Games › 2D Fighter › 2D Fighter + Futuristic
Should I ship a Futuristic 2D Fighter?
2D Fighter + Futuristic
Of 38 developers who shipped a Futuristic 2D Fighter in the last 2 years: 3 in 10 made under est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 4 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 20 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 68 more are announced, ×3.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $180 in the last 2 years and $240 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 22 developers shipped in the last year and 68 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $0 (exactly $0) |
|---|---|
| Median | $180 (exactly $180) |
| Top 25% | $1.7k (exactly $1,678) |
| Top 5% | $87k (exactly $86,956) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 38 |
| Released games | 109 |
| Announced | 68 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $5.99 |
momentum: how a niche's revenue percentiles and developer count moved between two equal, adjacent periods, divided by the market's own move. See method., 12 months: revenue down 10% on the market, supply 40% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 17%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- 2D Fighter
- effort 5 / 10 · low · frame-precise animation and rollback netcode
- Futuristic
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- 2D Fighter; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, Combat
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Anime, Pixel Graphics
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 694 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $50. 8 in 10 of the 23 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 68 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.1 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
2D Fighter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomanceStrong odds
- + Visual NovelFair
- + Card BattlerFair
- + DeckbuildingFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + IdlerFair
- + RhythmFair
- + SimulationFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + ManagementFair
- + SuperheroLong shot
- + Resource ManagementLong shot
Comparable games
SpiderHeck 2022 · $1.8M 
Kung Fury: Street Rage - Ultimate Edition 2015 · $1.3M 
Poetry of Blood: Eclipse 2024 · EA · $183k 
Sora 2016 · $104k 
Diesel Legacy: The Brazen Age 2024 · $87k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | SpiderHeck | older | $14.99 | 3,922 93% | 118k | $1.8M (exactly $1,763,723) | Neverjam |
| | Kung Fury: Street Rage - Ultimate Edition | older | $19.99 | 2,251 89% | 68k | $1.3M (exactly $1,349,925) | Hello There Games |
| | Poetry of Blood: Eclipse | · EA | $14.99 | 406 91% | 12k | $183k (exactly $182,578) | ZeroGameStudio |
| | Sora | older | $8.99 | 384 94% | 12k | $104k (exactly $103,565) | Orange_Juice |
| | Diesel Legacy: The Brazen Age | $19.99 | 145 91% | 4.4k | $87k (exactly $86,956) | Maximum Entertainment | |
 | Acceleration of SUGURI 2 | older | $8.99 | 283 92% | 8.5k | $76k (exactly $76,325) | Orange_Juice |
 | Aeon Must Die! | older | $19.99 | 100 51% | 3.0k | $60k (exactly $59,970) | Limestone Games |
 | Coreupt | $24.99 | 41 78% | 1.2k | $31k (exactly $30,738) | Team Coreupt LLC | |
 | TERRORHYTHM (TRRT) - Rhythm driven action beat 'em up! | older | $19.99 | 47 72% | 1.4k | $28k (exactly $28,186) | EvilCoGames |
 | The Rumble Fish 2 | older | $14.99 | 58 50% | 1.7k | $26k (exactly $26,083) | 株式会社3goo |
 | Immortal Joan: Cyber Revolution | $6.99 | 47 46% | 1.4k | $9.9k (exactly $9,856) | 康师傅红烧甜不辣 | |
 | NINJA KAMUI: SHINOBI ORIGINS | $19.99 | 6 100% | 180 | $3.6k (exactly $3,598) | G.rev Ltd. | |
 | Skullhunter A Worm's Tale | $7.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $2.4k (exactly $2,397) | Oliver Arett | |
 | Galaxy Invaders - Eclipse Squadron | $4.99 | 14 100% | 420 | $2.1k (exactly $2,096) | PlayCube Interactive | |
 | Chemical Combat | $8.99 | 7 100% | 210 | $1.9k (exactly $1,888) | SigmoidDev | |
 | Lone Warrior's Fist | $5.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $1.8k (exactly $1,797) | CreatiCell Games | |
 | CORA | $6.99 | 8 87% | 240 | $1.7k (exactly $1,678) | Empty House Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.