Do I ship it?

GamesCo-opCo-op + Animals

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Animal Co-op game?

Co-op + Animals

Only 15 developers shipped an Animal Co-op game in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Virtual Hunter, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 56 more are announced, ×4.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×0.8 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $540; 1 in 20 cleared $120k, ×87 the market median. Momentum is unreadable here, too few recent games; 56 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.8 times the market baseline, revenue too few recent games to read momentum, 56 announced, ×4.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Animals
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 15

not enough cohorts to draw

Outcomes for Co-op + Animals: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $538 (exactly $538)
Median $1.2k (exactly $1,199)
Top 25% $7.1k (exactly $7,130)
Top 5% $130k (exactly $129,698)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 26
Announced 56
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 too few recent games to read momentum, supply 550% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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.

Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync
Animals
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Co-op
Price point
$7.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 75% positive over 650 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $540, median $1.2k, 1 in 4 over $7.1k, 1 in 20 over $120k.

3 in 10 developers made under $540. 56 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Co-op with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SuperheroFair9 devs · median $11k · 17 announced
  2. + Boomer ShooterFair16 devs · median $6.9k · 24 announced
  3. + GamblingFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 32 announced
  4. + NinjaFair13 devs · median $4.2k · 13 announced
  5. + TypingLong shot16 devs · median $810 · 13 announced
  6. + Word GameLong shot23 devs · median $267 · 23 announced
  7. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds58 devs · median $515k · 127 announced
  8. + World War IIPoor odds12 devs · median $372k · 23 announced
  9. + AutomationPoor odds48 devs · median $369k · 110 announced
  10. + TransportationPoor odds17 devs · median $369k · 25 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds15 devs · median $164k · 19 announced
  12. + Turn-BasedPoor odds12 devs · median $131k · 19 announced

All 230 pairs on the Co-op page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Ranch Simulator: Build, Hunt, Farm older $24.99 40,862 79% 1.2M $31M (exactly $30,634,241) Toxic Dog
Tooth and Tail older $19.99 2,887 82% 87k $1.7M (exactly $1,731,334) Pocketwatch Games
Meadow - A Shelter Game older $6.99 5,060 90% 152k $1.1M (exactly $1,061,082) Might and Delight
Virtual Hunter $24.99 173 71% 5.2k $130k (exactly $129,698) Korpi Games Oy
Frog Sqwad 🐸 $7.99 352 72% 11k $84k (exactly $84,374) Panic Stations
Turn the Line! · EA older $13.99 59 79% 1.8k $25k (exactly $24,762) Megatent Inc.
Pigeons Attack older $4.99 154 90% 4.6k $23k (exactly $23,054) Nixtor Game Studio
Marsupilami 2 - Salsa Palombia $24.99 28 100% 840 $21k (exactly $20,992) Ocellus Studio
Skollorn $6.99 34 94% 1.0k $7.1k (exactly $7,130) Fenris Labs
Making it Home older $9.99 22 90% 660 $6.6k (exactly $6,593) Pill Bug Interactive
Hide and Moo! $5.99 34 76% 1.0k $6.1k (exactly $6,110) Black Sea Studios
Besetmere Forest · EA $8.99 7 100% 210 $1.9k (exactly $1,888) Paper Cut Studio
FROGGLE $5.00 12 91% 360 $1.8k (exactly $1,800) Dubs
Sheep Sweep $9.99 4 100% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) Elegant Horse Studios
Wacky! Deer & Munk Adventure $8.99 4 75% 120 $1.1k (exactly $1,079) IDIOCRACY, INC
Hex Town · EA $8.99 2 100% 60 $539 (exactly $539) Nighttime Games

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