Do I ship it?

Games › 2D Fighter › 2D Fighter + Top-Down Shooter

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Top-Down Shooter 2D Fighter?

2D Fighter + Top-Down Shooter

Of 52 developers who shipped a Top-Down Shooter 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.. 58 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $120 in the last 2 years and $180 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 29 developers shipped in the last year and 58 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 60% on the market, 58 announced, ×2.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
2D Fighter + Top-Down Shooter
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 52
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.4k → $599 → $298 → $60 → $269 → $150 → $90 (still earning) → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for 2D Fighter + Top-Down Shooter: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 52
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $119 (exactly $119)
Top 25% $716 (exactly $716)
Top 5% $4.5k (exactly $4,491)
Developers, 2 yr 52
Released games 162
Announced 58
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $4.99

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 60% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, excluded from money figures.

See every window in the explorer →

Plate 2 · systems and tooling

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
Top-Down Shooter
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
2D Fighter, Top-Down Shooter; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, Combat
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Top-Down
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 97% positive over 135 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $120, 1 in 4 over $710, 1 in 20 over $4.4k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 9 in 10 of the 34 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 58 games are announced against 29 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

2D Fighter with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RomanceStrong odds8 devs · median $4.0k · 6 announced
  2. + Visual NovelFair11 devs · median $4.0k · 12 announced
  3. + Card BattlerFair10 devs · median $1.0k · 11 announced
  4. + DeckbuildingFair17 devs · median $959 · 12 announced
  5. + Auto BattlerFair16 devs · median $719 · 19 announced
  6. + IdlerFair9 devs · median $599 · 18 announced
  7. + RhythmFair10 devs · median $599 · 12 announced
  8. + SimulationFair51 devs · median $598 · 55 announced
  9. + IncrementalFair16 devs · median $538 · 13 announced
  10. + ManagementFair10 devs · median $449 · 14 announced
  11. + SuperheroLong shot11 devs · median $959 · 12 announced
  12. + Resource ManagementLong shot13 devs · median $390 · 14 announced

All 129 pairs on the 2D Fighter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

The Shadow of Yidhra 2021 · $447k Astro Duel 2 2024 · $35k Nurose 2022 · EA · $27k Black Beacon Hill 2023 · $12k Wink Out 2026 · EA · $7.4k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
The Shadow of Yidhra older $10.99 1,355 89% 41k $447k (exactly $446,744) WhitePeach
Astro Duel 2 older $19.99 59 100% 1.8k $35k (exactly $35,382) Rusty Moyher
Nurose · EA older $9.99 90 87% 2.7k $27k (exactly $26,973) Orongto
Black Beacon Hill older $7.99 48 100% 1.4k $12k (exactly $11,506) Kowloon Drop Bear
Wink Out · EA $7.99 31 100% 930 $7.4k (exactly $7,431) Clevergence Games
Shoot Shoot Mega Pack older $14.99 13 100% 390 $5.8k (exactly $5,846) Actual Humans
Dungeon and Craft older $6.99 25 92% 750 $5.2k (exactly $5,242) Musa GUNGOR
M.A.C.E. older $4.99 34 55% 1.0k $5.1k (exactly $5,090) EntwicklerX
Checkmate Kings older $9.99 16 75% 480 $4.8k (exactly $4,795) Monka Studios
Pulsar Crash $14.99 10 100% 300 $4.5k (exactly $4,497) Little Doctor Games
Reincarnation Galgame Become Heroine! $4.99 30 90% 900 $4.5k (exactly $4,491) Crazy Slime
Thumb Tanks $9.99 7 100% 210 $2.1k (exactly $2,098) thumbcramp
Moccoletti $9.99 7 100% 210 $2.1k (exactly $2,098) Consortium of Octopus
Galaxy Invaders - Eclipse Squadron $4.99 14 100% 420 $2.1k (exactly $2,096) PlayCube Interactive
CORA $6.99 8 87% 240 $1.7k (exactly $1,678) Empty House Games
Gnomer $4.99 11 100% 330 $1.6k (exactly $1,647) Team Ruby
Dino Slug · EA $3.99 12 100% 360 $1.4k (exactly $1,436) Grafgurke, Johannes Lott
BreakBall $7.99 5 100% 150 $1.2k (exactly $1,198) eyedromeda

Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.