Roblox dethrones Fortnite with ‘Grow a Garden’ hitting historic player peak

In a significant moment for the gaming industry, Roblox’s peaceful farming simulator Grow a Garden has broken the world record for most concurrent players online. On June 14, 2025, the game reached an unprecedented 16,411,769 players logged in at the same time, overtaking Fortnite’s previous high of 14.3 million during a live in-game concert event.

How a simple farming game beat Fortnite

Grow a Garden is far from flashy. It invites players into a relaxing world where they can plant crops, decorate their own gardens, and collect quirky pets. A key feature that adds to its charm is offline growth, crops continue to grow even when the player is not active. This mechanic keeps engagement high and encourages players to return frequently to see their garden flourish.

The recent player spike came with the release of the 1.10.0 update.

As part of a limited-time promotion, players who logged in at the exact time the update launched received a free pet - the “Cooked Owl.” This incentive drew millions to the game simultaneously, smashing all previous records.To put the achievement in perspective, Grow a Garden had more people online than the populations of New Zealand and Norway combined. The number also beat the combined peak player counts of the top 10 games on Steam - including giants like PUBG, CS:GO, and Dota 2.

The impact was felt beyond just the game. On the same day, Roblox as a platform saw over 25.8 million concurrent users - a new platform-wide record.

Unexpected victory sparks online frenzy

The news quickly spread across social media. While some users applauded the game’s success, others responded with disbelief or humor. “Not Fortnite getting out-farmed by literal plants,” quipped one user. Another wrote, “Fortnite had concerts, wars, Travis Scott… and still lost to a block dude planting tulips.”

Despite skepticism from some corners about the legitimacy of casual Roblox games, many see this as a sign of changing player preferences. Games that are accessible, relaxing, and community-driven are rising rapidly in popularity.The milestone also marks a major win for Roblox developers. Jandel, creator of Grow a Garden, shared that his long-term goal has been to legitimize Roblox in the traditional game development space. With this record now under his belt, it’s safe to say that goal is sprouting into reality.

From tulips to triumph, Grow a Garden has shown the world that sometimes, the simplest games yield the most impressive results.Also Read: Fans left divided as Bruno Mars rumoured to headline Fortnite festival Season 9