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Should I ship a Bullet Hell Swordplay game?
Swordplay + Bullet Hell
Only 15 developers shipped a Bullet Hell Swordplay 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, Yuri Sword Saga, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 22 more are announced, ×5.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 6 / 10 build.
Only 4 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $540 against a market of $630. 22 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $449 (exactly $449) |
|---|---|
| Median | $537 (exactly $537) |
| Top 25% | $7.5k (exactly $7,541) |
| Top 5% | $70k (exactly $69,896) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 15 |
| Released games | 43 |
| Announced | 22 |
| Effort | 6 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $3.99 |
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 100% on the market, supply 65% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 21%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Swordplay
- effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
- Bullet Hell
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
- Systems
- Swordplay, Bullet Hell; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Shooter, RPG
- Price point
- $3.99 typical · top 25% priced $10.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Atmospheric
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $10.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.
The top 10 games average 89% positive over 504 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $450. 9 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 22 games are announced against 4 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.5 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Swordplay with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Visual NovelFair
- + Strategy RPGFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + DeckbuildingFair
- + Shoot 'Em UpLong shot
- + SamuraiPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + Female ProtagonistPoor odds
- + FightingPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Base BuildingPoor odds
Comparable games
Yuri Sword Saga 2024 · $70k 
最后的仙门 The last Practice Sect 2022 · $60k 
HYAKKI YAKO Survivor 2025 · $20k 
Gunborg: Dark Matters 2022 · $13k 
FROGUE 2024 · $12k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Yuri Sword Saga | $10.99 | 212 97% | 6.4k | $70k (exactly $69,896) | Pico Games | |
| | 最后的仙门 The last Practice Sect | older | $3.99 | 504 53% | 15k | $60k (exactly $60,329) | 栖鸾工作室 |
| | HYAKKI YAKO Survivor | $7.99 | 84 67% | 2.5k | $20k (exactly $20,135) | pixyda,inc. | |
| | Gunborg: Dark Matters | older | $9.99 | 42 92% | 1.3k | $13k (exactly $12,587) | Ricpau Studios |
| | FROGUE | older | $11.99 | 34 91% | 1.0k | $12k (exactly $12,230) | Wired Dreams Studio |
 | 宗门最后的长老 | $2.99 | 99 96% | 3.0k | $8.9k (exactly $8,880) | KUMA studio | |
 | Dark Sword: The Light of Ainn | $3.99 | 63 93% | 1.9k | $7.5k (exactly $7,541) | MrDoth | |
 | Stardust Vanguards | older | $3.99 | 58 82% | 1.7k | $6.9k (exactly $6,943) | Zanrai Interactive |
 | Doko Roko | older | $9.99 | 14 42% | 420 | $4.2k (exactly $4,196) | Eric Mack |
 | GOI Survivors | older | $4.99 | 17 76% | 510 | $2.5k (exactly $2,545) | Urihimura |
 | Cat Survivors | $4.99 | 8 87% | 240 | $1.2k (exactly $1,198) | Ibon Studios | |
 | Island of Challenge | $1.99 | 13 92% | 390 | $776 (exactly $776) | Doorway Mountain Studios | |
 | Glory Survivor | $4.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $599 (exactly $599) | Cocidoware | |
 | 一剑江湖 | $1.99 | 9 44% | 270 | $537 (exactly $537) | 春秋大梦工作室 | |
 | Eternal Price: Whispers of Mystery | · EA | $3.99 | 4 25% | 120 | $479 (exactly $479) | 逐梦工作室 |
 | Geometry raid | $1.99 | 8 87% | 240 | $478 (exactly $478) | RoughStone |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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