How many play through Steam now and over time, the first players at every cap as the community’s wiki records them, the professions and episodes, and what Fen Research announced lately.
About this page
Brighter Shores is Fen Research’s episodic MMO, designed by RuneScape creator Andrew Gower and in early access on Steam since 6 November 2024.
Right now
89Players in the game through Steam8 minutes ago+14 (+18.7%) on 24 hours ago
14124-hour peak on Steamsince 8 Nov 04:20- 1607-day peak on Steamsince 8 Nov 04:20
IrksomeNewest leaderboard firstTotal level, 19 Sep 2025
Steam's public player count for app 2791440, sampled every 15 minutes, read 8 minutes ago.
Players on Steam over time
- Players in the game through Steam: 89
Day by day: peak, low and mean
| Day | Peak | Low | Mean | Readings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 14 Nov | 133 | 77 | 94 | 37 |
| Fri 13 Nov | 141 | 66 | 102 | 96 |
| Thu 12 Nov | 146 | 65 | 103 | 96 |
| Wed 11 Nov | 155 | 0 | 105 | 96 |
| Tue 10 Nov | 160 | 0 | 107 | 96 |
| Mon 9 Nov | 153 | 64 | 106 | 96 |
| Sun 8 Nov | 156 | 79 | 115 | 79 |
Each day from this site's own readings of Steam's count (15-minute points, or hourly means for older days), in the site's time zone.
Latest from Fen Research
- 11-Nov-2026 – Patch notes
- 9-Nov-2026 – Hammerstrike Hall world event
- 5-Nov-2026 – Patch notes
- 2-Nov-2026 – Hammerstrike Hall tutorial
Fen Research's announcements on Steam, read 2 hours ago.
Episode totals and the total level
| Total | First at the cap | Reached (UTC) |
|---|---|---|
 Crenopolis (cap 1,500 at the time) | kc | |
 Hopeforest (cap 1,500 at the time) | Nat | |
 Hopeport (cap 2,000 at the time) | Smol | |
 Mine of Mantuban (cap 2,000 at the time) | red bean | |
 Total level (cap 9,000 at the time) | Irksome |
First to level 500 in each profession
| Profession | First at level 500 | Reached (UTC) |
|---|---|---|
| Guard (Legacy) | Sassyy | |
| Watchperson (Legacy) | Bidoof#1 | |
| Fisher | Havric | |
| Scout (Legacy) | Unleashed | |
| Forager | coffee | |
| Merchant | Sanhai | |
| Woodcutter | Nat | |
| Minefighter (Legacy) | Bot is above me | |
| Chef | Barro Roan | |
| Detective | Herbaman | |
| Leatherworker | Ryan | |
| Miner | Natok | |
| Gatherer (now Botanist) | Savage Shores | |
| Alchemist | Ferret | |
| Carpenter | Sap | |
| Stonemason | Strafe | |
| Bonewright | varietymmos | |
| Blacksmith | ALustyArgonian |
From the Brighter Shores Wiki's Leaderboards article, read 5 hours ago (revision 287516); read again once a day.
