Games › Automobile Sim › Automobile Sim + Driving
Should I ship a Driving Automobile Sim?
Automobile Sim + Driving
Of 306 developers who shipped a Driving Automobile Sim 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.. 443 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $2.9k, ×1.9 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $450; 1 in 20 cleared $5.4M, ×3656 the market median. Revenue is up 105% on the market; 443 games are announced against 168 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $449 (exactly $449) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.9k (exactly $2,876) |
| Top 25% | $35k (exactly $35,463) |
| Top 5% | $5.5M (exactly $5,476,285) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 306 |
| Released games | 1,071 |
| Announced | 443 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $8.99 |
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 105% on the market, supply 15% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 6%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Automobile Sim
- effort 7 / 10 · low · tyre, suspension and drivetrain simulation
- Driving
- effort 6 / 10 · low · vehicle handling feel is tuned by hand
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- Automobile Sim, Driving; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Racing, Open World
- Price point
- $8.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Realistic, First-Person, 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.
The top 10 games average 86% positive over 339,106 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $450. 7 in 10 of the 164 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 443 games are announced against 168 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Automobile Sim with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Split ScreenStrong odds
- + Artificial IntelligenceFair
- + ZombiesFair
- + IdlerFair
- + LogicFair
- + Multiple EndingsLong shot
- + Score AttackLong shot
- + ArcadeLong shot
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Online Co-OpPoor odds
- + AutomationPoor odds
- + BuildingPoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Forza Horizon 5 | older | $59.99 | 260,218 89% | 7.8M | $468M (exactly $468,314,335) | Playground Games |
| | Euro Truck Simulator 2 | older | $19.99 | 756,984 97% | 23M | $454M (exactly $453,963,305) | SCS Software |
| | BeamNG.drive | · EA older | $24.99 | 388,236 97% | 12M | $291M (exactly $291,060,529) | BeamNG |
| | Forza Horizon 6 | $69.99 | 86,730 82% | 2.6M | $182M (exactly $182,106,981) | Playground Games | |
| | American Truck Simulator | older | $19.99 | 165,692 97% | 5.0M | $99M (exactly $99,365,492) | SCS Software |
| | Assetto Corsa | older | $19.99 | 136,067 92% | 4.1M | $82M (exactly $81,599,380) | Kunos Simulazioni |
| | The Crew™ 2 | older | $29.99 | 86,533 78% | 2.6M | $78M (exactly $77,853,740) | Ivory Tower |
| | The Crew Motorfest | older | $69.99 | 24,230 78% | 727k | $51M (exactly $50,875,731) | Ubisoft Ivory Tower |
| | My Summer Car | $14.99 | 108,503 94% | 3.3M | $49M (exactly $48,793,799) | Amistech Games | |
| | CarX Drift Racing Online | older | $16.99 | 82,720 95% | 2.5M | $42M (exactly $42,162,384) | CarX Technologies, LLC |
| | F1® 25 | $49.99 | 25,395 87% | 762k | $38M (exactly $38,084,882) | Codemasters | |
| | Tokyo Xtreme Racer | $49.99 | 15,284 93% | 459k | $23M (exactly $22,921,415) | Genki Co., Ltd. | |
| | Assetto Corsa EVO | · EA | $39.99 | 16,545 60% | 496k | $20M (exactly $19,849,036) | KUNOS Simulazioni |
| | Le Mans Ultimate | $39.99 | 15,068 79% | 452k | $18M (exactly $18,077,080) | Studio 397 | |
| | RoadCraft | $39.99 | 13,527 74% | 406k | $16M (exactly $16,228,342) | Saber Interactive | |
| | Drive Beyond Horizons | · EA | $24.99 | 17,903 77% | 537k | $13M (exactly $13,421,879) | Drive Beyond Horizons |
| | Car For Sale Simulator | $16.99 | 20,229 78% | 607k | $10M (exactly $10,310,721) | Red Axe Games | |
| | Mon Bazou | $15.99 | 19,922 97% | 598k | $9.6M (exactly $9,556,583) | Santa Goat |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.