Games › Top-Down Shooter › Top-Down Shooter + Artificial Intelligence
Should I ship an AI Top-Down Shooter?
Top-Down Shooter + Artificial Intelligence
Only 19 developers shipped an AI Top-Down Shooter 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, Artificial Extinction 2, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 40 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $240 in the last 2 years and $360 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 11 developers shipped in the last year and 40 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $150 (exactly $150) |
|---|---|
| Median | $239 (exactly $239) |
| Top 25% | $4.6k (exactly $4,617) |
| Top 5% | $68k (exactly $67,766) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 19 |
| Released games | 77 |
| Announced | 40 |
| 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 down 85% on the market, supply 40% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Top-Down Shooter
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Artificial Intelligence
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Top-Down Shooter; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Shooter, Action-Adventure
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Isometric, Top-Down
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 80% positive over 281 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $150. All of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 40 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Top-Down Shooter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + VampiresFair
- + Turn-Based StrategyFair
- + World War IIFair
- + IdlerFair
- + ArcheryFair
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + Tactical RPGPoor odds
- + Action RTSPoor odds
- + HistoricalPoor odds
- + ModernPoor odds
- + CraftingPoor odds
- + DystopianPoor odds
Comparable games
RUNNING WITH RIFLES 2015 · $6.6M 
Mind 2022 · $201k 
Artificial Extinction 2 2026 · $68k 
Project Beril / 贝丽尔养成计划 2022 · $19k 
Regulators 2025 · $16k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | RUNNING WITH RIFLES | older | $14.99 | 14,676 87% | 440k | $6.6M (exactly $6,599,797) | Osumia Games |
| | Mind | older | $17.99 | 372 69% | 11k | $201k (exactly $200,768) | WHIRLLAXY LIMITED |
| | Artificial Extinction 2 | $19.99 | 113 77% | 3.4k | $68k (exactly $67,766) | 100Hr Games Inc | |
| | Project Beril / 贝丽尔养成计划 | older | $9.99 | 63 88% | 1.9k | $19k (exactly $18,881) | SlimeSmile |
| | Regulators | $14.99 | 35 100% | 1.1k | $16k (exactly $15,740) | Orangepixel | |
 | Seven Cities | · EA | $14.99 | 32 87% | 960 | $14k (exactly $14,390) | IMV Studio |
 | SUPERVERSE | $9.99 | 37 70% | 1.1k | $11k (exactly $11,089) | Superverse Industries | |
 | WAVECADE | older | $9.99 | 27 92% | 810 | $8.1k (exactly $8,092) | Andrew Spalato, Lewis Spalato |
 | BITGUN | older | $9.99 | 26 69% | 780 | $7.8k (exactly $7,792) | LogLog Games |
 | Technocide | older | $11.99 | 16 93% | 480 | $5.8k (exactly $5,755) | Dextrous Games |
 | Brawl Squad X: Battle Arena | $13.99 | 11 81% | 330 | $4.6k (exactly $4,617) | Army Troop Studios | |
 | Enemy Inside | · EA | $12.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $3.9k (exactly $3,897) | Six Ways Games |
 | Scrap Age: Survivors | $4.99 | 11 90% | 330 | $1.6k (exactly $1,647) | Fractal Blue Entertainment | |
 | Front Lines | $1.99 | 23 60% | 690 | $1.4k (exactly $1,373) | Waterfoul Studios | |
 | Nano Squadron | $5.99 | 7 85% | 210 | $1.3k (exactly $1,258) | Rough Sawn Games | |
 | Outbreak Squad | $3.99 | 2 50% | 60 | $239 (exactly $239) | Loner Chaos |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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