First to the combat cap, by faction and trade mode
| Faction and trade mode | First at the combat cap | Reached (UTC) |
|---|---|---|
 Cryoknight, Guild Member | Remi FrostHeartGuild Member | |
| Guardian, Lone Wolf | MysticaliaLone Wolf | |
| Guardian, Guild Member | PepperoniGuild Member | |
| Cryoknight, Lone Wolf | Polar BurrLone Wolf | |
| Hammermage, Guild Member | ShunoGuild Member |
Professions by episode
| Profession | Episode | Level cap | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Combat | Global | 2,000 (milestone 40.0) | Fights monsters in every episode; each level opens stronger monsters and gear. |
| Forager | Hopeport | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Gathers potion ingredients, bait, bones and scrap metal for other professions. |
| Fisher | Hopeport | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Catches fish to sell to the fishmonger or to cook. |
| Chef | Hopeport | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Cooks food to sell, to heal outside combat and for bounties. |
| Alchemist | Hopeport | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Brews potions. |
| Botanist | Hopeforest | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Grows potion ingredients and produce for Chef; it replaced Gatherer. |
| Woodcutter | Hopeforest | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Cuts logs for Carpenter and opens shortcuts in Hopeforest. |
| Carpenter | Hopeforest | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Makes the poles, staves and planks the crafting professions need. |
| Miner | Mine of Mantuban | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Mines minerals for Blacksmith and Stonemason. |
| Bonewright | Mine of Mantuban | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Makes the Guardian faction's weapons and shields. |
| Blacksmith | Mine of Mantuban | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Makes the Cryoknight faction's weapons and shields. |
| Stonemason | Mine of Mantuban | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Makes the Hammermage faction's weapons and shields. |
| Detective | Crenopolis | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Catches thieves, solves investigations and raids crime dens. |
| Leatherworker | Crenopolis | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Turns hides into leather to sell and for Armorer. |
| Merchant | Crenopolis | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Completes trade bounties and sends ventures for rare recipe items. |
| Builder |  Stonemaw Hill | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Announced: will build structures that change the world in every episode. |
| Armorer | Stonemaw Hill | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Announced: will make armour for all three factions. |
| Delver | Stonemaw Hill | 500 (milestone 10.0) | Announced: will gather earthen ingredients for Alchemist and Chef, and bait. |
From the Brighter Shores Wiki’s Professions article (revision 311768, 7 Nov 2026), in Game Pulse’s words. Builder, Armorer and Delver arrive with Stonemaw Hill. Icons are drawn for Game Pulse: Fen Research publishes no fan content policy and its terms reserve the game’s art.
The episodes
Episode 1: Hopeport
Open since 6 Nov 2024 Free to play
Forager Fisher Chef Alchemist
A coastal town and every character's start, as a new member of the town guard.
Episode 2: Hopeforest
Open since 6 Nov 2024 Free to play
Botanist Woodcutter Carpenter
Where the main story makes you choose a faction for good: Cryoknight, Guardian or Hammermage.
Episode 3: Mine of Mantuban
Open since 6 Nov 2024 Premium Pass
Miner Bonewright Blacksmith Stonemason
Each of its three crafting professions makes one faction's weapons and shields.
Episode 4: Crenopolis
Open since 6 Nov 2024 Premium Pass
Detective Leatherworker Merchant
The city: investigations, the player markets and the choice between Guild Member and Lone Wolf.
Episode 5: Stonemaw Hill
Announced, not released Premium Pass
Builder Armorer Delver
Home of dwarven engineers; announced to arrive before early access ends.
Episode 6: Bleakholm Crags
Announced, not released Premium Pass
Professions not announced
Named in footage Fen Research shared on 31 December 2024.
From the Brighter Shores Wiki’s Episodes and Professions articles, as they stood on 7 Nov 2026.
Limited events
| Event | Top of the event board | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas 25 (Legacy) | Pastisio | Rank 1 with 182,920 snowballs contributed |
Level caps
| Each profession | 500, shown in game as milestone 10.0 (50 levels a milestone) |
|---|---|
| Combat | 2,000 (milestone 40.0) with four episodes; 10 milestones more with each new episode |
| Hopeport total | 2,000 |
| Hopeforest total | 1,500 |
| Mine of Mantuban total | 2,000 |
| Crenopolis total | 1,500 |
| Stonemaw Hill total | 1,500 (when it opens) |
| Total level | 9,000 now (7,000 from 14 professions and 2,000 combat); 11,000 once Stonemaw Hill opens |
From the wiki’s Experience and Combat articles; the totals and the 11,000 after Stonemaw Hill are the caps its Leaderboards record uses.
Sources: Players: Steam’s public player count for Brighter Shores (app 2791440), every 15 minutes; Brighter Shores is downloaded only through Steam, so it counts nearly everyone playing. News: Fen Research’s announcements as Steam’s news feed carries them. Firsts, professions and episodes: the Brighter Shores Wiki (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0), the record read once a day. Icons are drawn for Game Pulse: Fen Research publishes no fan content policy and its terms reserve the game’s art, so none of it is shown here.