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Should I ship a Choices Matter Beat 'em up?
Beat 'em up + Choices Matter
Of 25 developers who shipped a Choices Matter Beat 'em up 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.. 47 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $450 in the last 2 years and $450 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 4 / 10 build. 17 developers shipped in the last year and 47 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $90 (exactly $90) |
|---|---|
| Median | $446 (exactly $446) |
| Top 25% | $9.3k (exactly $9,281) |
| Top 5% | $92k (exactly $91,724) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 25 |
| Released games | 72 |
| Announced | 47 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 up 80% on the market, supply 115% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 14%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Beat 'em up
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
- Choices Matter
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Beat 'em up, Choices Matter; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Hack and Slash, Adventure
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Anime, Side Scroller, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 72% positive over 2,440 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $90. All of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 47 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Beat 'em up with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + RhythmFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + Score AttackFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + Tower DefenseFair
- + NinjaLong shot
- + Combat RacingLong shot
- + Character Action GamePoor odds
- + LootPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Online Co-OpPoor odds
Comparable games
Police Simulator: Patrol Officers 2022 · $23M 
Punch Club 2016 · $3.6M 
Wrestling Empire 2021 · $1.8M 
Fight'N Rage 2017 · $1.5M 
GOD FORSAKEN 2026 · $725k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Police Simulator: Patrol Officers | older | $39.99 | 18,880 75% | 566k | $23M (exactly $22,650,336) | Aesir Interactive |
| | Punch Club | older | $9.99 | 12,098 81% | 363k | $3.6M (exactly $3,625,771) | Lazy Bear Games |
| | Wrestling Empire | older | $19.99 | 3,036 94% | 91k | $1.8M (exactly $1,820,689) | MDickie |
| | Fight'N Rage | older | $19.99 | 2,557 92% | 77k | $1.5M (exactly $1,533,433) | sebagamesdev |
| | GOD FORSAKEN | $13.99 | 1,728 67% | 52k | $725k (exactly $725,242) | insight studio | |
 | BROK the InvestiGator | older | $19.99 | 985 97% | 30k | $591k (exactly $590,704) | COWCAT |
 | Mayhem Brawler | older | $19.99 | 836 89% | 25k | $501k (exactly $501,349) | Hero Concept |
 | Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues | older | $19.99 | 417 84% | 13k | $250k (exactly $250,075) | Flux Games |
 | Listen to the Wind | older | $11.99 | 421 73% | 13k | $151k (exactly $151,434) | Papertiger Studio |
 | Solas City Heroes | older | $19.99 | 179 88% | 5.4k | $107k (exactly $107,346) | Skyflare Studios, MrZGames |
 | Warrior of Lust | $11.99 | 255 79% | 7.7k | $92k (exactly $91,724) | Aerisetta | |
 | Mad King Redemption | · EA | $14.99 | 159 84% | 4.8k | $72k (exactly $71,502) | SECRET MISSION |
 | FUTA FIGHT & FUCK 🥊 | $14.99 | 115 92% | 3.5k | $52k (exactly $51,716) | BanzaiProject | |
 | Lady Death Demonicron | $39.99 | 36 47% | 1.1k | $43k (exactly $43,189) | Art Of Play Interactive | |
 | Memory Lost | $19.99 | 53 92% | 1.6k | $32k (exactly $31,784) | Magic Hazard | |
 | Creepy Creepy Love | $4.99 | 62 93% | 1.9k | $9.3k (exactly $9,281) | BYYONI Entertainment | |
 | Goat Survivor | $7.99 | 25 68% | 750 | $6.0k (exactly $5,992) | DUMARU Inc. | |
 | Harem Rush! Impish Fantasy | $17.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $2.7k (exactly $2,698) | MenZ Studio | |
 | Carnage in Space: Crucible | $13.99 | 2 100% | 60 | $839 (exactly $839) | John Brink |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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