Do I ship it?

GamesBoss RushBoss Rush + Platformer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Boss Rush Platformer?

Boss Rush + Platformer

Only 15 developers shipped a Boss Rush Platformer 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, Terminator 2D: NO FATE, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 23 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $540, ×1.1 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $1.3M, ×2746 the market median. Revenue is down 80% on the market; 23 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 80% on the market, 23 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Boss Rush + Platformer
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: $3.6k → $9.0k → $4.2k → $8.1k → $419 (still earning) → $5.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Boss Rush + Platformer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $537 (exactly $537)
Top 25% $5.4k (exactly $5,396)
Top 5% $1.3M (exactly $1,304,565)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 42
Announced 23
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 down 80% on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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.

Boss Rush
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Boss Rush, Platformer; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, 2D Platformer, Arcade
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Retro
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 84% positive over 1,825 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $540, 1 in 4 over $5.3k, 1 in 20 over $1.3M.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. All of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 23 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RPGFair20 devs · median $1.8k · 27 announced
  2. + Action RoguelikeFair20 devs · median $1.6k · 19 announced
  3. + Sci-fiFair17 devs · median $839 · 16 announced
  4. + ShooterFair16 devs · median $537 · 20 announced
  5. + Bullet HellFair27 devs · median $479 · 31 announced
  6. + Action-AdventurePoor odds20 devs · median $3.7k · 42 announced
  7. + Hack and SlashPoor odds13 devs · median $3.5k · 39 announced
  8. + CombatPoor odds49 devs · median $1.6k · 79 announced
  9. + Souls-likePoor odds21 devs · median $1.6k · 44 announced
  10. + Dark FantasyPoor odds17 devs · median $1.6k · 30 announced
  11. + Action RPGPoor odds16 devs · median $1.6k · 32 announced
  12. + RoguelitePoor odds16 devs · median $1.6k · 21 announced

All 20 pairs on the Boss Rush page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Terminator 2D: NO FATE $29.99 1,450 84% 44k $1.3M (exactly $1,304,565) Bitmap Bureau
Gurei $15.99 281 83% 8.4k $135k (exactly $134,796) Lobo Sagaz studio
Prison City older $9.99 152 84% 4.6k $46k (exactly $45,554) Retroware, Programancer
Nowhere Patrol older $4.99 229 96% 6.9k $34k (exactly $34,281) Slugsoft
Boss Rush: Mythology older $4.99 123 78% 3.7k $18k (exactly $18,413) Alexey Suslin
Go Go Jump!! older $10.99 51 94% 1.5k $17k (exactly $16,815) Dexter Manning
Towertale older $9.99 50 90% 1.5k $15k (exactly $14,985) MiSou Games
99 Waves older $3.99 96 90% 2.9k $11k (exactly $11,491) Cold9, Cosnow
Twinkle Hunter older $11.99 25 100% 750 $9.0k (exactly $8,992) Silver Cat
Super Gear Quest older $14.99 18 88% 540 $8.1k (exactly $8,095) Blob Games
Gravity Storm: First Mission $9.99 27 100% 810 $8.1k (exactly $8,092) Jampley Games
Snack Invaders · EA $14.99 12 100% 360 $5.4k (exactly $5,396) Whippy Games
Basureroes: Invasion $11.99 14 100% 420 $5.0k (exactly $5,036) Javs Game Studios
Botanica $9.99 14 92% 420 $4.2k (exactly $4,196) Second Fiddle Studio
Beats&Boss $2.99 14 85% 420 $1.3k (exactly $1,256) XiHuanMang
BLOOD=BULLETS $1.99 9 100% 270 $537 (exactly $537) Slendykray
FAR FROM DEAD $7.99 2 100% 60 $479 (exactly $479) Brian O'Keefe
Dream Doctor $6.99 2 100% 60 $419 (exactly $419) Acangaiba Estúdio

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