Weekly Game Research: 2026-02-16 #24
Description
Weekly Game Research Findings
This issue contains the results of automated weekly research to identify popular Windows PC games that could be added to GamesDat support.
Research Criteria
- Windows PC games only
- Active and solid player base
- Telemetry or game state data potentially available
- NOT currently supported by GamesDat (verified against README.md)
- NOT previously researched (verified against researched-games.json)
Exclusions
Supported Games: 18 games currently supported (Age of Empires IV, Assetto Corsa Competizione, Brawlhalla, F1 25/24/23/22, Rocket League, Rainbow Six Siege, Counter-Strike 2, DOTA 2, Fortnite, League of Legends, Overwatch 2, PUBG, Starcraft 2, Tekken 8, Trackmania, iRacing, Valorant, War Thunder)
Previously Researched: 0 games previously researched (first run - researched-games.json did not exist)
Total Excluded: 18 games excluded from consideration
This section verifies that both the README.md and researched-games.json files were checked before making recommendations.
Recommended Games
1. Rust
Current Players: ~161,000 concurrent players on Steam (February 2026)
24h Peak: ~196,478 players
Monthly Active Users: ~13.8 million across all platforms
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Extremely strong and consistent player base (95,000+ average concurrent players)
- Survival game with extensive player statistics (health, hunger, temperature, resources, building data)
- Active multiplayer with server-based gameplay means potential for telemetry capture
- Large modding community indicates accessible game data structures
- Fits GamesDat's portfolio for games with detailed real-time state tracking
- PvPvE mechanics generate rich gameplay data (combat, crafting, building, survival metrics)
Estimated Integration Complexity: Medium - Likely requires memory reading or file-based state capture. Active modding community suggests accessible data structures, but would need investigation into available telemetry APIs.
2. Helldivers 2
Current Players: ~105,000 concurrent players average (February 2026)
24h Peak: ~141,540 players
All-time Peak: 458,046 players
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Very strong player base with over 12 million copies sold
- Cooperative third-person shooter with rich gameplay statistics
- Session-based gameplay ideal for telemetry capture (missions, objectives, performance metrics)
- Published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, likely has robust backend statistics
- Cross-platform support (PC/PS5/Xbox) suggests well-structured game state APIs
- Strong ongoing support with regular content updates
Estimated Integration Complexity: Medium - Session-based structure should provide clear telemetry boundaries. May have network-based state data or replay files similar to existing GamesDat games.
3. Euro Truck Simulator 2
Current Players: ~43,700 concurrent players (February 2026)
All-time Peak: 72,523 players
Owners: 10-20 million on Steam
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Extremely consistent and dedicated player base (10+ years of active play)
- Simulation game with extensive telemetry potential (speed, location, cargo, fuel, damage, route data)
- Developer SCS Software is known for mod-friendly approach and telemetry SDKs
- Known telemetry support: ETS2 has an official Telemetry SDK for third-party apps
- Similar to existing GamesDat racing/driving simulators (F1, ACC, Trackmania)
- Rich data: GPS coordinates, truck stats, job information, economy data
Estimated Integration Complexity: Low - Official telemetry SDK available. This is likely the easiest integration on this list due to documented APIs.
4. American Truck Simulator
Current Players: ~8,000-10,000 concurrent players (estimate based on similar SCS Software title)
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Same developer as Euro Truck Simulator 2 (SCS Software)
- Known telemetry support: Uses the same official Telemetry SDK as ETS2
- Solid, dedicated player base with ongoing content updates
- Identical telemetry structure to ETS2 means minimal additional development effort
- Once ETS2 is integrated, ATS comes almost for free
- Rich simulation data (speed, location, cargo, fuel, route, vehicle diagnostics)
Estimated Integration Complexity: Low - Same SDK as Euro Truck Simulator 2. Can reuse the same integration code with minimal modifications.
