Do I ship it?

GamesBullet HellBullet Hell + Zombies

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Zombie Bullet Hell?

Bullet Hell + Zombies

Of 122 developers who shipped a Zombie Bullet Hell 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.. 104 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $630, level with the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $240. Revenue is up 145% on the market; 104 games are announced against 61 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 145% on the market, 104 announced, ×1.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Bullet Hell + Zombies
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 122
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $807 → $898 → $1.3k → $1.3k → $419 → $629 → $1.6k (still earning) → $598 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Bullet Hell + Zombies: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 122
Bottom 30% $239 (exactly $239)
Median $629 (exactly $629)
Top 25% $5.0k (exactly $5,032)
Top 5% $280k (exactly $279,713)
Developers, 2 yr 122
Released games 274
Announced 104
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $4.99

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 145% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 7%, 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.

Bullet Hell
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Zombies
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 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
Bullet Hell; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelite, Action Roguelike
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Top-Down, 3D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 84% positive over 40,350 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $240, median $630, 1 in 4 over $5.0k, 1 in 20 over $270k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 9 in 10 of the 65 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 104 games are announced against 61 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Bullet Hell with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SuperheroStrong odds11 devs · median $3.4k · 7 announced
  2. + FaithFair26 devs · median $17k · 29 announced
  3. + VampiresFair43 devs · median $3.4k · 33 announced
  4. + Creature CollectorFair24 devs · median $3.4k · 33 announced
  5. + Strategy RPGFair40 devs · median $2.0k · 31 announced
  6. + PiratesFair14 devs · median $2.0k · 20 announced
  7. + CatsFair44 devs · median $1.7k · 59 announced
  8. + HackingFair15 devs · median $1.6k · 17 announced
  9. + Time ManagementFair11 devs · median $1.2k · 15 announced
  10. + Card BattlerFair24 devs · median $1.2k · 22 announced
  11. + DemonsFair101 devs · median $1.2k · 125 announced
  12. + Naval CombatFair14 devs · median $1.1k · 16 announced

All 185 pairs on the Bullet Hell page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Deadzone: Rogue $24.99 15,041 82% 451k $11M (exactly $11,276,238) Prophecy Games
Yet Another Zombie Survivors $14.99 14,123 91% 424k $6.4M (exactly $6,351,113) Awesome Games Studio
Dead Estate older $14.99 5,778 95% 173k $2.6M (exactly $2,598,367) Milkbar Lads
Apocalypse Party older $9.99 4,658 72% 140k $1.4M (exactly $1,396,003) Breaker Games
Deadly Days: Roadtrip · EA $14.99 2,855 87% 86k $1.3M (exactly $1,283,894) Pixelsplit
R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program $14.99 2,727 76% 82k $1.2M (exactly $1,226,332) WarmCore Studio
GOD FORSAKEN $13.99 1,728 67% 52k $725k (exactly $725,242) insight studio
Be My Horde · EA older $9.99 2,052 85% 62k $615k (exactly $614,984) Polished Games
FatalZone $6.99 2,125 66% 64k $446k (exactly $445,612) Midhard Games
Necrosmith older $2.99 4,885 85% 147k $438k (exactly $438,185) Alawar
Reap and Rush $14.99 622 77% 19k $280k (exactly $279,713) Beijing Pacifier Technology
Dark Light: Survivor · EA $16.99 346 75% 10k $176k (exactly $176,356) Mirari&Co.
HELLBREAK $14.99 275 76% 8.3k $124k (exactly $123,668) Double Barrel Games
Rhythm Witch: Beat Death $5.99 508 94% 15k $91k (exactly $91,288) Dusklight CO., LTD.

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