>>394111506
536 is a very good number, though. I've played on private servers or versions of games that barely reached 200 concurrent players in the past, and they were still very much playable. TF2C immediately comes to mind; you don't need 30k players (15k of whom are ESL) for you to enjoy it. You just need interesting people.
I'm not saying it being that low is a good thing. It's not, and I hope it goes up more over time. But acting as though the people who are playing it aren't having a good time despite the fact is turning a blind eye.
I guess what I'm trying to say is you shouldn't compare numbers because beauty is in the eye of the beholder.