Do I ship it?

Games › Arcade › Arcade + Hidden Object

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Hidden Object Arcade game?

Arcade + Hidden Object

Of 147 developers who shipped a Hidden Object Arcade 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.. 125 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $300 in the last 2 years and $360 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 78 developers shipped in the last year and 125 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 80% on the market, 125 announced, ×1.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Arcade + Hidden Object
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 147
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.4k → $358 → $599 → $449 → $179 → $653 → $359 (still earning) → $180 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Arcade + Hidden Object: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 147
Bottom 30% $60 (exactly $60)
Median $299 (exactly $299)
Top 25% $987 (exactly $987)
Top 5% $15k (exactly $15,098)
Developers, 2 yr 147
Released games 482
Announced 125
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 80% on the market, supply 10% 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Arcade
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Hidden Object
effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Arcade, Hidden Object; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Exploration, Adventure
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cute, Colorful, 2D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 4,540 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $60, median $300, 1 in 4 over $980, 1 in 20 over $15k.

3 in 10 developers made under $60. Nearly all of the 101 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 125 games are announced against 78 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair59 devs · median $4.3k · 88 announced
  2. + TrainsFair20 devs · median $3.1k · 16 announced
  3. + Visual NovelFair101 devs · median $2.6k · 84 announced
  4. + MiningFair91 devs · median $2.2k · 125 announced
  5. + FaithFair16 devs · median $2.2k · 15 announced
  6. + Turn-BasedFair35 devs · median $2.2k · 32 announced
  7. + EconomyFair199 devs · median $2.1k · 285 announced
  8. + LGBTQ+Fair72 devs · median $2.1k · 61 announced
  9. + DeckbuildingFair170 devs · median $1.9k · 234 announced
  10. + Card BattlerFair68 devs · median $1.9k · 75 announced
  11. + LootFair147 devs · median $1.9k · 215 announced
  12. + VampiresFair34 devs · median $1.9k · 35 announced

All 270 pairs on the Arcade page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Agatha Christie - Death on the Nile 2025 · $265k SchoolBoy Runaway 2024 · $223k PropHunter 2021 · EA · $110k Tech Blast 2025 · $108k Space Wars 2020 · $95k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Agatha Christie - Death on the Nile $39.99 221 78% 6.6k $265k (exactly $265,134) Microids Studio Lyon
SchoolBoy Runaway $1.99 3,731 90% 112k $223k (exactly $222,741) Linked Squad
PropHunter · EA older $3.99 917 79% 28k $110k (exactly $109,765) Alone Fox Games
Tech Blast $39.99 90 92% 2.7k $108k (exactly $107,973) Galactic Geckon
Space Wars older $29.99 106 86% 3.2k $95k (exactly $95,368) High and Wide
Rap Pop Jump Core older $29.99 91 89% 2.7k $82k (exactly $81,873) Galactic Geckon
Grab and Guts older $29.99 87 94% 2.6k $78k (exactly $78,274) Galactic Geckon
Mystic Academy: Escape Room older $10.99 224 75% 6.7k $74k (exactly $73,853) mc2games
Woodo $16.99 118 99% 3.5k $60k (exactly $60,145) Tiny Monks Tales
Spectator older $12.99 113 93% 3.4k $44k (exactly $44,036) Minechan, Neko Machine
Jeff The Killer: Horror Game · EA $5.99 141 84% 4.2k $25k (exactly $25,338) SU Company Games
Lost and found - What if I come and find it $15.99 36 88% 1.1k $17k (exactly $17,269) Gadir Team
Witch Please: Sex Service $7.99 70 65% 2.1k $17k (exactly $16,779) Aquilon
Spellbound Beauties $6.99 72 83% 2.2k $15k (exactly $15,098) Lunar Kiss Games
Bubble Ghost Remake $14.99 32 100% 960 $14k (exactly $14,390) Nakama Game Studio
Fantastic Findings Hidden Seasons $11.99 29 89% 870 $10k (exactly $10,431) Shapeshift Entertainment ApS

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