Games › Perma Death › Perma Death + Board Game
Should I ship a Perma Death Board Game?
Perma Death + Board Game
Only 19 developers shipped a Perma Death Board Game 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, Isle of Swaps, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 26 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.9k, ×4.0 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $58k, ×122 the market median. Revenue is down 55% on the market; 26 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $240 (exactly $240) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.9k (exactly $1,915) |
| Top 25% | $7.8k (exactly $7,792) |
| Top 5% | $58k (exactly $58,011) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 19 |
| Released games | 50 |
| Announced | 26 |
| 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 down 55% 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Perma Death
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Board Game
- effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Perma Death, Board Game; all of the top 25% also carry Deckbuilding, Roguelike, Roguelite
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 91% positive over 435 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 26 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Perma Death with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + LGBTQ+Strong odds
- + Turn-BasedFair
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair
- + Creature CollectorFair
- + Mystery DungeonFair
- + PiratesFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
- + Interactive FictionFair
- + Precision PlatformerFair
- + Time ManagementFair
- + Visual NovelFair
- + 3D PlatformerFair
Comparable games
Mordheim: City of the Damned 2015 · $4.2M 
Card Survival: Tropical Island 2022 · $2.2M 
Trials of Fire 2021 · $1.8M 
Just Die Already 2021 · $1.3M 
Tharsis 2016 · $647k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Mordheim: City of the Damned | older | $19.99 | 7,056 72% | 212k | $4.2M (exactly $4,231,483) | Rogue Factor |
| | Card Survival: Tropical Island | older | $24.99 | 2,962 94% | 89k | $2.2M (exactly $2,220,611) | WinterSpring Games |
| | Trials of Fire | older | $19.99 | 2,975 86% | 89k | $1.8M (exactly $1,784,107) | Whatboy Games |
| | Just Die Already | older | $14.99 | 2,791 84% | 84k | $1.3M (exactly $1,255,113) | DoubleMoose Games |
| | Tharsis | older | $14.99 | 1,438 71% | 43k | $647k (exactly $646,669) | Choice Provisions |
 | One Deck Dungeon | older | $9.99 | 783 81% | 23k | $235k (exactly $234,665) | Handelabra Games Inc. |
 | The Banished Vault | older | $24.99 | 189 78% | 5.7k | $142k (exactly $141,693) | Lunar Division |
 | Crowntakers | older | $9.99 | 398 74% | 12k | $119k (exactly $119,281) | Bulwark Studios |
 | Isle of Swaps | $14.99 | 129 90% | 3.9k | $58k (exactly $58,011) | Fuzz Force | |
 | XenoWorld ~The Rondeau of Astra~ | older | $10.99 | 112 75% | 3.4k | $37k (exactly $36,926) | IMaiIna_, INA |
 | Roach Post | $12.99 | 57 100% | 1.7k | $22k (exactly $22,213) | KARP GAMES | |
 | Watchword | $13.99 | 33 90% | 990 | $14k (exactly $13,850) | Big Quail Games | |
 | Order Automatica | $5.99 | 58 89% | 1.7k | $10k (exactly $10,423) | New Beings | |
 | Dominova | $9.99 | 26 96% | 780 | $7.8k (exactly $7,792) | Glenn Verheij | |
 | Letterlike | $7.99 | 29 93% | 870 | $7.0k (exactly $6,951) | Puzzlelike Studios | |
 | Minesweeper Together | $2.99 | 64 95% | 1.9k | $5.7k (exactly $5,741) | anchikai | |
 | VELATO | · EA | $8.99 | 18 100% | 540 | $4.9k (exactly $4,855) | VELATO |
 | Dungeon Mercenaries | $14.99 | 5 0% | 150 | $2.2k (exactly $2,248) | Redboy Games | |
 | 12 Months: Vietnam | $3.99 | 16 68% | 480 | $1.9k (exactly $1,915) | AlphaSixGames |
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.