Do I ship it?

Games › Open World › Open World + Cats

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Cat Open World game?

Open World + Cats

Of 34 developers who shipped a Cat Open World 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.. 75 more are announced, ×4.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×1.6 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $450; 1 in 20 cleared $900k, ×603 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 75 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.6 times the market baseline, revenue flat on the market, 75 announced, ×4.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Open World + Cats
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 34
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.9k → $299 → $17k → $7.2k → $4.5k → $449 → $1.9k (still earning) → $12k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Open World + Cats: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 34
Bottom 30% $449 (exactly $449)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,395)
Top 25% $12k (exactly $11,994)
Top 5% $903k (exactly $902,639)
Developers, 2 yr 34
Released games 113
Announced 75
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 flat on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 16%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Open World
effort 8 / 10 · low · effort 8 sits in the low band
Cats
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
8 / 10 · online systems, open world
Systems
Open World; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Exploration
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cute, Family Friendly, Colorful
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 84% positive over 7,397 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $450, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $11k, 1 in 20 over $900k.

3 in 10 developers made under $450. 8 in 10 of the 21 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 75 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Open World with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + WuxiaFair12 devs · median $634k · 17 announced
  2. + 4 Player LocalFair14 devs · median $82k · 20 announced
  3. + VampiresFair15 devs · median $23k · 21 announced
  4. + TrainsFair27 devs · median $21k · 25 announced
  5. + FMVFair11 devs · median $14k · 13 announced
  6. + GothicFair25 devs · median $5.4k · 32 announced
  7. + MarsFair12 devs · median $2.2k · 15 announced
  8. + TanksFair9 devs · median $1.3k · 11 announced
  9. + FaithLong shot11 devs · median $716 · 14 announced
  10. + DiplomacyPoor odds13 devs · median $1.8M · 38 announced
  11. + Real-Time with PausePoor odds8 devs · median $767k · 11 announced
  12. + Co-op CampaignPoor odds17 devs · median $267k · 65 announced

All 240 pairs on the Open World page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Stray 2022 · $142M Little Kitty, Big City 2024 · $7.8M Cat Quest 2017 · $3.3M Cat Quest II 2019 · $2.6M Atomicrops 2020 · $2.3M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Stray older $29.99 157,579 97% 4.7M $142M (exactly $141,773,826) BlueTwelve Studio
Little Kitty, Big City older $24.99 10,423 96% 313k $7.8M (exactly $7,814,123) Double Dagger Studio
Cat Quest older $12.99 8,371 94% 251k $3.3M (exactly $3,262,179) The Gentlebros
Cat Quest II older $14.99 5,850 95% 176k $2.6M (exactly $2,630,745) The Gentlebros
Atomicrops older $14.99 5,134 93% 154k $2.3M (exactly $2,308,760) Bird Bath Games
Copycat $14.99 4,611 89% 138k $2.1M (exactly $2,073,567) Spoonful Of Wonder
Cat Quest III older $19.99 3,108 94% 93k $1.9M (exactly $1,863,868) The Gentlebros
No More Heroes older $19.99 2,264 84% 68k $1.4M (exactly $1,357,721) GRASSHOPPER MANUFACTURE INC.
Critter Cove · EA older $24.99 1,735 94% 52k $1.3M (exactly $1,300,730) Gentleman Rat Studios
Calico older $11.99 3,238 88% 97k $1.2M (exactly $1,164,709) Peachy Keen Games
Animal Shelter 2 $24.99 1,204 79% 36k $903k (exactly $902,639) Games Incubator
1666: Amsterdam · EA $29.99 784 63% 24k $705k (exactly $705,365) Panache Digital Games
Super Chipflake Ü: Quest for the Uncooked Schnitzel $19.99 395 96% 12k $237k (exactly $236,881) SalsaShark Studios
Petit Island $14.99 100 79% 3.0k $45k (exactly $44,970) Xelo Games
Rekindled Trails $11.99 120 91% 3.6k $43k (exactly $43,164) Kiwick
Purrrifiers: Cleaning Chaos $12.99 93 47% 2.8k $36k (exactly $36,242) Rubens Games, FreeMind S.A.
Peace Island · EA $15.99 41 53% 1.2k $20k (exactly $19,668) Peace Island LLC
Animal Trainer Simulator $14.99 29 37% 870 $13k (exactly $13,041) Games Incubator
Pawbay: Cat Chaos $19.99 20 70% 600 $12k (exactly $11,994) COMMANDO PANDA

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