Games › Card Battler › Card Battler + Horror
Should I ship a Horror Card Battler?
Card Battler + Horror
Of 43 developers who shipped a Horror 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.. 85 more are announced, ×3.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×3.8 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $990k, ×2089 the market median. Revenue is up 350% on the market; 85 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $359 (exactly $359) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.8k (exactly $1,796) |
| Top 25% | $34k (exactly $34,431) |
| Top 5% | $992k (exactly $992,499) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 43 |
| Released games | 81 |
| Announced | 85 |
| Effort | 4 / 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 350% on the market, supply 55% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 17%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Card Battler
- effort 3 / 10 · high · card rules plus simple encounter logic
- Horror
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Card Battler; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Card Game, Deckbuilding, Strategy
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Atmospheric, Dark
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 9,717 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 21 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 85 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Card Battler with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + ArcadeFair
- + Bullet HellFair
- + GamblingFair
- + 2D FighterFair
- + ZombiesFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
- + Party GameFair
- + SolitaireLong shot
- + Asynchronous MultiplayerPoor odds
- + CRPGPoor odds
Comparable games
Inscryption 2021 · $81M 
Library Of Ruina 2021 · $37M 
Menace from the Deep 2024 · $1.3M 
Forbidden Solitaire 2026 · $1.1M 
Decktamer 2025 · $992k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Inscryption | older | $19.99 | 135,017 96% | 4.1M | $81M (exactly $80,969,695) | Daniel Mullins Games |
| | Library Of Ruina | older | $29.99 | 40,605 94% | 1.2M | $37M (exactly $36,532,318) | ProjectMoon |
| | Menace from the Deep | $16.99 | 2,466 84% | 74k | $1.3M (exactly $1,256,920) | Flat Lab | |
| | Forbidden Solitaire | $15.99 | 2,245 96% | 67k | $1.1M (exactly $1,076,926) | Grey Alien Games, Night Signal Entertai… (Grey Alien Games, Night Signal Entertainment) | |
| | Decktamer | $15.99 | 2,069 86% | 62k | $992k (exactly $992,499) | Horizon Edge | |
 | Deck of Haunts | $19.99 | 1,206 84% | 36k | $723k (exactly $723,238) | Mantis | |
 | Shards of Order | $9.99 | 578 90% | 17k | $173k (exactly $173,227) | Fardust | |
 | Draft of Darkness | older | $14.99 | 336 94% | 10k | $151k (exactly $151,099) | Crawly Games |
 | Nadir: A Grimdark Deckbuilder | older | $19.99 | 244 61% | 7.3k | $146k (exactly $146,327) | Black Eye Games |
 | Kumitantei: Old-School Slaughter | $14.99 | 314 90% | 9.4k | $141k (exactly $141,206) | Mango Factory | |
 | Hunter's Moon: A Sovereign Syndicate Adventure | $19.99 | 205 83% | 6.2k | $123k (exactly $122,938) | Crimson Herring Studios | |
 | Exorcism Agency | $12.99 | 222 91% | 6.7k | $87k (exactly $86,513) | YINGGUO GAME | |
 | THE SPIRIT LIFT | $19.99 | 118 94% | 3.5k | $71k (exactly $70,765) | prettysmart games | |
 | Deckline | $3.99 | 294 86% | 8.8k | $35k (exactly $35,192) | Room Games, KREIDPIX |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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