Do I ship it?

GamesActionAction + Physics

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Physics Action game?

Action + Physics

Of 1,691 developers who shipped a Physics 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.. 2,937 more are announced, ×2.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $660, level with the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $280k, ×458 the market median. Revenue is up 10% on the market; 2,937 games are announced against 1,005 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 10% on the market, 2,937 announced, ×2.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action + Physics
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 1,691
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.1k → $1.1k → $719 → $748 → $1.0k → $882 → $479 (still earning) → $479 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action + Physics: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 1,691
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $657 (exactly $657)
Top 25% $4.3k (exactly $4,316)
Top 5% $287k (exactly $287,400)
Developers, 2 yr 1,691
Released games 4,897
Announced 2,937
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 10% on the market, supply 40% 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Physics
effort 5 / 10 · low · emergent simulation bugs need hands-on tuning

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Action, Physics; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Simulation
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $16.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Funny, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $16.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 93% positive over 1,035,873 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 $660, 1 in 4 over $4.3k, 1 in 20 over $280k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 869 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 2,937 games are announced against 1,005 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Real-Time with PauseFair16 devs · median $103k · 18 announced
  2. + Job SimulatorFair25 devs · median $14k · 30 announced
  3. + PinballFair42 devs · median $2.6k · 48 announced
  4. + Escape RoomFair43 devs · median $1.8k · 40 announced
  5. + Football (American)Fair16 devs · median $1.3k · 6 announced
  6. + BaseballFair16 devs · median $1.2k · 12 announced
  7. + BilliardsFair19 devs · median $958 · 25 announced
  8. + IdlerFair225 devs · median $898 · 292 announced
  9. + TennisFair23 devs · median $628 · 12 announced
  10. + Time AttackFair90 devs · median $599 · 110 announced
  11. + TabletopFair71 devs · median $505 · 86 announced
  12. + WuxiaPoor odds9 devs · median $189k · 36 announced

All 288 pairs on the Action page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Battlefield™ 2042 older $59.99 260,308 49% 7.8M $468M (exactly $468,476,308) DICE
Garry's Mod older $9.99 1,093,131 96% 33M $328M (exactly $327,611,361) Facepunch Studios
BeamNG.drive · EA older $24.99 388,236 97% 12M $291M (exactly $291,060,529) BeamNG
Battlefield™ 1 older $39.99 200,661 86% 6.0M $241M (exactly $240,733,002) DICE
Portal 2 older $9.99 390,412 98% 12M $117M (exactly $117,006,476) Valve
Teardown older $29.99 126,563 95% 3.8M $114M (exactly $113,868,731) Tuxedo Labs
Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition older $19.99 180,637 83% 5.4M $108M (exactly $108,328,009) Rockstar North, Rockstar Toronto
Human Fall Flat older $19.99 174,835 94% 5.2M $105M (exactly $104,848,549) No Brakes Games
R.E.P.O. · EA $9.99 341,004 96% 10M $102M (exactly $102,198,899) semiwork
Scrap Mechanic $28.99 109,429 92% 3.3M $95M (exactly $95,170,401) Axolot Games
DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO $49.99 50,395 86% 1.5M $76M (exactly $75,577,382) Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
PEAK $7.99 301,964 94% 9.1M $72M (exactly $72,380,771) Team PEAK
Wobbly Life $24.99 33,034 97% 991k $25M (exactly $24,765,590) RubberBandGames
Half Sword · EA $24.99 28,656 71% 860k $21M (exactly $21,483,403) Half Sword Games
RV There Yet? $7.99 72,732 90% 2.2M $17M (exactly $17,433,860) Nuggets Entertainment
Cairn $29.99 18,224 94% 547k $16M (exactly $16,396,133) The Game Bakers
How to Fish $7.99 57,661 95% 1.7M $14M (exactly $13,821,342) Dazed Games
Hot Dogs, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades $19.99 22,774 97% 683k $14M (exactly $13,657,568) RUST LTD.

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