Do I ship it?

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Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Co-op Card Battler?

Co-op + Card Battler

Of 23 developers who shipped a Co-op Card Battler 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.. 84 more are announced, ×5.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $840, ×0.6 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $390. 84 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.3 per shipper, while revenue is up 710% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 710% on the market, 84 announced, ×5.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Card Battler
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 23
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $24k → $599 → $179 → $3.1k → $1.9k (still earning) → $3.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Co-op + Card Battler: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 23
Bottom 30% $390 (exactly $390)
Median $839 (exactly $839)
Top 25% $6.3k (exactly $6,287)
Top 5% $798k (exactly $797,940)
Developers, 2 yr 23
Released games 75
Announced 84
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 710% on the market, supply 130% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 36%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync
Card Battler
effort 3 / 10 · high · card rules plus simple encounter logic

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Co-op, Card Battler; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Card Game, Online Co-Op, Strategy
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Funny, Hand-drawn
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 62% positive over 189,222 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $390, median $840, 1 in 4 over $6.2k, 1 in 20 over $790k.

3 in 10 developers made under $390. 8 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 84 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Co-op with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SuperheroFair9 devs · median $11k · 17 announced
  2. + Boomer ShooterFair16 devs · median $6.9k · 24 announced
  3. + GamblingFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 32 announced
  4. + NinjaFair13 devs · median $4.2k · 13 announced
  5. + TypingLong shot16 devs · median $810 · 13 announced
  6. + Word GameLong shot23 devs · median $267 · 23 announced
  7. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds58 devs · median $515k · 127 announced
  8. + World War IIPoor odds12 devs · median $372k · 23 announced
  9. + AutomationPoor odds48 devs · median $369k · 110 announced
  10. + TransportationPoor odds17 devs · median $369k · 25 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds15 devs · median $164k · 19 announced
  12. + Turn-BasedPoor odds12 devs · median $131k · 19 announced

All 230 pairs on the Co-op page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Slay the Spire 2 2026 · EA · $138M Across the Obelisk 2022 · $6.4M HELLCARD 2024 · $2.5M Thea 2: The Shattering 2019 · $1.4M Guilty as Sock! 2025 · $798k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Slay the Spire 2 · EA $24.99 183,764 61% 5.5M $138M (exactly $137,767,871) Mega Crit
Across the Obelisk older $19.99 10,689 80% 321k $6.4M (exactly $6,410,193) Dreamsite Games
HELLCARD older $24.99 3,368 86% 101k $2.5M (exactly $2,524,990) Thing Trunk
Thea 2: The Shattering older $24.99 1,892 79% 57k $1.4M (exactly $1,418,432) MuHa Games, Eerie Forest Studio
Guilty as Sock! $5.50 4,836 89% 145k $798k (exactly $797,940) Demon Max
Sentinels of the Multiverse older $9.99 1,201 92% 36k $360k (exactly $359,940) Handelabra Games Inc.
Viractal: Will You Trust Your Party? $24.99 448 88% 13k $336k (exactly $335,866) Sting
Aeon's End older $14.99 438 82% 13k $197k (exactly $196,969) Handelabra Games Inc.
Exploding Kittens® 2 older $12.49 447 75% 13k $167k (exactly $167,491) Marmalade Game Studio Ltd
Astatos · EA older $14.99 298 82% 8.9k $134k (exactly $134,011) Studio Klondike Australia
Fairtravel Battle CCG · EA $14.99 52 98% 1.6k $23k (exactly $23,384) Flaming Torch Games
Duo Quest $14.99 26 65% 780 $12k (exactly $11,692) 1+1 Studios
DEMONS $4.99 42 71% 1.3k $6.3k (exactly $6,287) Andrew Fender, Alastair Headden
TRUCO BAR $4.99 33 81% 990 $4.9k (exactly $4,940) LoboAnarquista, João Rafael Refatti Sil… (LoboAnarquista, João Rafael Refatti Silva)
Hard Edge - War Zone $15.99 7 71% 210 $3.4k (exactly $3,358) SUNSOFT
CyCall · EA $12.99 8 75% 240 $3.1k (exactly $3,118) PzGames
Vulcard · EA $11.99 6 100% 180 $2.2k (exactly $2,158) Goblin Games Studio

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