Do I ship it?

Games › Collectathon › Collectathon + Animals

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Animal Collectathon game?

Collectathon + Animals

Of 36 developers who shipped an Animal Collectathon 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.. 78 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.1k, ×2.4 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $57k, ×121 the market median. Revenue is up 245% on the market; 78 games are announced against 30 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.4 times the market baseline, revenue up 245% on the market, 78 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Collectathon + Animals
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 36
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $39k → $30k → $840 → $7.2k → $6.6k (still earning) → $180 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Collectathon + Animals: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 36
Bottom 30% $180 (exactly $180)
Median $1.1k (exactly $1,134)
Top 25% $8.0k (exactly $7,969)
Top 5% $58k (exactly $57,676)
Developers, 2 yr 36
Released games 63
Announced 78
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 245% on the market, supply 235% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 5%, 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.

Collectathon
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
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
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Collectathon; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Creature Collector, Hidden Object
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $6.99 or above
Art
7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Cute, 2D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $6.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 93% positive over 3,040 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $1.1k, 1 in 4 over $7.9k, 1 in 20 over $57k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 5 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 78 games are announced against 30 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Collectathon with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds33 devs · median $33k · 42 announced
  2. + CapitalismStrong odds76 devs · median $6.2k · 75 announced
  3. + Turn-BasedFair7 devs · median $14k · 8 announced
  4. + EconomyFair125 devs · median $3.8k · 151 announced
  5. + ManagementFair182 devs · median $3.5k · 230 announced
  6. + CrimeFair10 devs · median $3.4k · 14 announced
  7. + Level EditorFair15 devs · median $3.4k · 17 announced
  8. + Artificial IntelligenceFair46 devs · median $2.7k · 30 announced
  9. + SokobanFair12 devs · median $2.4k · 9 announced
  10. + MythologyFair18 devs · median $2.4k · 20 announced
  11. + UnderwaterFair37 devs · median $2.3k · 37 announced
  12. + Combat RacingFair10 devs · median $2.2k · 12 announced

All 178 pairs on the Collectathon page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Chillquarium 2023 · $1.4M The Spirit and the Mouse 2022 · $480k Sort Them Ducks 2026 · $263k Plantera 2: Golden Acorn 2023 · $178k Kao the Kangaroo: Round 2 (2003 re-release) 2019 · $155k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Chillquarium older $5.99 7,780 92% 233k $1.4M (exactly $1,398,066) Ben Reber
The Spirit and the Mouse older $19.99 801 97% 24k $480k (exactly $480,360) Alblune
Sort Them Ducks $5.99 1,461 92% 44k $263k (exactly $262,542) Mr.Duck
Plantera 2: Golden Acorn older $4.99 1,191 93% 36k $178k (exactly $178,293) VaragtP
Kao the Kangaroo: Round 2 (2003 re-release) older $1.99 2,603 94% 78k $155k (exactly $155,399) Tate Multimedia
Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge older $19.99 230 86% 6.9k $138k (exactly $137,931) Humble Reeds
Travellin Cats Around the World older $4.99 804 97% 24k $120k (exactly $120,359) Travellin Cats
Tamarin older $29.99 78 60% 2.3k $70k (exactly $70,177) Chameleon Games
Seclusa $12.99 148 97% 4.4k $58k (exactly $57,676) Studio Niente
Travellin Cats in Italy older $0.99 1,792 97% 54k $53k (exactly $53,222) Travellin Cats
Travellin Cats Around the World 2 $4.99 236 97% 7.1k $35k (exactly $35,329) Travellin Cats
Dodo Duckie $11.99 80 98% 2.4k $29k (exactly $28,776) BornMonkie
Mewseum: Masterpieces $6.99 133 98% 4.0k $28k (exactly $27,890) Climbing Goat Games
Little Aviary $3.99 231 86% 6.9k $28k (exactly $27,651) atomco
Ribbit Ranch $5.99 111 98% 3.3k $20k (exactly $19,947) Jack McAllister
Travellin Cats in Germany $0.99 519 96% 16k $15k (exactly $15,414) Travellin Cats
Mothkeep $4.99 83 96% 2.5k $12k (exactly $12,425) Ivette Schmidt
Cozy Mining $6.99 38 76% 1.1k $8.0k (exactly $7,969) tatsumaki games

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