Umamusume: Pretty Derby, a free-to-play sports sim game about horse girls, has been rapidly climbing the Steam charts since its North American launch in June.
The game hit an all-time peak of over 50,000 simultaneous players on July 9, doubling the number of players at launch and now ranking among the top 50 most-played games on Steam.
In Japan, Umamusume: Pretty Derby has been a hit, with tie-in anime, spin-off party games, and even a stage play, featuring women with horse-like speed, strength, and unique characteristics.
The game's quirky elements, such as each girl being based on an actual famous race horse and the phenomenon of fans visiting one of them at a farm, have contributed to its growing popularity through word-of-mouth.