Do I ship it?

GamesAdventureAdventure + Political Sim

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Political Sim Adventure game?

Adventure + Political Sim

Of 31 developers who shipped a Political Sim Adventure 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.. 88 more are announced, ×4.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $900, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $1.9M, ×4004 the market median. Revenue is up 665% on the market; 88 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 665% on the market, 88 announced, ×4.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Adventure + Political Sim
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 31
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $899 → $148 → $599 → $479 → $138k → $210 → $599 (still earning) → $1.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Adventure + Political Sim: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 31
Bottom 30% $239 (exactly $239)
Median $899 (exactly $899)
Top 25% $17k (exactly $17,391)
Top 5% $1.9M (exactly $1,902,080)
Developers, 2 yr 31
Released games 125
Announced 88
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $9.99

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 665% on the market, supply 40% 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.

Adventure
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Political Sim
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Adventure, Political Sim; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Choices Matter, Simulation, Strategy
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, 2D, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 74% positive over 20,930 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $240, median $900, 1 in 4 over $17k, 1 in 20 over $1.9M.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 14 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 88 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + SamuraiFair13 devs · median $261k · 14 announced
  2. + FMVFair144 devs · median $39k · 151 announced
  3. + PinballFair11 devs · median $8.1k · 17 announced
  4. + Job SimulatorFair40 devs · median $6.3k · 50 announced
  5. + Escape RoomFair165 devs · median $2.2k · 151 announced
  6. + Mini GolfFair12 devs · median $2.2k · 11 announced
  7. + SportsFair228 devs · median $1.5k · 224 announced
  8. + GolfFair18 devs · median $1.4k · 16 announced
  9. + IncrementalFair384 devs · median $1.2k · 420 announced
  10. + Time AttackFair33 devs · median $599 · 33 announced
  11. + Traditional RoguelikeFair89 devs · median $449 · 119 announced
  12. + Real-Time with PausePoor odds10 devs · median $561k · 7 announced

All 279 pairs on the Adventure page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Halo: Campaign Evolved $49.99 12,512 61% 375k $19M (exactly $18,764,246) Halo Studios
Beholder older $13.99 23,199 91% 696k $9.7M (exactly $9,736,620) Alawar Stargaze (Warm Lamp Games)
Not For Broadcast older $24.99 10,337 94% 310k $7.7M (exactly $7,749,649) NotGames
Suzerain older $19.99 10,574 92% 317k $6.3M (exactly $6,341,228) Torpor Games
Tropico 5 older $19.99 9,796 78% 294k $5.9M (exactly $5,874,661) Haemimont Games
Do Not Feed the Monkeys older $15.99 10,376 93% 311k $5.0M (exactly $4,977,367) Fictiorama Studios
Beholder 2 older $17.99 6,865 87% 206k $3.7M (exactly $3,705,040) Alawar Stargaze (Warm Lamp Games)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You older $9.99 8,936 90% 268k $2.7M (exactly $2,678,119) Osmotic Studios
Beholder: Conductor $13.99 4,532 91% 136k $1.9M (exactly $1,902,080) Alawar
TheoTown older $9.99 4,631 94% 139k $1.4M (exactly $1,387,911) Lobby Divinus
Politics The Game $9.99 2,526 95% 76k $757k (exactly $757,042) Simplicity Games
The Darkest Files $19.99 668 95% 20k $401k (exactly $400,600) Paintbucket Games
Lightracer: For Judge $9.99 462 92% 14k $138k (exactly $138,461) Smartmelon Games
Medieval Legacy $19.99 66 86% 2.0k $40k (exactly $39,580) Ninetoplay
Your Crown Is Mine $18.99 34 82% 1.0k $19k (exactly $19,370) Lyyycaena
Rise of Atom $19.99 29 79% 870 $17k (exactly $17,391) Glass Bubble Software
Marry a Deep One: Innsmouth Simulator $17.99 32 50% 960 $17k (exactly $17,270) simulinati
Ministry of Truth: False Memory $6.99 69 85% 2.1k $14k (exactly $14,469) IKKOSAMA, False Memory Dept.

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