Do I ship it?

GamesSouls-likeSouls-like + 3D Platformer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a 3D Platformer Souls-like?

Souls-like + 3D Platformer

Of 74 developers who shipped a 3D Platformer Souls-like 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.. 90 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.0k, ×0.7 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300. 90 games are announced against 42 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper, while revenue is up 190% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.7 times the market baseline, revenue up 190% on the market, 90 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Souls-like + 3D Platformer
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 74
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.4k → $2.7k → $578 → $2.2k → $891 → $1.7k → $2.2k (still earning) → $359 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Souls-like + 3D Platformer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 74
Bottom 30% $299 (exactly $299)
Median $1.0k (exactly $1,048)
Top 25% $9.6k (exactly $9,590)
Top 5% $346k (exactly $346,027)
Developers, 2 yr 74
Released games 179
Announced 90
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $5.99

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 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 17%, 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.

Souls-like
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
3D Platformer
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Souls-like, 3D Platformer; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, Action-Adventure
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Third Person, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 79% positive over 5,283 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 $1.0k, 1 in 4 over $9.5k, 1 in 20 over $340k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 43 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 90 games are announced against 42 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Souls-like with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Dating SimStrong odds17 devs · median $34k · 8 announced
  2. + Visual NovelFair25 devs · median $27k · 17 announced
  3. + Artificial IntelligenceFair13 devs · median $22k · 17 announced
  4. + JRPGFair31 devs · median $8.6k · 35 announced
  5. + IncrementalFair9 devs · median $3.9k · 10 announced
  6. + PsychologicalFair17 devs · median $1.8k · 17 announced
  7. + Walking SimulatorFair17 devs · median $1.3k · 7 announced
  8. + Precision PlatformerLong shot49 devs · median $776 · 46 announced
  9. + Score AttackLong shot18 devs · median $599 · 21 announced
  10. + WarPoor odds8 devs · median $451k · 22 announced
  11. + Turn-Based TacticsPoor odds12 devs · median $88k · 21 announced
  12. + RomancePoor odds10 devs · median $35k · 16 announced

All 122 pairs on the Souls-like page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Kena: Bridge of Spirits older $39.99 16,701 91% 501k $20M (exactly $20,036,190) Ember Lab
Another Crab's Treasure older $29.99 16,863 93% 506k $15M (exactly $15,171,641) Aggro Crab
Death's Door older $19.99 19,330 93% 580k $12M (exactly $11,592,201) Acid Nerve
Neon Echo · EA older $14.99 3,514 56% 105k $1.6M (exactly $1,580,246) Xinyuan Studio
IfSunSets · EA $19.99 2,284 74% 69k $1.4M (exactly $1,369,715) POLYMORPH
Blue Fire older $19.99 1,908 83% 57k $1.1M (exactly $1,144,228) Robi Studios
Mini Ninjas older $9.99 3,682 90% 110k $1.1M (exactly $1,103,495) IO Interactive
Duskfade $29.99 793 91% 24k $713k (exactly $713,462) Weird Beluga
Kristala $39.99 485 71% 15k $582k (exactly $581,854) Astral Clocktower Studios
Eternity Egg · EA $19.99 577 82% 17k $346k (exactly $346,027) USERLANDS
VR-Kanojo $54.99 176 63% 5.3k $290k (exactly $290,347) ILLUMINATION
HOTEL BARCELONA $29.99 269 71% 8.1k $242k (exactly $242,019) White Owls Inc.
Retrace the Light $17.99 170 85% 5.1k $92k (exactly $91,749) Xiaming Game
Redemption of Liuyin $18.99 137 83% 4.1k $78k (exactly $78,049) kingnagame
Gawr Gura: Quest for Bread $7.99 298 97% 8.9k $71k (exactly $71,431) Kenny Park
ENCHAIN · EA $19.99 94 96% 2.8k $56k (exactly $56,372) mattlawrdev

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