Video games pull consumers into a longer-term relationship with interactive media than movies or television do as passively-consumed film. During the long-term relationship that video games form with players, factors like current events, discoveries and media greatly influence player interest in those games. After the launch of Artemis II on April 1, space-themed video games have benefited from an influx of players hoping to explore space themselves. Kerbal Space Program, an 11-year-old game about building spacecraft and exploring space, has seen perhaps the most noteworthy increase in players, proving that old games can still interest players.
Kerbal Space Program sported 19,149 players when it launched on April 27, 2015. Though the game has never achieved such usership since, it reached almost 11,500 players in early April 2026, a 66% increase in usership from the typical average and a ten-year high in concurrent players. Many video games fail by the end of their first 14 days on the market, and luckier ones can make it to the end of a year before failure. Kerbal Space Program, a game available to the public since developers released its alpha version in 2011, has continued to thrive. In a time when many households find themselves too constrained financially to invest surplus funds in entertainment, Kerbal Space Program defies expectations and climbs to its second-greatest usership since its release 11 years ago.
It should be noted that, despite the financial challenges that households face in current times, video games have continued to succeed or even break sales records. Pearl Abyss’s Crimson Desert exceeded $200 million in sales in just under two weeks on the market. Crimson Desert is, of course, a brand-new game, and it has no obvious relation to space exploration, so its success could be attributed to different public interests that, while different, are also influenced by media.
The case of Kerbal Space Program’s returning success is perhaps the most obvious example of the influence of space-related public interest on the success of video games because the game’s user numbers spiked just after the launch of Artemis II. Though Kerbal Space Program is the most obvious example of this influence, its success is not the only example. In 2017 and 2019, space exploration game No Man’s Sky saw a massive increase in usership and popularity after a couple of years of seemingly being forgotten. From 2015 to 2016, NASA launched publicly-hyped missions and made exciting discoveries, like the New Horizons flyby of Pluto in 2015, the Kepler Space Telescope’s record verification of 1,284 planets in 2016, or the launch of OSIRIS-REx in 2016. Scientific and public interest in space was strong just before the redemption of No Man’s Sky. The number of players on No Man’s Sky rose significantly in February of this year.
Even as some games continue to thrive or find success, others slip and fall out of popularity. Four of Ubisoft’s AAA games since 2023 have fallen flat on the market. For each game, consumer disappointment stunted the sales; consumers felt that Ubisoft simply wasn’t listening to their demands or paying attention to their interests. One can only wonder how well Star Wars Outlaws would have sold if NASA had launched Artemis II in April 2024.
As a consumer of entertainment, don’t forget about the power that you have to influence product production; let producers know what you like and what you prefer. Producers aiming to sell should pay attention to your interests, because those interests indicate how well a product will do. To preserve this power, you must know what you want – and to know what you want, you must experience and consume. Look for experiences in the ordinary: the current events, discoveries and media of the day. Have your experiences, vocalize your interests and watch how the world bends a little towards you. An 11-year-old game can become relevant again if you decide that you want it to.
Junior Charlie Burns is the Editorials Editor. His email is cburns1@fandm.edu.