Games › Action › Action + Horror
Should I ship a Horror Action game?
Action + Horror
Of 2,342 developers who shipped a Horror Action game 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.. 4,042 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.0 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $460k, ×748 the market median. Revenue is up 30% on the market; 4,042 games are announced against 1,329 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $300 (exactly $300) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.3k (exactly $1,256) |
| Top 25% | $9.0k (exactly $8,994) |
| Top 5% | $470k (exactly $469,643) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 2,342 |
| Released games | 7,240 |
| Announced | 4,042 |
| Effort | 5 / 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 up 30% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 12%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Action; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Exploration, Survival Horror
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, Atmospheric, 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 91% positive over 1,327,794 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 1,319 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 4,042 games are announced against 1,329 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Action with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Real-Time with PauseFair
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + PinballFair
- + Escape RoomFair
- + Football (American)Fair
- + BaseballFair
- + BilliardsFair
- + IdlerFair
- + TennisFair
- + Time AttackFair
- + TabletopFair
- + WuxiaPoor odds
Comparable games
DayZ 2018 · $582M 
Dead by Daylight 2016 · $411M 
Phasmophobia 2020 · EA · $410M 
Ready or Not 2023 · $398M 
7 Days to Die 2024 · $369M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | DayZ | older | $49.99 | 387,850 78% | 12M | $582M (exactly $581,658,645) | Bohemia Interactive |
| | Dead by Daylight | older | $19.99 | 685,423 78% | 21M | $411M (exactly $411,048,173) | Behaviour Interactive Inc. |
| | Phasmophobia | · EA older | $19.99 | 684,009 94% | 21M | $410M (exactly $410,200,197) | Kinetic Games |
| | Ready or Not | older | $49.99 | 265,219 79% | 8.0M | $398M (exactly $397,748,934) | VOID Interactive |
| | 7 Days to Die | older | $44.99 | 273,589 87% | 8.2M | $369M (exactly $369,263,073) | The Fun Pimps |
 | The Forest | older | $19.99 | 581,431 95% | 17M | $349M (exactly $348,684,171) | Endnight Games Ltd |
 | Subnautica | older | $29.99 | 341,390 97% | 10M | $307M (exactly $307,148,583) | Unknown Worlds Entertainment |
 | Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Reloaded Edition | older | $59.99 | 164,914 79% | 4.9M | $297M (exactly $296,795,726) | Techland |
 | Halo: The Master Chief Collection | older | $39.99 | 239,603 92% | 7.2M | $287M (exactly $287,451,719) | 343 Industries, Splash Damage, Ruffian… (343 Industries, Splash Damage, Ruffian Games, Bungie, Saber Interactive) |
 | Dying Light | older | $24.99 | 373,413 95% | 11M | $280M (exactly $279,947,726) | Techland |
 | Resident Evil Requiem | $69.99 | 106,931 95% | 3.2M | $225M (exactly $224,523,021) | CAPCOM Co., Ltd. | |
 | Path of Exile 2 | · EA | $29.99 | 167,730 76% | 5.0M | $151M (exactly $150,906,681) | Grinding Gear Games |
 | Dying Light: The Beast | $59.99 | 59,318 87% | 1.8M | $107M (exactly $106,754,605) | Techland | |
 | Subnautica 2 | · EA | $29.99 | 116,852 91% | 3.5M | $105M (exactly $105,131,744) | Unknown Worlds Entertainment |
 | R.E.P.O. | · EA | $9.99 | 341,004 96% | 10M | $102M (exactly $102,198,899) | semiwork |
 | SILENT HILL 2 | $69.99 | 43,367 94% | 1.3M | $91M (exactly $91,057,690) | Bloober Team SA | |
 | PEAK | $7.99 | 301,964 94% | 9.1M | $72M (exactly $72,380,771) | Team PEAK | |
 | The Last of Us™ Part II Remastered | $49.99 | 34,252 90% | 1.0M | $51M (exactly $51,367,724) | Naughty Dog LLC, Nixxes Software, Iron… (Naughty Dog LLC, Nixxes Software, Iron Galaxy Studios) | |
 | Escape the Backrooms | $9.99 | 137,315 90% | 4.1M | $41M (exactly $41,153,306) | Fancy Games, Blackbird Interactive | |
 | SILENT HILL f | $69.99 | 19,061 80% | 572k | $40M (exactly $40,022,382) | NeoBards Entertainment Ltd. |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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