Games › 2D Platformer › 2D Platformer + Capitalism
Should I ship a Capitalist 2D Platformer?
2D Platformer + Capitalism
Of 22 developers who shipped a Capitalist 2D Platformer 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.. 53 more are announced, ×3.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $720, ×1.5 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $210; 1 in 20 cleared $22k, ×47 the market median. Revenue is down 60% on the market; 53 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $210 (exactly $210) |
|---|---|
| Median | $718 (exactly $718) |
| Top 25% | $5.7k (exactly $5,746) |
| Top 5% | $22k (exactly $22,228) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 22 |
| Released games | 65 |
| Announced | 53 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $6.99 |
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 55% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 20%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- 2D Platformer
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Capitalism
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- 2D Platformer; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action-Adventure, Adventure, Platformer
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $11.99 or above
- Art
- 3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, 1980s
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $11.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 85% positive over 475 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $210. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 53 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.8 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
2D Platformer with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + JRPGFair
- + VampiresFair
- + MechsFair
- + PinballFair
- + WesternFair
- + CRPGFair
- + Psychological HorrorFair
- + Arena ShooterFair
- + MiningFair
- + RoguelikeFair
- + Party-Based RPGFair
- + Tactical RPGFair
Comparable games
Night in the Woods 2017 · $11M 
The Elephant Collection 2023 · $325k 
Garlic Builder 2024 · $72k 
The Company Man 2021 · $40k 
Alruna and the Necro-Industrialists 2024 · $34k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Night in the Woods | older | $19.99 | 17,760 94% | 533k | $11M (exactly $10,650,672) | Infinite Fall |
| | The Elephant Collection | older | $14.99 | 723 95% | 22k | $325k (exactly $325,133) | Wonderful Elephant (jmtb02) |
| | Garlic Builder | older | $7.99 | 299 92% | 9.0k | $72k (exactly $71,670) | CaveLiquid |
| | The Company Man | older | $15.99 | 84 77% | 2.5k | $40k (exactly $40,295) | Forust |
| | Alruna and the Necro-Industrialists | $9.99 | 113 84% | 3.4k | $34k (exactly $33,866) | Neckbolt | |
 | Skyline Urban Story | $6.99 | 106 90% | 3.2k | $22k (exactly $22,228) | PandaUpStudio | |
 | 大宋广记 | · EA older | $8.99 | 73 75% | 2.2k | $20k (exactly $19,688) | 希望城 |
 | Antro | $14.99 | 42 92% | 1.3k | $19k (exactly $18,887) | Gatera Studio | |
 | Alruna: End of History | $11.99 | 44 88% | 1.3k | $16k (exactly $15,827) | Neckbolt | |
 | Sunset Game Shop Shayou | $9.99 | 41 90% | 1.2k | $12k (exactly $12,288) | Lobstudio | |
 | Horse Plinko | $4.99 | 47 89% | 1.4k | $7.0k (exactly $7,036) | Crawley, Womp | |
 | Deep Sea Fish: Hidden World | $3.99 | 48 70% | 1.4k | $5.7k (exactly $5,746) | Althea Games | |
 | Company Rising | $8.99 | 11 18% | 330 | $3.0k (exactly $2,967) | Director Liu | |
 | Roid Chimp | $7.99 | 11 90% | 330 | $2.6k (exactly $2,637) | Robert Panichpakdee | |
 | Dash'n'Drops | · EA | $6.99 | 12 91% | 360 | $2.5k (exactly $2,516) | Le Moulin aux Bulles |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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