from us in terms of quality level so that's what we're going to do," said Smedley accepting that the game needs more work before they can start charging gamers for it. "We'll focus on bugs, awesome new stuff and adding a ton of features to Battle Royale and our main game to make you feel like you're more than happy to pay for it."

"H1Z1" will be a free-to-play title when it leaves Steam Early Access system. It had initially launched through the Early Access feature for a price tag of $20. Going by the impressive sales figures, the game is poised to become a huge commercial success when it transitions to the retail phase.

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H1Z1: The Easy Life (credit: H1Z1 YouTube channel)