By Sagar V. Mankar 
Garry’s Mod, the iconic sandbox game developed by Facepunch Studios and published by Valve, has reached a remarkable milestone after 18 years. Creator Garry Newman recently confirmed on X (formerly Twitter) that the game has sold over 25.5 million copies, a monumental achievement for a title that began as a simple mod for Valve’s Source engine.
Reflecting on the success, Newman shared a humorous anecdote: “When Valve first floated the idea of selling Garry’s Mod on Steam, I said no because… ‘who would pay for that?’” He continued, “Well, 18 years later, it turns out 25,560,290 people would. Glad to have been wrong on this one.”
Initially released in 2004 as a free mod, Garry’s Mod became a standalone game in 2006. Its growth over the years has been extraordinary. It took 10 years to hit the 10-million-sales mark, but the next 15 million copies were sold in just eight years. The game’s enduring popularity is evident, as it remains one of the most-played games on Steam even today.
The sales trajectory of Garry’s Mod highlights its steady rise:
- 5,729 copies on its first day.
- 312,541 copies by the end of 2008.
- 1 million copies by 2011.
- 10 million copies by January 2016.
- 18.6 million copies by December 2020.
- 20 million copies by September 2021.
- 25.5 million copies by 2024.
This success has allowed Facepunch Studios to expand its ventures, notably creating other hit games like Rust. Garry’s Mod has also achieved critical acclaim, being named “PC Mod of the Year” by GameSpy in 2005 and earning a spot in PCGamesN’s 2019 list of the “best sandbox games on PC.” It also holds the Guinness World Record for “The Best-Selling PC Exclusive Ever.”
The game’s charm lies in its open-ended gameplay. Players can manipulate objects, spawn characters, and create custom game modes. Popular community-made modes, such as Trouble in Terrorist Town and Prop Hunt, have become staples, further fueling its appeal.
However, 2024 has been a challenging year for the game. Facepunch Studios had to remove Nintendo-related content from Steam Workshop following a takedown notice. Additionally, Newman addressed copyright issues tied to the Skibidi Toilet, machinima YouTube web series.
Looking ahead, Newman and his team have been developing a successor called Sandbox, designed to leverage Unreal Engine 4 and later Source 2. While the development has faced delays, fans eagerly await what’s next for this iconic franchise.