Do I ship it?

GamesBuildingBuilding + Outbreak Sim

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Building Outbreak Sim?

Building + Outbreak Sim

Only 18 developers shipped a Building Outbreak Sim 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, Dread Dawn, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 24 more are announced, ×2.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×3.8 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $900; 1 in 20 cleared $1.2M, ×2018 the market median. Revenue is down 75% on the market; 24 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.8 times the market baseline, revenue down 75% on the market, 24 announced, ×2.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Building + Outbreak Sim
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 18
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $34k → $150 → $33k → $898 → $479 (still earning) → $10k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Building + Outbreak Sim: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 18
Bottom 30% $898 (exactly $898)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,398)
Top 25% $33k (exactly $32,922)
Top 5% $1.3M (exactly $1,267,166)
Developers, 2 yr 18
Released games 44
Announced 24
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 down 75% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 5%, 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.

Building
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Outbreak Sim
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
Building, Outbreak Sim; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Base Building, City Builder, Colony Sim
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Isometric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 73% positive over 4,289 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $900, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $32k, 1 in 20 over $1.2M.

3 in 10 developers made under $900. 8 in 10 of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 24 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds66 devs · median $28k · 70 announced
  2. + CatsFair52 devs · median $4.5k · 59 announced
  3. + TabletopFair56 devs · median $1.9k · 58 announced
  4. + Grid-Based MovementFair50 devs · median $719 · 57 announced
  5. + Interactive FictionFair17 devs · median $449 · 20 announced
  6. + Vehicular CombatPoor odds14 devs · median $303k · 40 announced
  7. + JRPGPoor odds10 devs · median $89k · 20 announced
  8. + Dating SimPoor odds28 devs · median $85k · 61 announced
  9. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds112 devs · median $71k · 251 announced
  10. + Real-TimePoor odds14 devs · median $62k · 20 announced
  11. + CrimePoor odds13 devs · median $55k · 52 announced
  12. + SailingPoor odds13 devs · median $52k · 40 announced

All 210 pairs on the Building page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Dread Dawn $19.99 2,113 71% 63k $1.3M (exactly $1,267,166) Kioop
ZED ZONE · EA older $11.99 3,506 81% 105k $1.3M (exactly $1,261,108) Leven Liu
After Inc: Revival $17.99 1,480 77% 44k $799k (exactly $798,756) Ndemic Creations
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville older $14.99 1,486 86% 45k $668k (exactly $668,254) Northway Games, Sarah Northway
Galacticare older $29.99 600 85% 18k $540k (exactly $539,820) Brightrock Games
Zombie Cure Lab $24.99 393 65% 12k $295k (exactly $294,632) Thera Bytes GmbH
Mad Tower Tycoon older $14.99 413 77% 12k $186k (exactly $185,726) Eggcode
Rogue AI Simulator older $11.99 364 82% 11k $131k (exactly $130,931) Nerdook Productions
Repterra $19.99 122 90% 3.7k $73k (exactly $73,163) Chute Apps
Rebirth evolution older $8.99 125 61% 3.8k $34k (exactly $33,712) 异界游网络科技
Genesis of a Small God $17.99 61 80% 1.8k $33k (exactly $32,922) Pierre Nury
Post-Apo Builder $9.99 54 37% 1.6k $16k (exactly $16,184) Septarian Games
Alarm112: Fire Unit $14.99 23 73% 690 $10k (exactly $10,343) Control Room Labs
Biletide $5.99 24 100% 720 $4.3k (exactly $4,313) Formic Games
Apocalypse Factory · EA $9.99 8 50% 240 $2.4k (exactly $2,398) Mind Leak
英雄荣光医院 $6.99 11 100% 330 $2.3k (exactly $2,307) Areas R

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