A shooter on Steam, which was paid at release, is now going free-to-play. Players who bought it will get their money back.
What game is it about? Thunder Tier One is a realistic tactical shooter from Krafton (PUBG) played from a top-down perspective and was released in December 2021.
- Players are part of a group of elite soldiers who must stop a terrorist organization.
- Various weapons, equipment, and tactical abilities are available to fulfill the missions.
Despite the gameplay being in a top-down perspective, the visibility of the characters in Thunder Tier One is severely limited. They can only see their immediate surroundings. This makes careful and tactical action important.
How was the game received? The game always had a difficult standing with players and could only show balanced reviews on Steam. Players criticized issues such as the AI-controlled teammates in the single-player mode, which lacked intelligence. Poor performance was also frequently criticized.
After the difficult release and the steadily declining player numbers, Krafton early on discontinued support for the game. The last update was released in August 2022, and in October 2023, the multiplayer servers were shut down. Over the past 12 months, an average of 3-4 players played on Steam (via SteamCharts). The shooter was basically dead.
Developers make shooter free, offer refunds
What happens now with Thunder Tier One? On April 8, 2025, the developers announced that Thunder Tier One would switch to a free-to-play model and will then be free to play. The transition took place on May 12, 2025 (via Steam).
Additionally, the developers promised that players who purchased the game at release in 2021 would get their money back:
“For fairness reasons, we have provided a refund option for everyone who has already purchased the game, in cooperation with our publisher. Starting from the transition date, all players who bought Thunder Tier One can apply for a refund through Steam support. The refund will be possible regardless of the purchase date or playtime, so that all affected players have the opportunity to receive compensation.”
However, the developers note in recent reports that there are currently difficulties with the refund process. Some players are being denied their refunds. They are working with Steam to resolve the issue.
Player numbers increase by 2,600%, but no new updates coming
What happens after the transition? Thunder Tier One has been able to increase its player numbers by 2,600% since the F2P transition and had an average of 118 players over the past 30 days. However, this average is being pulled down by the older numbers because the transition only happened a few days ago and the weak player numbers before the transition are included.
On Wednesday, May 14, 2025, Thunder Tier One even enjoyed over 1,800 active players at the same time. However, the developers have already emphasized in earlier announcements that the shooter will not receive updates or new content even after the transition. The game is finished.
If you don’t like Thunder Tier One and the top-down perspective, we have a list of shooters for you on MeinMMO that impress with their beautiful graphics: 10 shooters so beautiful that you’ll forget to shoot at your enemies
