Do I ship it?

GamesCard BattlerCard Battler + Artificial Intelligence

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an AI Card Battler?

Card Battler + Artificial Intelligence

Of 20 developers who shipped an AI Card Battler 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.. 34 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $720, ×1.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $230k, ×501 the market median. Revenue is up 290095% on the market; 34 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.5 times the market baseline, revenue up 290095% on the market, 34 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Card Battler + Artificial Intelligence
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 20
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $300 → $450 → $3.6k (still earning) → $450 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Card Battler + Artificial Intelligence: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 20
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $719 (exactly $719)
Top 25% $16k (exactly $16,182)
Top 5% $238k (exactly $237,782)
Developers, 2 yr 20
Released games 51
Announced 34
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 300% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 35%, 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.

Card Battler
effort 3 / 10 · high · card rules plus simple encounter logic
Artificial Intelligence
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Card Battler; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Strategy, Action RPG
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $11.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Anime, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $11.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 76% positive over 1,900 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 $720, 1 in 4 over $16k, 1 in 20 over $230k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 34 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + ArcadeFair68 devs · median $1.9k · 75 announced
  2. + Bullet HellFair24 devs · median $1.2k · 22 announced
  3. + GamblingFair64 devs · median $1.0k · 77 announced
  4. + 2D FighterFair10 devs · median $1.0k · 11 announced
  5. + ZombiesFair17 devs · median $839 · 22 announced
  6. + Point & ClickFair25 devs · median $629 · 34 announced
  7. + CollectathonFair35 devs · median $628 · 33 announced
  8. + Traditional RoguelikeFair43 devs · median $449 · 57 announced
  9. + Party GameFair28 devs · median $449 · 35 announced
  10. + SolitaireLong shot77 devs · median $299 · 79 announced
  11. + Asynchronous MultiplayerPoor odds33 devs · median $31k · 56 announced
  12. + CRPGPoor odds15 devs · median $25k · 28 announced

All 125 pairs on the Card Battler page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Fickle Card Legend $7.99 992 67% 30k $238k (exactly $237,782) 偶尔不帅
Backpack Dungeon $3.99 656 87% 20k $79k (exactly $78,523) 夜喵
The False God's Fold $11.99 70 78% 2.1k $25k (exactly $25,179) Night Owl Games
Football Rising:Zero to Hero $14.99 54 90% 1.6k $24k (exactly $24,284) Den Spade
富甲天下W older $7.99 101 42% 3.0k $24k (exactly $24,210) T-Time Technology CO., LTD.
The Simulacrum older $4.99 109 88% 3.3k $16k (exactly $16,317) Trynet Games
Silan: Monster Girl Master! $8.99 60 95% 1.8k $16k (exactly $16,182) 愛の勇者
h8machine older $9.99 44 93% 1.3k $13k (exactly $13,187) gaem by jj
Astral Towers older $4.99 48 85% 1.4k $7.2k (exactly $7,186) Apus Software
反图灵测试/Anti-TuringTest · EA older $10.99 19 78% 570 $6.3k (exactly $6,264) metagalaxy panda
The Devil Card $6.99 17 100% 510 $3.6k (exactly $3,565) Mathieu Bekkaye
Youth Academy $5.99 14 64% 420 $2.5k (exactly $2,516) Oba Games
High Stakes: Hot Nights $2.99 25 72% 750 $2.2k (exactly $2,242) Momentum Games
Banana of Doom · EA $5.99 9 44% 270 $1.6k (exactly $1,617) Playroom
BrightGlade Tales $7.99 3 100% 90 $719 (exactly $719) Massive Mustache

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