Games › Economy › Economy + Cats
Should I ship a Cat Economy game?
Economy + Cats
Of 36 developers who shipped a Cat Economy 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.. 45 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $2.5k, ×4.1 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $170k, ×279 the market median. Revenue is down 90% on the market; 45 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $119 (exactly $119) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.5k (exactly $2,545) |
| Top 25% | $25k (exactly $24,875) |
| Top 5% | $175k (exactly $175,383) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 36 |
| Released games | 63 |
| Announced | 45 |
| Effort | 5 / 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 down 90% on the market, supply 160% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 19%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Economy; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Management, Building
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cozy, Relaxing, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 86% positive over 4,633 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $120. 6 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 45 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Economy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + Football (Soccer)Fair
- + ScienceFair
- + MiningFair
- + LootFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + God GameFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + IdlerFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + ArcadeFair
- + Strategy RPGFair
Comparable games
Bookshop Simulator 2026 · $718k 
Learning Factory 2025 · $175k 
Captain Whiskers: Incremental Seas 2026 · $159k 
Cozy Keep: Farm, Craft, Manage 2024 · EA · $142k 
Gacha Capsule Shop Simulator - Akihabara 2026 · EA · $141k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Bookshop Simulator | $15.99 | 1,496 92% | 45k | $718k (exactly $717,631) | Blep Games | |
| | Learning Factory | $14.99 | 390 84% | 12k | $175k (exactly $175,383) | Luden.io | |
| | Captain Whiskers: Incremental Seas | $5.99 | 886 85% | 27k | $159k (exactly $159,214) | Happy Universe Studios | |
| | Cozy Keep: Farm, Craft, Manage | · EA | $14.99 | 315 93% | 9.5k | $142k (exactly $141,656) | Unbossed Games |
| | Gacha Capsule Shop Simulator - Akihabara | · EA | $12.40 | 379 82% | 11k | $141k (exactly $140,988) | UGC90 |
 | Teller's Duty | $11.99 | 388 72% | 12k | $140k (exactly $139,564) | Hiscory | |
 | Chonkers | $4.99 | 518 87% | 16k | $78k (exactly $77,545) | Solar Eclipse Games | |
 | MilkTea Time | $11.99 | 114 82% | 3.4k | $41k (exactly $41,006) | 星九猫游戏-StarNineCat Games | |
 | Internet Cafe Owner | older | $5.99 | 148 72% | 4.4k | $27k (exactly $26,596) | GidAzGames |
 | Desktop Cat Cafe | $9.99 | 83 75% | 2.5k | $25k (exactly $24,875) | samyam, lockyaw | |
 | PurrPlate | $9.99 | 64 68% | 1.9k | $19k (exactly $19,181) | LeankomGames |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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