Do I ship it?

Games › 4 Player Local › 4 Player Local + Shoot 'Em Up

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a 4 Player Local Shoot 'Em Up?

4 Player Local + Shoot 'Em Up

Of 28 developers who shipped a 4 Player Local Shoot 'Em Up 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.. 35 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $240 in the last 2 years and $270 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 4 / 10 build. 19 developers shipped in the last year and 35 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.5 times the market baseline, revenue flat on the market, 35 announced, ×1.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
4 Player Local + Shoot 'Em Up
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 28
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.3k → $1.3k → $1.9k → $90 → $359 → $240 (still earning) → $150 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for 4 Player Local + Shoot 'Em Up: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 28
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $239 (exactly $239)
Top 25% $1.2k (exactly $1,169)
Top 5% $11k (exactly $11,089)
Developers, 2 yr 28
Released games 139
Announced 35
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 flat on the market, supply 110% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 9%, 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.

4 Player Local
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Shoot 'Em Up
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
4 Player Local, Shoot 'Em Up; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Local Multiplayer, Arcade
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 147 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 $240, 1 in 4 over $1.1k, 1 in 20 over $11k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. All of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 35 games are announced against 19 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

4 Player Local with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Open WorldFair14 devs · median $82k · 20 announced
  2. + Multiple EndingsFair10 devs · median $3.6k · 10 announced
  3. + SimulationFair69 devs · median $2.1k · 86 announced
  4. + Immersive SimFair11 devs · median $2.1k · 15 announced
  5. + CatsFair17 devs · median $1.3k · 16 announced
  6. + RhythmFair10 devs · median $539 · 10 announced
  7. + ManagementPoor odds11 devs · median $22k · 37 announced
  8. + Football (Soccer)Poor odds14 devs · median $15k · 27 announced
  9. + Beat 'em upPoor odds30 devs · median $8.7k · 67 announced
  10. + Female ProtagonistPoor odds15 devs · median $8.5k · 19 announced
  11. + TriviaPoor odds9 devs · median $7.2k · 9 announced
  12. + MinigamesPoor odds12 devs · median $7.2k · 28 announced

All 109 pairs on the 4 Player Local page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Guns, Gore and Cannoli 2 2018 · $1.8M Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime 2015 · $1.5M Guns, Gore & Cannoli 2015 · $1.1M DARIUSBURST Chronicle Saviours 2015 · $1.1M Assault Android Cactus+ 2015 · $795k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Guns, Gore and Cannoli 2 older $12.99 4,742 94% 142k $1.8M (exactly $1,847,957) Rogueside, Claeysbrothers
Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime older $14.99 3,368 93% 101k $1.5M (exactly $1,514,590) Asteroid Base
Guns, Gore & Cannoli older $9.99 3,681 91% 110k $1.1M (exactly $1,103,196) Rogueside, Claeysbrothers
DARIUSBURST Chronicle Saviours older $49.99 717 82% 22k $1.1M (exactly $1,075,285) Pyramid
Assault Android Cactus+ older $19.99 1,325 94% 40k $795k (exactly $794,602) Witch Beam
GIBZ older $5.99 1,321 88% 40k $237k (exactly $237,384) Torrunt
Nation Red older $2.99 2,208 88% 66k $198k (exactly $198,058) DiezelPower
Wild Guns Reloaded older $14.99 435 88% 13k $196k (exactly $195,620) NatsumeAtari
Jamestown older $9.99 652 94% 20k $195k (exactly $195,404) Final Form Games
Wee Tanks! older $9.99 548 90% 16k $164k (exactly $164,236) Studio Kit
Touhou Volleyball Danmaku $9.99 40 100% 1.2k $12k (exactly $11,988) Compact TH
SUPERVERSE $9.99 37 70% 1.1k $11k (exactly $11,089) Superverse Industries
MAGE: Mega Awesome Gregarious Encounters $9.99 29 89% 870 $8.7k (exactly $8,691) FunRug Studio
Yarn Guardians $14.99 14 100% 420 $6.3k (exactly $6,296) pentapaw studios
Pulsar Crash $14.99 10 100% 300 $4.5k (exactly $4,497) Little Doctor Games
Thumb Tanks $9.99 7 100% 210 $2.1k (exactly $2,098) thumbcramp
Asteroid 69 $12.99 3 100% 90 $1.2k (exactly $1,169) Moonlight Workshop LLC
Neon Tyrant · EA $4.99 3 33% 90 $449 (exactly $449) One Mind Games
Clippy Commando $5.99 2 100% 60 $359 (exactly $359) Daniel Harnden
Slalomancers $4.99 2 100% 60 $299 (exactly $299) Kwing

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