Do I ship it?

GamesSpace SimSpace Sim + 2D Platformer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a 2D Platformer Space Sim?

Space Sim + 2D Platformer

Of 25 developers who shipped a 2D Platformer Space Sim 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.. 15 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $270 in the last 2 years and $270 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 6 / 10 build. 16 developers shipped in the last year and 15 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.4 times the market baseline, revenue up 140% on the market, 15 announced, ×0.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Space Sim + 2D Platformer
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 25
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $148 → $30 → $839 → $0 → $478 → $987 (still earning) → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Space Sim + 2D Platformer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 25
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $270 (exactly $270)
Top 25% $719 (exactly $719)
Top 5% $13k (exactly $12,946)
Developers, 2 yr 25
Released games 68
Announced 15
Effort 6 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 up 140% on the market, supply 80% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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.

Space Sim
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
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
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Space Sim, 2D Platformer; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Adventure, Strategy
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 2.5D, Anime
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 76% positive over 463 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 $270, 1 in 4 over $710, 1 in 20 over $12k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 15 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Space Sim with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + DestructionFair14 devs · median $3.7k · 22 announced
  2. + Female ProtagonistFair9 devs · median $3.6k · 12 announced
  3. + Tactical RPGFair9 devs · median $1.8k · 15 announced
  4. + WarFair34 devs · median $1.3k · 42 announced
  5. + Walking SimulatorFair16 devs · median $598 · 20 announced
  6. + SportsFair8 devs · median $479 · 9 announced
  7. + DiplomacyLong shot7 devs · median $360 · 14 announced
  8. + MilitaryPoor odds18 devs · median $6.3k · 39 announced
  9. + Online Co-OpPoor odds18 devs · median $4.9k · 63 announced
  10. + Strategy RPGPoor odds8 devs · median $4.9k · 21 announced
  11. + SandboxPoor odds86 devs · median $4.6k · 213 announced
  12. + Colony SimPoor odds42 devs · median $4.6k · 91 announced

All 114 pairs on the Space Sim page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Space Simulation Toolkit · EA older $24.99 500 80% 15k $375k (exactly $374,850) Pavel Kudinov
Planet Lust $14.99 335 76% 10k $151k (exactly $150,650) Skullgear
2D Neon Cube older $3.99 180 65% 5.4k $22k (exactly $21,546) Laush Dmitriy Sergeevich
Residual older $19.99 24 66% 720 $14k (exactly $14,393) Orangepixel
SCALEPLANET older $44.99 10 100% 300 $13k (exactly $13,497) Scale Studio, Gamesforgames
Final Frontier Story $8.99 48 72% 1.4k $13k (exactly $12,946) Kairosoft Co.,Ltd
Droneboi: Conquest older $8.99 42 73% 1.3k $11k (exactly $11,327) Rizen Planet Studios
Space Killer older $7.99 46 73% 1.4k $11k (exactly $11,026) Two friends, VIWESA GAMES
Mecha Harem: Bonds of the Abyss $9.99 34 73% 1.0k $10k (exactly $10,190) Morexingame
Man in gravity older $24.99 12 91% 360 $9.0k (exactly $8,996) Laush Dmitriy Sergeevich
Star Titans : War of the Galaxy $14.99 14 92% 420 $6.3k (exactly $6,296) Mediawork
Civilization Survivor $2.99 11 90% 330 $987 (exactly $987) 缘码游戏工作室
Gravity Drop $6.99 4 100% 120 $839 (exactly $839) Octopie Lab
Saturn Quest: The Loneliness Of Captain Navigator $5.99 4 75% 120 $719 (exactly $719) Arkhouse Telegraph
Infinite Evo TD $4.99 4 25% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Starchase Games
Shoulder-Mounted Space Program $5.99 3 100% 90 $539 (exactly $539) Aaron Moseley
Pocket Rocket $2.99 6 100% 180 $538 (exactly $538) Jazzcat games

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