Do I ship it?

GamesLocal MultiplayerLocal Multiplayer + Card Game

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Local Multiplayer Card Game?

Local Multiplayer + Card Game

Of 42 developers who shipped a Local Multiplayer Card Game 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.. 65 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $900, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $62k, ×131 the market median. Revenue is down 55% on the market; 65 games are announced against 28 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue down 55% on the market, 65 announced, ×2.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Local Multiplayer + Card Game
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 42
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $359 → $11k → $2.4k → $3.0k → $1.8k → $6.7k → $0 (still earning) → $538 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Local Multiplayer + Card Game: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 42
Bottom 30% $120 (exactly $120)
Median $899 (exactly $899)
Top 25% $6.5k (exactly $6,475)
Top 5% $62k (exactly $62,369)
Developers, 2 yr 42
Released games 135
Announced 65
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $7.99

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 down 55% on the market, supply 85% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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.

Local Multiplayer
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Card Game
effort 2 / 10 · high · rules engine and card data

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Local Multiplayer, Card Game; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry PvP, Strategy, 4 Player Local
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Colorful, 2D, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 796 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $120, median $900, 1 in 4 over $6.4k, 1 in 20 over $62k.

3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 65 games are announced against 28 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Local Multiplayer with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + HockeyStrong odds11 devs · median $3.0k · 12 announced
  2. + Female ProtagonistFair61 devs · median $5.8k · 64 announced
  3. + Action RPGFair43 devs · median $5.5k · 56 announced
  4. + Hex GridFair12 devs · median $4.5k · 14 announced
  5. + ModernFair24 devs · median $3.6k · 16 announced
  6. + WargameFair28 devs · median $3.0k · 28 announced
  7. + TennisFair18 devs · median $2.3k · 10 announced
  8. + Point & ClickFair14 devs · median $2.0k · 8 announced
  9. + Artificial IntelligenceFair26 devs · median $1.8k · 27 announced
  10. + Football (American)Fair13 devs · median $1.8k · 4 announced
  11. + SportsFair196 devs · median $1.6k · 208 announced
  12. + RunnerFair23 devs · median $1.3k · 30 announced

All 174 pairs on the Local Multiplayer page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
UNO older $9.99 42,019 70% 1.3M $13M (exactly $12,593,094) Ubisoft Entertainment
ROUNDS older $5.99 35,738 95% 1.1M $6.4M (exactly $6,422,119) Landfall
Wingspan older $19.99 9,807 94% 294k $5.9M (exactly $5,881,258) Monster Couch
SUPER DRAGON BALL HEROES WORLD MISSION older $59.99 1,404 82% 42k $2.5M (exactly $2,526,779) Dimps Corporation, SAFARI GAMES Co., Lt… (Dimps Corporation, SAFARI GAMES Co., Ltd.)
Clue/Cluedo: Classic Edition older $16.99 3,096 88% 93k $1.6M (exactly $1,578,031) Marmalade Game Studio Ltd
THE GAME OF LIFE 2 older $12.49 3,702 78% 111k $1.4M (exactly $1,387,139) Marmalade Game Studio Ltd
Talisman: Digital Classic Edition older $6.99 5,557 80% 167k $1.2M (exactly $1,165,303) Nomad Games
Spirit Island older $24.99 1,545 91% 46k $1.2M (exactly $1,158,286) Handelabra Games Inc.
Last Call BBS older $19.99 1,220 94% 37k $732k (exactly $731,634) Zachtronics
Ticket to Ride® older $14.99 1,057 69% 32k $475k (exactly $475,333) Marmalade Game Studio Ltd
Anode Heart: Layer Null $15.99 227 91% 6.8k $109k (exactly $108,892) Stove Powered Games
Clutchtime™: Basketball Deckbuilder $19.99 180 77% 5.4k $108k (exactly $107,946) Bigosaur
Yomi 2 $19.99 104 92% 3.1k $62k (exactly $62,369) Sirlin Games
Nature Game System $19.99 49 73% 1.5k $29k (exactly $29,385) North Star Digital Games
Keep the Heroes Out $19.99 35 60% 1.1k $21k (exactly $20,990) Brueh Games, YarnCat Games
Gnaughty Gnomes $7.99 71 100% 2.1k $17k (exactly $17,019) SandCastles Studio
Fortune Avenue · EA $6.99 63 84% 1.9k $13k (exactly $13,211) Binogure Studio 🐺
Forest of Deceit $9.99 35 100% 1.1k $10k (exactly $10,490) Ghost Camp
Light Fingers $19.99 17 76% 510 $10k (exactly $10,195) Numizmatic
Yatzi 2 $14.99 15 80% 450 $6.7k (exactly $6,746) Korion Interactive

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