By Sagar V. Mankar 
NetEase Games has officially announced that their free-to-play post-apocalyptic survival game, Once Human, will launch on mobile devices in April 2025. Following its successful debut on Steam on July 9, 2024, the game has gained significant traction among survival and shooter genre enthusiasts.
Once Human offers an engaging mix of survival mechanics and intense shooter gameplay, set in a post-apocalyptic world filled with environmental hazards and fierce player-versus-player (PvP) battles. Players must navigate these challenges to stay alive, gather resources, and build alliances.
In just one month after its Steam release, Once Human surpassed 10 million downloads worldwide. It reached an impressive peak of over 231,000 concurrent players, securing its position as the sixth biggest game launch of 2024 in terms of peak concurrent users (CCU). Although it fell short of surpassing The First Descendant‘s peak CCU of 264,800, Once Human demonstrated exceptional player retention. Over its first 30 days, the game maintained an average of 128,200 concurrent players, significantly outperforming The First Descendant, which dropped to an average of 77,900 concurrent players.
As of writing, Once Human ranks as the 36th most-played game on Steam, with 35,000 players playing it right now and a peak of nearly 43,000 players in the last 24 hours, as per SteamDB.
To build anticipation for the mobile release, NetEase is offering players who pre-register for the game a chance to win an iPhone.
Exciting New Features in 2025
NetEase has ambitious plans for Once Human in 2025, including the introduction of custom servers. These servers will allow players to tweak game difficulty and create unique experiences while inviting friends to join their adventures. Additionally, early access servers will enable players to test upcoming features and scenarios before their official launch.
In Q3 2025, Once Human will introduce three major scenarios:
- Code: Purification: Players must prevent environmental pollution and work towards restoring the world to its uncorrupted state.
- Code: Deviation: A PvE-focused scenario where players capture and battle Deviations to earn rewards.
- Code: Broken: A high-stakes PvP free-for-all mode featuring random events and intense combat.
NetEase has also confirmed plans to bring Once Human to consoles, with the ultimate goal of achieving full cross-platform support. This move is expected to further solidify the game’s presence across different gaming ecosystems.
Sources: Official NetEase announcements