The tweet from The Game Awards official account mentions that the online shooter ARC RAIDERS, which has cooperative gameplay, has sold 12 million copies. This major sale figure could not be ignored, and it certainly sparked discussions and mixed emotions within the gamers’ community, who took to social media to express their thoughts.

The Game Awards makes a tweet and it is just a simple number; ARC RAIDER’S sales have reached 12 million. A very big and good number for any game, but especially for one that is, like, totally unknown or something. It was not the most influential news at the show, but still, 12 million? That’s quite a big number of players forming that universe around the game. Are there really so many brilliantly hidden reasons or is it just that there is no such thing at all? The response to this question might be a simple recipe one response provided: “Build a great game and don’t ask for the earth.” One may argue that it sounds a bit trivial but the question really is how many studios actually follow that policy?

The internet is always full of surprises and the opinions expressed are amazing in their diversity. It is just like a drama festival in the comments section. The die-hard fans whose support for the game is unwavering see it as a great injustice that the game hasn’t won an award. They are extremely angry, like volcanoes ready to erupt. One gamer, Amin (@AbuKabzon), cannot get over it and says: “Still cant believe you didn’t nominate the game for best audio design.” Another one, Gamer Talk (@TopTierSyndrome), tries to be harsher: “Should of been game of the year. Phony.” Ouch. It is very clear how intense their feelings are and they may be slightly too hot.

On the flip side, there is the other side. The opponents, the skeptics, the ones who… label it “slop.” User Pannie (@goofyahlalafell) held a very critical view: “I don’t care if Slop Raiders sold 12M copies I’m not playing that Tarkovslop bro.” Laughing emojis. He/She has indeed started a small thread of detractors! Another user, 97anon2608 (@Jony_Anon), tried to cover it with saying “It’s not Roblox but it’s still good bro,” which only led to Pannie firing back with “So it’s mid mega shit? k bro.” The discourse is… colorful. Let us just say that.

It is quite humorous that in the midst of all the love and hate there are a few innocent and confused questions. GamigWithDel (@GamingWithDelYT) simply wants to know “What this game about.” To be honest, I can totally understand that. With all the loudness about prizes and slop, one person merely wants to know what actually goes on in the game. It is a nice reminder that every huge sales figure behind it there might be tons of people who just noticed an interesting trailer and pressed the buy button.

Some responses gave a viewpoint on the situation, be it positive or negative. At Midnight (@Midnight_503) claimed: “ARC RAIDERS has sold more units than Fortnite, nothing more to say, Kids game against adult game.” Whoa, hold on. That’s… a radical opinion. The reply was quick to come and it was from Jasminh98 (@Jasminh1998) who corrected the original poster about the free-to-play model Fortnite is using and the huge amount of revenues. Comparing unit sales of a paid game with a phenomenon of a free game is just like comparing apples with satellites in orbit. But this also shows how passionate the players are about their favorite games.

Besides, one has to sympathize with the players who experience technical difficulties. Jace (Face__Jace) portrayed a sad state of affairs: “Bought it day one to this day I was only able to finish the tutorial and now the game doesn’t run anymore 😭.” Ouch. This is one of the dark sides of the sales milestones. One person’s inability to get past the start screen is among the 12 million sold. And Cars Games Coin (@CarsGamesCoin) raised the issue of the classic online problem: “and still being ruined by online cheaters…” It looks like these issues will always be there regardless of the number of copies sold.

The total sales of 12 million units of ARC RAIDERS is a great victory and it also points to a strong demand for this kind of cooperation in modern-day gaming. Along with that, however, the mixed and divided reaction of the players over the web—which extended from rage during the award season, through technical problems, to debates about game genres—shows that commercial success does not necessarily equate to universal acceptance. Ultimately, these numbers represent a wide range of individual experiences, from the devoted fans who support its honor to the critics who dismiss it as slop.