Games › Card Battler › Card Battler + Puzzle
Should I ship a Puzzle Card Battler?
Card Battler + Puzzle
Of 67 developers who shipped a Puzzle 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.. 91 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $450, ×0.9 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $46k, ×97 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 91 games are announced against 40 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $120 (exactly $120) |
|---|---|
| Median | $449 (exactly $449) |
| Top 25% | $4.5k (exactly $4,491) |
| Top 5% | $46k (exactly $46,051) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 67 |
| Released games | 161 |
| Announced | 91 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $6.99 |
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 flat on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Card Battler
- effort 3 / 10 · high · card rules plus simple encounter logic
- Puzzle
- effort 2 / 10 · high · discrete rules, levels are data
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Card Battler, Puzzle; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Card Game, Roguelike
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 84% positive over 4,870 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 33 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 91 games are announced against 40 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Card Battler with a different second tag, 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 
Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist : Link Evolution 2020 · $4.7M 
Depersonalization 2024 · $3.6M 
Drop Duchy 2025 · $1.3M 
Knights in Tight Spaces 2025 · $498k | 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 |
| | Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist : Link Evolution | older | $39.99 | 3,905 82% | 117k | $4.7M (exactly $4,684,828) | Other Ocean Emeryville |
| | Depersonalization | older | $19.99 | 6,041 92% | 181k | $3.6M (exactly $3,622,788) | MeowNature |
| | Drop Duchy | $14.99 | 2,962 89% | 89k | $1.3M (exactly $1,332,011) | Sleepy Mill Studio | |
| | Knights in Tight Spaces | $19.99 | 831 69% | 25k | $498k (exactly $498,351) | Ground Shatter | |
 | GWENT: Rogue Mage (Single-Player Expansion) | older | $9.99 | 1,266 54% | 38k | $379k (exactly $379,420) | CD PROJEKT RED |
 | Shadowhand: RPG Card Game | older | $16.99 | 668 82% | 20k | $340k (exactly $340,480) | Grey Alien Games |
 | Meteorfall: Krumit's Tale | older | $14.99 | 756 90% | 23k | $340k (exactly $339,973) | Slothwerks |
 | Ash of Gods: The Way | older | $24.99 | 416 80% | 12k | $312k (exactly $311,875) | AurumDust |
 | Koi-Koi Japan [Hanafuda playing cards] | older | $9.99 | 957 92% | 29k | $287k (exactly $286,813) | Zoo Corporation |
 | Turnbound | $14.99 | 446 78% | 13k | $201k (exactly $200,566) | 1TK | |
 | Infinite Cards | $15.99 | 96 93% | 2.9k | $46k (exactly $46,051) | Tubby Turtle Studios | |
 | Rainbow Legends | $12.99 | 90 74% | 2.7k | $35k (exactly $35,073) | Unpixel Cloud Cedar Studio | |
 | Dead Finger Dice | $4.99 | 230 78% | 6.9k | $34k (exactly $34,431) | Rocket Adrift Games | |
 | Roach Post | $12.99 | 57 100% | 1.7k | $22k (exactly $22,213) | KARP GAMES | |
 | Dimwood | $14.99 | 47 100% | 1.4k | $21k (exactly $21,136) | Inkspun LLC | |
 | Cheater's Table | · EA | $6.99 | 69 95% | 2.1k | $14k (exactly $14,469) | Lagari |
 | Vinecard | $9.99 | 42 95% | 1.3k | $13k (exactly $12,587) | SiriusStudio |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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