Do I ship it?

GamesShooterShooter + Asynchronous Multiplayer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Asynchronous Multiplayer Shooter?

Shooter + Asynchronous Multiplayer

Only 15 developers shipped an Asynchronous Multiplayer 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, Hoofobia, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 28 more are announced, ×3.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $450, ×0.7 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $37k, ×59 the market median. Revenue is down 60% on the market; 28 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.7 times the market baseline, revenue down 60% on the market, 28 announced, ×3.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Shooter + Asynchronous Multiplayer
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 15
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $539 → $900 → $628 → $2.0k → $809 → $1.1k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Shooter + Asynchronous Multiplayer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $449 (exactly $449)
Top 25% $2.0k (exactly $1,973)
Top 5% $37k (exactly $37,327)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 41
Announced 28
Effort 6 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $6.99

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 60% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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.

Shooter
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
Asynchronous Multiplayer
effort 5 / 10 · low · a backend with accounts and persistent turns

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Shooter, Asynchronous Multiplayer; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, FPS, PvP
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $7.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Comedy, First-Person, Funny
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $7.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 73% positive over 321 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 $450, 1 in 4 over $1.9k, 1 in 20 over $37k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 28 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Dating SimFair23 devs · median $9.8k · 17 announced
  2. + CollectathonFair69 devs · median $1.4k · 64 announced
  3. + VampiresFair38 devs · median $1.3k · 41 announced
  4. + Walking SimulatorFair68 devs · median $1.2k · 62 announced
  5. + IdlerFair70 devs · median $836 · 59 announced
  6. + Match 3Fair15 devs · median $719 · 5 announced
  7. + SnowFair22 devs · median $570 · 23 announced
  8. + Boss RushFair16 devs · median $537 · 20 announced
  9. + IncrementalFair85 devs · median $479 · 88 announced
  10. + ArcadeLong shot1,151 devs · median $419 · 1,332 announced
  11. + Score AttackLong shot372 devs · median $300 · 352 announced
  12. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds25 devs · median $139k · 45 announced

All 229 pairs on the Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Deceive Inc. older $19.99 4,755 84% 143k $2.9M (exactly $2,851,574) Sweet Bandits Studios
Meet Your Maker older $19.99 3,013 73% 90k $1.8M (exactly $1,806,896) Behaviour Interactive Inc.
Beat Aim - Rhythm FPS Trainer · EA older $14.99 210 89% 6.3k $94k (exactly $94,437) Kamyker
Hoofobia $6.99 178 68% 5.3k $37k (exactly $37,327) Deathyell Games
Zombieland VR: Headshot Fever older $19.99 62 83% 1.9k $37k (exactly $37,181) XR Games
PowerWash Adventure older $7.99 93 75% 2.8k $22k (exactly $22,292) Grass Digital Technology
PowerWash Adventure VR older $6.99 90 74% 2.7k $19k (exactly $18,873) Grass Digital Technology
United Assault - Battle of the Bulge older $14.99 34 44% 1.0k $15k (exactly $15,290) Polygon Art, Enigma Entertainment
Mannequin older $9.99 39 79% 1.2k $12k (exactly $11,688) Fast Travel Games
Shooting Arena VR · EA older $12.99 28 85% 840 $11k (exactly $10,912) Infinity Studio
Erotic Rhythm $3.99 61 90% 1.8k $7.3k (exactly $7,302) Naku Kinoko
Shatterline $9.99 24 62% 720 $7.2k (exactly $7,193) Frag Lab LLC
Imposters $7.99 17 47% 510 $4.1k (exactly $4,075) Deathyell Games
Sakamoto Dangerous Barrage $2.99 22 100% 660 $2.0k (exactly $1,973) Retsu Teikoku
Touhou Creator · EA $8.99 4 100% 120 $1.1k (exactly $1,079) しろ
Casa De Diamantes $8.99 3 100% 90 $809 (exactly $809) SoulPixel Studio
World of PaintBall $2.99 7 28% 210 $628 (exactly $628) Color Games
Skyfire Legends $4.99 3 100% 90 $449 (exactly $449) Benjo Games
Baratrum $3.99 2 100% 60 $239 (exactly $239) Clyde Smets

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