Graveyard Keeper free weekend drives almost $250,000 in Steam DLC revenue

Graveyard Keeper generated almost $250,000 in Steam DLC revenue during its April 10-14 free promotion. The r/pcgaming post was created on April 17 at 08:53 UTC and linked a TechPowerUp report covering public figures from tinyBuild CEO Alex Nichiporchik.

PC Gamer and AUTOMATON WEST reported the same core numbers. tinyBuild made the original Graveyard Keeper free on Steam, PS4, and Xbox One alongside the announcement push for Graveyard Keeper 2. Nichiporchik said the almost $250,000 figure covers Steam DLC sales only, with console revenue not yet included.

Why the free copy made money

The base game was not the revenue source. The free claim pushed new players into an older game with several paid add-ons, while the DLC was discounted by 80% during the campaign. AUTOMATON WEST lists the original game's standard price at $19.99, so the promotion turned the base game into a discovery tool while paid content captured the spending.

The sequel also benefited. Nichiporchik said Graveyard Keeper 2 reached 450,000 Steam wishlists by April 14, putting it inside Steam's top 100 most-wishlisted games. SteamDB data cited in coverage showed the original climbing to roughly 46,000 concurrent Steam players during the campaign.

Reddit reaction was mostly practical rather than hostile. Top r/pcgaming comments framed the tactic as strong advertising for a sequel, especially for a catalog title with enough DLC to monetize a wave of free players. The number does not prove every free promotion works; it worked here because the giveaway paired an older paid game, discounted DLC, and a newly announced sequel. A game without add-ons or a sequel wishlist funnel would not have the same economics.

Promotion: April 10-14, 2026

Reported Steam DLC revenue: almost $250,000

Sequel wishlists: 450,000 as of April 14

Platforms in campaign: Steam, PS4, Xbox One