According to Forbes, Overwolf will pay out $300 million to its in-game creators by the end of 2025, setting a new record for the platform. This represents a 25% year-over-year increase from the $240 million distributed in 2024. Total creator earnings have now surpassed $800 million since the company’s launch. The platform supports 178,000 creators and reaches 113 million monthly active users, with mod downloads on track to exceed 32 billion this year. CEO Uri Marchand has set an ambitious target of reaching $1 billion in annual creator payouts by 2030, positioning Overwolf as a major force in the user-generated content space.
The creator economy goes in-game
Here’s the thing about Overwolf’s model: they’re not trying to build another walled garden like Fortnite or Roblox. Instead, they work directly with major game studios to create official modding tools. Think Minecraft, The Sims, Hogwarts Legacy – these aren’t small indie titles. We’re talking about some of the biggest franchises in gaming history opening their doors to community modification.
And the numbers are staggering. Minecraft alone has 240,000 mods with 93 billion downloads. That’s not just a hobbyist community – that’s an entire ecosystem. When you’ve got creators like Francisco “Sandi” Montano making $25,000 per month from ARK: Survival Ascended mods he originally made for his daughter, you know something fundamental has shifted.
Why this matters right now
Marchand nailed it when he said “while the games industry is hitting record revenues, it’s also facing record layoffs.” There’s this weird contradiction happening where companies are making more money than ever while simultaneously cutting thousands of jobs. So where are all these talented developers going?
Many are turning to platforms like Overwolf. The barrier to entry is lower than traditional game development, the tools are getting better, and the revenue sharing model actually works. Creators get 50% from premium mods (typically priced $2-15), plus ad revenue from in-game apps. It’s not just pocket money anymore – we’re talking about real careers being built here.
The future looks modded
Overwolf’s recent partnerships tell you everything about where this is headed. They’re working with Warner Bros. Games on Hogwarts Legacy mods (12 million downloads already) and with Krafton on their upcoming life sim inZOI. These aren’t afterthought collaborations – they’re baked into the development process from the start.
Remember when modding used to be this legally gray area where you’d download questionable files from random websites? Those days are basically over. Now major studios are actively embracing modding as a way to extend game lifespans and build deeper communities. And honestly, as someone who recently used Overwolf’s Thunderstore app to mod Lethal Company with friends, I can confirm the experience is lightyears ahead of what we dealt with a decade ago.
Will they hit that $1 billion annual payout target by 2030? That’s a massive jump from where they are now. But given the current trajectory and the sheer volume of downloads happening across their platform, it doesn’t seem completely crazy. The real question is whether traditional game studios will see this as competition or opportunity. My bet? The smart ones are already partnering.
