Do I ship it?

GamesCo-opCo-op + 2D Platformer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Co-op 2D Platformer?

Co-op + 2D Platformer

Of 157 developers who shipped a Co-op 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.. 260 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.1k, ×0.7 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $150k, ×100 the market median. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 260 games are announced against 93 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.7 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 260 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + 2D Platformer
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 157
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $5.1k → $21k → $419 → $479 → $1.5k → $2.4k → $748 (still earning) → $240 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Co-op + 2D Platformer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 157
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $1.1k (exactly $1,079)
Top 25% $8.9k (exactly $8,880)
Top 5% $150k (exactly $150,200)
Developers, 2 yr 157
Released games 484
Announced 260
Effort 7 / 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 10% on the market, supply 45% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 15%, 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.

Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync
2D Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Co-op, 2D Platformer; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Local Co-Op, Platformer
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 22,369 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $1.1k, 1 in 4 over $8.8k, 1 in 20 over $150k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 75 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 260 games are announced against 93 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Co-op with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SuperheroFair9 devs · median $11k · 17 announced
  2. + Boomer ShooterFair16 devs · median $6.9k · 24 announced
  3. + GamblingFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 32 announced
  4. + NinjaFair13 devs · median $4.2k · 13 announced
  5. + TypingLong shot16 devs · median $810 · 13 announced
  6. + Word GameLong shot23 devs · median $267 · 23 announced
  7. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds58 devs · median $515k · 127 announced
  8. + World War IIPoor odds12 devs · median $372k · 23 announced
  9. + AutomationPoor odds48 devs · median $369k · 110 announced
  10. + TransportationPoor odds17 devs · median $369k · 25 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds15 devs · median $164k · 19 announced
  12. + Turn-BasedPoor odds12 devs · median $131k · 19 announced

All 230 pairs on the Co-op page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
BattleBlock Theater® older $14.99 55,793 97% 1.7M $25M (exactly $25,090,112) The Behemoth
Spelunky 2 older $19.99 19,736 93% 592k $12M (exactly $11,835,679) Mossmouth, BlitWorks
Trine 2: Complete Story older $19.99 15,273 95% 458k $9.2M (exactly $9,159,218) Frozenbyte
Rivals of Aether II $29.99 6,980 78% 209k $6.3M (exactly $6,279,906) Aether Studios
Trine Enchanted Edition older $14.99 12,843 95% 385k $5.8M (exactly $5,775,497) Frozenbyte
Super Bunny Man older $14.99 10,143 85% 304k $4.6M (exactly $4,561,307) Catobyte
Door Kickers: Action Squad older $13.99 8,778 95% 263k $3.7M (exactly $3,684,127) PixelShard, KillHouse Games
Hidden Deep · EA older $24.99 4,293 76% 129k $3.2M (exactly $3,218,462) Cogwheel Software
Stick It to the Stickman · EA $11.99 7,918 96% 238k $2.8M (exactly $2,848,105) Free Lives
Unravel older $19.99 4,450 90% 134k $2.7M (exactly $2,668,665) Coldwood Interactive
Ratatan · EA $24.99 2,449 85% 73k $1.8M (exactly $1,836,015) TVT Co. Ltd., Ratata Arts
Neon Abyss 2 · EA $19.99 1,968 68% 59k $1.2M (exactly $1,180,210) Veewo Games
Dinotica $17.99 746 86% 22k $403k (exactly $402,616) XA Studio
Primal Planet $19.99 629 88% 19k $377k (exactly $377,211) Seethingswarm
Windswept $19.99 470 92% 14k $282k (exactly $281,859) WeatherFell
Tearscape $14.99 334 90% 10k $150k (exactly $150,200) NERDS TAKE OVER
WASD : The Adventure of Tori $3.99 730 83% 22k $87k (exactly $87,381) EVNA Games
Brave Escape $19.99 145 97% 4.4k $87k (exactly $86,956) Hit Start Studios

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