Do I ship it?

GamesCard GameCard Game + Romance

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Romance Card Game?

Card Game + Romance

Of 37 developers who shipped a Romance 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.. 47 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 2 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $6.9k, ×58 the market's $120 for a 2 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.5k; 1 in 20 cleared $280k, ×2358 the market median. Revenue is down 30% on the market; 47 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 57.9 times the market baseline, revenue down 30% on the market, 47 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Card Game + Romance
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 37
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $12k → $5.8k → $32k → $6.6k → $15k → $10k → $5.7k (still earning) → $2.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Card Game + Romance: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 37
Bottom 30% $1.5k (exactly $1,498)
Median $6.9k (exactly $6,893)
Top 25% $22k (exactly $22,438)
Top 5% $281k (exactly $280,660)
Developers, 2 yr 37
Released games 116
Announced 47
Effort 2 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $8.99

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 30% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 9%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Card Game
effort 2 / 10 · high · rules engine and card data
Romance
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
2 / 10 · static 2D art, simple logic
Systems
Card Game; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Dating Sim, Deckbuilding
Price point
$8.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Anime, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.

The top 10 games average 84% positive over 7,482 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.5k, median $6.9k, 1 in 4 over $22k, 1 in 20 over $280k.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.5k. 7 in 10 of the 20 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 47 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Card Game with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SteampunkFair15 devs · median $7.6k · 18 announced
  2. + Immersive SimFair43 devs · median $3.6k · 43 announced
  3. + Inventory ManagementFair65 devs · median $1.6k · 86 announced
  4. + DogsFair11 devs · median $1.5k · 8 announced
  5. + MahjongFair28 devs · median $748 · 24 announced
  6. + Artificial IntelligenceFair40 devs · median $719 · 54 announced
  7. + GamblingFair126 devs · median $600 · 167 announced
  8. + Point & ClickFair62 devs · median $539 · 69 announced
  9. + Hidden ObjectFair17 devs · median $537 · 15 announced
  10. + Board GameFair293 devs · median $479 · 382 announced
  11. + PuzzleFair198 devs · median $479 · 206 announced
  12. + Dating SimPoor odds23 devs · median $18k · 48 announced

All 159 pairs on the Card Game page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Potionomics older $24.99 6,973 90% 209k $5.2M (exactly $5,227,658) Voracious Games
FINAL FANTASY VIII - REMASTERED older $19.99 4,822 75% 145k $2.9M (exactly $2,891,753) Square Enix
FINAL FANTASY VIII older $11.99 7,874 87% 236k $2.8M (exactly $2,832,278) Square Enix
Matchmaking Inc. $8.99 5,773 87% 173k $1.6M (exactly $1,556,978) Wave Games
ISEKAI QUEST older $3.99 3,679 85% 110k $440k (exactly $440,376) Studio Ginkgo
AURA: Hentai Cards older $9.99 1,045 80% 31k $313k (exactly $313,186) TopHouse Studio, AniCore Team
Youtubers Life 3 $19.99 468 50% 14k $281k (exactly $280,660) UPLAY Online
Regency Solitaire older $11.99 559 96% 17k $201k (exactly $201,072) Grey Alien Games
Love of Magic older $14.99 417 88% 13k $188k (exactly $187,525) Droid Productions
Astatos · EA older $14.99 298 82% 8.9k $134k (exactly $134,011) Studio Klondike Australia
Hypnosis Card 2 Happy Life $12.99 270 91% 8.1k $105k (exactly $105,219) Naku Kinoko
Fuckstone $11.99 217 88% 6.5k $78k (exactly $78,055) Anime Mania
SEXOPHOBIA 🔞 $14.99 168 78% 5.0k $76k (exactly $75,550) Lewd Star
The Girl's Moving Castle $9.99 181 88% 5.4k $54k (exactly $54,246) Destined game Studio
Isekai Big Dick $10.99 122 87% 3.7k $40k (exactly $40,223) Hippo Games
Lustful Butler And Charming Sisters $7.99 154 74% 4.6k $37k (exactly $36,914) Summer Clouds(夏雲)
Shadowhand Solitaire $13.99 64 90% 1.9k $27k (exactly $26,861) Grey Alien Games
Hypnosis Card 2 $12.99 65 78% 2.0k $25k (exactly $25,330) Naku Kinoko

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