One year after its release, "The Late Ming Dynasty" has surpassed 5 million players, with subscriptions likely accounting for the bulk of its revenue.

Today (the 24th), *Late Ming: The Feathers of Yuanxu* celebrates its first anniversary. 505 Games officially announced that the game’s total number of players worldwide has surpassed 5 million and simultaneously launched an anniversary sale across all platforms.

This figure is quite impressive in the realm of domestic single-player games. By comparison, the game reached a peak of 131,000 concurrent players on Steam at launch, setting a new record for non-FromSoftware Souls-like games, and IGN included it in its list of the “Top 10 Souls-like Games.”

It is worth noting, however, that the 505 Games announcement refers to "number of players" rather than "sales."

According to a previous disclosure by Digital Bros, the parent company of 505 Games, as of March 31, 2026, the game had cumulative global sales of approximately 1 million copies and net revenue exceeding 30 million euros.The gap between 5 million and 1 million may be attributed to subscription services; the game was added to Xbox Game Pass upon its launch in July 2025 and was included in the PlayStation Plus free game lineup this past May.

This also makes *The Late Ming Dynasty* a unique case study in the industry: when a domestically produced single-player game chooses to launch exclusively through a subscription service, its business model and metrics will inevitably differ from those of a traditional buy-to-play model. The scale of the user base reached, the long-term impact of the IP, and long-tail subscription revenue all become more complex evaluation criteria.

Looking back at the journey of this product since its launch, it can be described as the most dramatic story in the history of domestic single-player games in recent years.After its release in July 2025, it quickly became a sensation, only to be dragged into a slump in reputation due to optimization issues and pricing controversies; internal turmoil subsequently erupted within the team, with producer Xia Siyuan resigning and the core development team disbanding, while Lingze Technology itself frequently found itself in the spotlight due to off-field controversies.

In April of this year, Digital Bros acquired all intellectual property rights to the IP for 32 million RMB, placing the future of this Chinese "Souls-like" game in the hands of an overseas publisher.

However, 505 Games has made its long-term commitment to the IP clear: anniversary promotions, soundtrack vinyl releases, and a booth at the BW convention are all helping to build a user base for potential sequels or spin-offs.

Finally, 505 Games would like to once again sincerely thank players for their love and support:

“All of these achievements would not have been possible without the enthusiastic support of *Late Ming: Feathers of the Abyss* players around the world. Over the past twelve months, countless precious moments have unfolded here:Highlights of hard-fought, narrow victories over bosses; memorable boss battles; player-created content; speedrun challenges; strategy guides; story analysis; and lively discussions—all of these have transformed *Late Ming: Feathers of the Abyss* from a highly anticipated new release into a beloved series.”

"As the game officially enters its second year, 505 Games extends its most sincere thanks to every player who has embraced the transient nature of existence, faced the mysteries of ascension, and embarked on this legendary adventure."