Do I ship it?

Games2D Platformer2D Platformer + Historical

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Historical 2D Platformer?

2D Platformer + Historical

Of 97 developers who shipped a Historical 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.. 133 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.0k, ×1.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $120k, ×206 the market median. Revenue is up 40% on the market; 133 games are announced against 57 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.7 times the market baseline, revenue up 40% on the market, 133 announced, ×2.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
2D Platformer + Historical
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 97
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $299 → $20k → $3.0k → $1.5k → $479 → $987 → $959 (still earning) → $1.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for 2D Platformer + Historical: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 97
Bottom 30% $180 (exactly $180)
Median $1.0k (exactly $1,048)
Top 25% $7.0k (exactly $6,951)
Top 5% $130k (exactly $129,535)
Developers, 2 yr 97
Released games 247
Announced 133
Effort 5 / 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 up 40% on the market, supply 45% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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
Historical
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
2D Platformer; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Adventure, Strategy
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 2,925 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $1.0k, 1 in 4 over $6.9k, 1 in 20 over $120k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 47 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 133 games are announced against 57 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Xuan-Yuan Sword: The Scar of Sky older $9.99 2,437 93% 73k $730k (exactly $730,369) DOMO Studio, SOFTSTAR ENTERTAINMENT
Xuan-Yuan Sword: Mists Beyond the Mountains older $13.99 1,161 84% 35k $487k (exactly $487,272) DOMO Studio, SOFTSTAR ENTERTAINMENT
The Three Kingdoms: The Tales of Jian An $17.99 690 88% 21k $372k (exactly $372,393) 开翼网络
My Memory of Us older $17.99 632 92% 19k $341k (exactly $341,090) Juggler Games
Valiant Hearts: Coming Home older $14.99 529 62% 16k $238k (exactly $237,891) Ubisoft Da Nang, Ubisoft Montpellier
River City Saga: Three Kingdoms older $29.99 255 71% 7.7k $229k (exactly $229,424) Arc System Works
Juufuutei Raden™'s Guide for Pixel Museum $19.99 357 98% 11k $214k (exactly $214,093) Jupiter Corporation
Japanese Rail Sim: Journey to Kyoto older $59.99 111 87% 3.3k $200k (exactly $199,767) Sonic Powered Co.,Ltd.
Scarlet Deer Inn $19.99 333 88% 10k $200k (exactly $199,700) Attu Games
Nine-Tailed Okitsune Tale older $17.99 297 95% 8.9k $160k (exactly $160,291) ChaoGames
女儿国的诅咒 The Curse of Womanland $9.99 501 96% 15k $150k (exactly $150,150) 符离游戏(FuliGames)
Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection $19.99 216 84% 6.5k $130k (exactly $129,535) Limited Run Games
吞食天地之乱舞三国 $13.99 271 92% 8.1k $114k (exactly $113,739) FC Maker
Ile d'Or · EA $14.99 164 88% 4.9k $74k (exactly $73,751) あとらそふと
No Retreat! The Russian Front $29.99 80 76% 2.4k $72k (exactly $71,976) Cyril Jarnot, Avalon Digital
铜刀银剑 $9.26 188 80% 5.6k $52k (exactly $52,226) 念绣科技
Rise Of Three Kingdoms $11.99 125 63% 3.8k $45k (exactly $44,962) SLGames

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