Do I ship it?

Games › 2D Platformer › 2D Platformer + Demons

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Demon 2D Platformer?

2D Platformer + Demons

Of 71 developers who shipped a Demon 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.. 102 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.4k, ×3.0 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $390k, ×835 the market median. Revenue is up 190% on the market; 102 games are announced against 34 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 190% on the market, 102 announced, ×3.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
2D Platformer + Demons
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 71
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $748 → $148 → $3.2k → $1.1k → $899 → $1.2k → $1.9k (still earning) → $3.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for 2D Platformer + Demons: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 71
Bottom 30% $298 (exactly $298)
Median $1.4k (exactly $1,438)
Top 25% $10k (exactly $10,063)
Top 5% $396k (exactly $396,402)
Developers, 2 yr 71
Released games 261
Announced 102
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 up 190% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

2D Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Demons
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
2D Platformer; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Platformer, Adventure
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Retro
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 7,327 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $1.4k, 1 in 4 over $10k, 1 in 20 over $390k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 44 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 102 games are announced against 34 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

2D Platformer with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + JRPGFair150 devs · median $4.2k · 157 announced
  2. + VampiresFair47 devs · median $1.9k · 50 announced
  3. + MechsFair33 devs · median $1.8k · 44 announced
  4. + PinballFair13 devs · median $1.6k · 9 announced
  5. + WesternFair10 devs · median $1.3k · 13 announced
  6. + CRPGFair62 devs · median $1.2k · 76 announced
  7. + Psychological HorrorFair178 devs · median $1.0k · 185 announced
  8. + Arena ShooterFair45 devs · median $809 · 43 announced
  9. + MiningFair38 devs · median $748 · 45 announced
  10. + RoguelikeFair264 devs · median $599 · 320 announced
  11. + Party-Based RPGFair55 devs · median $599 · 42 announced
  12. + Tactical RPGFair58 devs · median $599 · 49 announced

All 226 pairs on the 2D Platformer page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

NINJA GAIDEN: Ragebound 2025 · $1.9M Castlevania Dominus Collection 2024 · $1.8M Castlevania Advance Collection 2021 · $1.3M Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection 2021 · $1.2M Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus 2024 · $838k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
NINJA GAIDEN: Ragebound $24.99 2,500 92% 75k $1.9M (exactly $1,874,250) The Game Kitchen
Castlevania Dominus Collection older $24.99 2,362 94% 71k $1.8M (exactly $1,770,791) KONAMI
Castlevania Advance Collection older $19.99 2,149 91% 64k $1.3M (exactly $1,288,755) KONAMI
Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection older $29.99 1,306 74% 39k $1.2M (exactly $1,175,008) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus older $19.99 1,398 82% 42k $838k (exactly $838,381) Squid Shock Studios, Christopher Stair,… (Squid Shock Studios, Christopher Stair, Trevor Youngquist)
BLADECHIMERA $14.99 1,358 88% 41k $611k (exactly $610,693) Team Ladybug, WSS playground
The Devil Within: Satgat $24.99 795 78% 24k $596k (exactly $596,012) Newcore Games
Dragon Is Dead $19.99 661 75% 20k $396k (exactly $396,402) TeamSuneat
Twin Shot Deluxe $9.99 1,167 95% 35k $350k (exactly $349,750) Nitrome Limited
Nocturnal older $16.99 511 90% 15k $260k (exactly $260,457) Sunnyside Games
Demon Castle Story $12.99 257 77% 7.7k $100k (exactly $100,153) Kairosoft Co.,Ltd
Ariana and the Elder Codex $29.99 69 65% 2.1k $62k (exactly $62,079) Idea Factory, Compile Heart, HYDE, Inc.
Magenta Horizon - Neverending Harvest $10.99 175 89% 5.3k $58k (exactly $57,698) Maddison Baek
DaemonBride:ADDITIONAL GAIN $19.99 94 82% 2.8k $56k (exactly $56,372) Team Arcana, Kizawaya
Haunted Lands $5.99 251 77% 7.5k $45k (exactly $45,105) alevgor

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