Windrose closes in on two million sales, joining the new games and studios that dominated 2026 so far

Usually, it's game by AAA giants that carry the industry, but now it's the smaller studios that are breaking records, with Windrose joining a string of indie and AA darlings in reaching massive sales counts. A new report from Alinea Analytics indicates that Windrose, a new game from a new studio, was the best-selling game of April 2026, with Crimson Desert, another original title, though from a somewhat known developer, coming in at second place. The pirate adventure game incorporating survival crafting elements soared to 1.7 million shipped copies, followed by the mentioned Crimson Desert at 1.6 million, as well as FC 26 and Pragmata, both of which clocked in 1.4 million copies sold. Slay the Spire 2, an indie game, came in fifth at a million shipped copies, proving that small studios can and will carve out a good chunk of the market share so long as their game has something to offer. Games are not limited by scale or scope, and they can very well be small and focused, preventing massive publishers and studios from keeping their dominance ad nauseam, no matter the quality of their games. Windrose is one of the best pirate games I've ever played. Image via Kraken Express Out of these five top-selling games in April, three were original titles and not parts of established IPs. Though one of them, Pragmata, came from a recognizable name, Capcom, it still stands on its own and shares more or less nothing with the studio's previous games. It is particularly of interest because it basically came immediately after Capcom's other smash-hit, Resident Evil Requiem, and nevertheless managed to sell rather well, showing that original IPs have something to offer to big publishers. Of course, Windrose sold the best, and it's a new game from a fresh, rookie studio. They combined several genres together, particularly targeting that pirate adventure vacuum that's been in video games for a very long time, especially since games like Assassin's Creed Black Flag never really committed fully to actual pirating. The studio learned what games like Valheim did right and more or less replicated that, putting that unique seven seas spin on things, the results of which are more than evident. New games, indies, and new faces are going to carry the video game industry into the future. Even AAA publishers, or those claiming they're the first-ever AAAA companies, are going to have to drop their franchise chasing at some point and bring players new, exciting, and unique experiences, or at least revolutionize their existing IPs to offer something different than what they'd been delivering on for years, sometimes decades. At any rate, though, it's great to see indies thriving and being number one in a market oversaturated by massive corporate giants, and may it remain that way forever. The post Windrose closes in on two million sales, joining the new games and studios that dominated 2026 so far appeared first on Destructoid.

May 9, 2026 - 05:08

Windrose closes in on two million sales, joining the new games and studios that dominated 2026 so far

Usually, it's game by AAA giants that carry the industry, but now it's the smaller studios that are breaking records, with Windrose joining a string of indie and AA darlings in reaching massive sales counts.

A new report from Alinea Analytics indicates that Windrose, a new game from a new studio, was the best-selling game of April 2026, with Crimson Desert, another original title, though from a somewhat known developer, coming in at second place. The pirate adventure game incorporating survival crafting elements soared to 1.7 million shipped copies, followed by the mentioned Crimson Desert at 1.6 million, as well as FC 26 and Pragmata, both of which clocked in 1.4 million copies sold.

Slay the Spire 2, an indie game, came in fifth at a million shipped copies, proving that small studios can and will carve out a good chunk of the market share so long as their game has something to offer. Games are not limited by scale or scope, and they can very well be small and focused, preventing massive publishers and studios from keeping their dominance ad nauseam, no matter the quality of their games.

Windrose is one of the best pirate games I've ever played. Image via Kraken Express Out of these five top-selling games in April, three were original titles and not parts of established IPs. Though one of them, Pragmata, came from a recognizable name, Capcom, it still stands on its own and shares more or less nothing with the studio's previous games. It is particularly of interest because it basically came immediately after Capcom's other smash-hit, Resident Evil Requiem, and nevertheless managed to sell rather well, showing that original IPs have something to offer to big publishers.

Of course, Windrose sold the best, and it's a new game from a fresh, rookie studio. They combined several genres together, particularly targeting that pirate adventure vacuum that's been in video games for a very long time, especially since games like Assassin's Creed Black Flag never really committed fully to actual pirating. The studio learned what games like Valheim did right and more or less replicated that, putting that unique seven seas spin on things, the results of which are more than evident.

New games, indies, and new faces are going to carry the video game industry into the future. Even AAA publishers, or those claiming they're the first-ever AAAA companies, are going to have to drop their franchise chasing at some point and bring players new, exciting, and unique experiences, or at least revolutionize their existing IPs to offer something different than what they'd been delivering on for years, sometimes decades.

At any rate, though, it's great to see indies thriving and being number one in a market oversaturated by massive corporate giants, and may it remain that way forever.

The post Windrose closes in on two million sales, joining the new games and studios that dominated 2026 so far appeared first on Destructoid.

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