Games › 2D Fighter › 2D Fighter + Local Co-Op
Should I ship a Local Co-Op 2D Fighter?
2D Fighter + Local Co-Op
Of 44 developers who shipped a Local Co-Op 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.. 93 more are announced, ×4.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $960, ×1.5 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $170; 1 in 20 cleared $510k, ×826 the market median. Revenue is down 95% on the market; 93 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $168 (exactly $168) |
|---|---|
| Median | $959 (exactly $959) |
| Top 25% | $20k (exactly $20,374) |
| Top 5% | $519k (exactly $519,008) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 44 |
| Released games | 161 |
| Announced | 93 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $7.99 |
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 95% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, 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
- Local Co-Op
- 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, Local Co-Op; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Beat 'em up, Co-op
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Retro
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 82% positive over 5,748 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $170. 8 in 10 of the 24 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 93 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
2D Fighter with a different second tag, 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
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Mortal Kombat 1 | older | $49.99 | 34,197 74% | 1.0M | $51M (exactly $51,285,241) | NetherRealm Studios, QLOC |
| | Rivals of Aether | older | $29.99 | 33,284 96% | 999k | $30M (exactly $29,945,615) | Aether Studios |
| | Injustice™ 2 | older | $49.99 | 17,445 86% | 523k | $26M (exactly $26,162,266) | NetherRealm Studios, QLOC |
| | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R | older | $49.99 | 14,344 91% | 430k | $22M (exactly $21,511,697) | CyberConnect2 Co. Ltd. |
| | Stick Fight: The Game | older | $4.99 | 99,952 93% | 3.0M | $15M (exactly $14,962,814) | Landfall West |
| | Ultra Street Fighter® IV | older | $29.99 | 11,054 91% | 332k | $9.9M (exactly $9,945,284) | Capcom |
| | Bopl Battle | older | $9.99 | 21,530 97% | 646k | $6.5M (exactly $6,452,541) | Johan Grönvall |
| | MARVEL vs. CAPCOM Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics | older | $49.99 | 1,976 93% | 59k | $3.0M (exactly $2,963,407) | CAPCOM Co., Ltd. |
| | SpiderHeck | older | $14.99 | 3,922 93% | 118k | $1.8M (exactly $1,763,723) | Neverjam |
| | Nidhogg | older | $9.99 | 5,717 90% | 172k | $1.7M (exactly $1,713,385) | Messhof |
| | Capcom Fighting Collection 2 | $39.99 | 734 85% | 22k | $881k (exactly $880,580) | CAPCOM Co., Ltd. | |
| | Little Fighter 2 Remastered | $15.88 | 1,770 76% | 53k | $843k (exactly $843,228) | Little Fighter Co Pty Ltd, Marti Wong | |
| | A Few Quick Matches | $6.99 | 2,475 85% | 74k | $519k (exactly $519,008) | Studio Bidou | |
| | Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate | $24.99 | 205 84% | 6.2k | $154k (exactly $153,688) | Rocket Panda Games Japan | |
| | The Karate Kid: Street Rumble | $39.99 | 64 73% | 1.9k | $77k (exactly $76,781) | Odaclick Game Studio | |
| | Age of Barbarians Chronicles | $18.99 | 101 76% | 3.0k | $58k (exactly $57,540) | Crian Soft | |
| | Vengeance Hunters | $19.99 | 63 84% | 1.9k | $38k (exactly $37,781) | Nalua Studio SLU | |
| | Chaos Faction Legacy Collection | $4.99 | 234 93% | 7.0k | $35k (exactly $35,030) | George "EON" Eade | |
| | Fallen City Brawl | $14.99 | 61 77% | 1.8k | $27k (exactly $27,432) | Fallen City Studio | |
| | X-Out: Resurfaced | $19.99 | 41 95% | 1.2k | $25k (exactly $24,588) | KRITZELKRATZ 3000, Rainbow Arts |
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.