Do I ship it?

GamesBoomer ShooterBoomer Shooter + Exploration

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Exploration Boomer Shooter?

Boomer Shooter + Exploration

Of 57 developers who shipped an Exploration Boomer Shooter 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.. 78 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×2.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $420; 1 in 20 cleared $800k, ×1281 the market median. Revenue is up 20% on the market; 78 games are announced against 31 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 20% on the market, 78 announced, ×2.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Boomer Shooter + Exploration
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 57
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $16k → $16k → $8.5k → $2.4k → $1.3k → $6.0k (still earning) → $5.8k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Boomer Shooter + Exploration: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 57
Bottom 30% $419 (exactly $419)
Median $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 25% $50k (exactly $49,917)
Top 5% $805k (exactly $804,513)
Developers, 2 yr 57
Released games 95
Announced 78
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $9.99

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 20% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 15%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Boomer Shooter
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Exploration
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Boomer Shooter, Exploration; 9 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, FPS, Shooter
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, Retro, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 91% positive over 10,452 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $420, median $1.8k, 1 in 4 over $49k, 1 in 20 over $800k.

3 in 10 developers made under $420. 6 in 10 of the 31 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 78 games are announced against 31 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Co-opFair16 devs · median $6.9k · 24 announced
  2. + WarFair19 devs · median $5.9k · 22 announced
  3. + DemonsFair51 devs · median $3.6k · 56 announced
  4. + Bullet TimeFair30 devs · median $1.7k · 30 announced
  5. + Psychological HorrorFair24 devs · median $1.3k · 29 announced
  6. + ZombiesFair50 devs · median $659 · 47 announced
  7. + Bullet HellFair109 devs · median $599 · 77 announced
  8. + SpaceFair39 devs · median $539 · 43 announced
  9. + Survival HorrorFair27 devs · median $449 · 28 announced
  10. + SurvivalLong shot39 devs · median $359 · 32 announced
  11. + Hero ShooterLong shot30 devs · median $210 · 21 announced
  12. + Female ProtagonistPoor odds36 devs · median $12k · 52 announced

All 61 pairs on the Boomer Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Ion Fury older $24.99 5,649 93% 169k $4.2M (exactly $4,235,055) Voidpoint, LLC
FUMES · EA $14.99 2,816 95% 84k $1.3M (exactly $1,266,355) FUMES team
STAR WARS™: Dark Forces Remaster older $29.99 1,228 90% 37k $1.1M (exactly $1,104,832) Nightdive Studios, LucasArts
Luna Abyss $29.99 923 86% 28k $830k (exactly $830,423) Kwalee Labs
Heretic + Hexen $14.99 1,789 95% 54k $805k (exactly $804,513) id Software, Nightdive Studios
Hedon Bloodrite older $16.99 1,575 93% 47k $803k (exactly $802,777) Zan_HedonDev
Agent 64: Spies Never Die $21.64 863 86% 26k $560k (exactly $560,260) Replicant D6
Wizordum $19.99 880 91% 26k $528k (exactly $527,736) Emberheart Games
PowerSlave Exhumed older $19.99 754 90% 23k $452k (exactly $452,174) Nightdive Studios, Lobotomy Software
INCISION $14.99 997 85% 30k $448k (exactly $448,351) SmoothBrainDev
Viscerafest $19.99 540 87% 16k $324k (exactly $323,838) Acid Man Games, Fire Plant Games
Brush Burial: Gutter World $9.99 838 93% 25k $251k (exactly $251,149) Knife Demon Software
BRUTAL JOHN 2 · EA $12.99 546 94% 16k $213k (exactly $212,776) OldSchool Laws Team
COVEN · EA $14.99 260 91% 7.8k $117k (exactly $116,922) Gator Shins

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