5. BeamNG.drive
Current Players: ~15,400-17,100 concurrent players (February 2026)
Recent Peak: 28,954 concurrent players (January 2026)
All-time Peak: 38,775 players
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Leading position in Steam racing games by concurrent players
- Advanced soft-body physics simulation generates extremely detailed vehicle data
- Popular for both realistic driving and crash physics testing
- Strong modding community indicates accessible game architecture
- Rich telemetry potential: vehicle damage, physics forces, suspension data, crash analytics
- Would be unique in GamesDat portfolio for its physics simulation focus
- Fits well alongside existing racing titles (F1, ACC, Trackmania)
Estimated Integration Complexity: Medium - Likely requires memory reading or API investigation. Physics-heavy simulation suggests detailed internal state data that could be accessed.
6. Assetto Corsa (Original)
Current Players: ~13,600 concurrent players (February 2026)
30-day Average: ~11,000 concurrent players
Owners: 5-10 million on Steam
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Extremely strong player base 10+ years after release
- Legendary modding community with extensive custom content
- Known telemetry support: AC has shared memory interface for external apps
- Racing simulation with detailed physics data (similar to ACC which is already supported)
- More popular than its successor ACC (13,600 vs ACC's lower numbers)
- Would complement existing ACC support and reuse similar integration patterns
- Kunos Simulazioni provides modding documentation
Estimated Integration Complexity: Low-Medium - Shared memory interface is documented. GamesDat already supports ACC from the same developer, so integration patterns can be reused.
7. Escape from Tarkov
Current Players: ~135,000 players (February 2026, across all platforms)
Steam Players: ~7,900-16,800 concurrent
Monthly Active Users: 1.2-1.8 million
Platform: Primarily distributed via Battlestate Games launcher, also on Steam
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Very strong dedicated player base for hardcore extraction shooter
- Extremely detailed game statistics (inventory, health, raid performance, survival rate)
- Session-based gameplay (raids) perfect for telemetry capture
- Rich data potential: player stats, loadout tracking, raid analytics, economy data
- Popular streaming/content game suggests high interest in performance analysis tools
- Spearheaded the extraction shooter genre
Estimated Integration Complexity: High - Hardcore anti-cheat systems may complicate memory reading. May require post-raid file-based telemetry or official API access. Need to research Battlestate Games' stance on third-party tools.
8. DCS World
Current Players: ~625-1,344 concurrent players on Steam (February 2026)
Platform: Primarily distributed via standalone launcher + Steam
Steam Link: (store.steampowered.com/redacted)
Why It's a Good Candidate:
- Leading combat flight simulator with dedicated community
- Free-to-play with paid modules means accessible to test integration
- Known telemetry support: DCS has Lua export scripts for external data feeds
- Extremely detailed aircraft simulation data (avionics, weapons, flight dynamics)
- Strong training/simulation use case (beyond gaming) suggests professional-grade data APIs
- Popular with content creators and virtual squadrons who would benefit from telemetry analysis
- Would expand GamesDat's flight sim coverage alongside War Thunder
Estimated Integration Complexity: Low-Medium - Known Lua export functionality exists. DCS community actively uses external tools for cockpit builders and data export, indicating mature data access patterns.
Next Steps
- Review each game's technical feasibility in detail
- Prioritize based on:
- Low complexity first: Euro Truck Simulator 2, American Truck Simulator, DCS World, Assetto Corsa (all have known telemetry SDKs/APIs)
- Medium complexity: BeamNG.drive, Rust, Helldivers 2
- High complexity: Escape from Tarkov (anti-cheat concerns)
- Research specific telemetry APIs and data access methods for each game
- Create separate implementation issues for selected high-priority games
- Consider starting with ETS2 + ATS as a package deal (same SDK, low effort, high value)
Sources
Research conducted using:
- [SteamDB Charts]((steamdb.info/redacted)
- [SteamCharts]((steamcharts.com/redacted)
- [ActivePlayer.io]((activeplayer.io/redacted)
- [PlayerAuctions Player Count]((www.playerauctions.com/redacted)
- Various game-specific Steam statistics trackers
AI generated by Weekly Game Research Agent