Do I ship it?

GamesTop-Down ShooterTop-Down Shooter + Cats

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Cat Top-Down Shooter?

Top-Down Shooter + Cats

Of 22 developers who shipped a Cat Top-Down Shooter 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.. 26 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $960, ×2.0 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $21k, ×45 the market median. Revenue is down 50% on the market; 26 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.0 times the market baseline, revenue down 50% on the market, 26 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Top-Down Shooter + Cats
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 22
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $7.7k → $1.7k → $148 (still earning) → $2.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Top-Down Shooter + Cats: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 22
Bottom 30% $148 (exactly $148)
Median $959 (exactly $959)
Top 25% $5.9k (exactly $5,872)
Top 5% $22k (exactly $21,557)
Developers, 2 yr 22
Released games 44
Announced 26
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $3.99

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 50% on the market, supply 25% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 18%, 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.

Top-Down Shooter
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high 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
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Top-Down Shooter; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelite, Action Roguelike
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $10.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cute, 2D, Funny
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $10.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 573 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $960, 1 in 4 over $5.8k, 1 in 20 over $21k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 26 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Top-Down Shooter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + VampiresFair16 devs · median $3.7k · 10 announced
  2. + Turn-Based StrategyFair13 devs · median $1.6k · 13 announced
  3. + World War IIFair11 devs · median $1.4k · 15 announced
  4. + IdlerFair24 devs · median $748 · 30 announced
  5. + ArcheryFair9 devs · median $359 · 11 announced
  6. + LovecraftianPoor odds12 devs · median $6.5k · 28 announced
  7. + Tactical RPGPoor odds12 devs · median $5.5k · 16 announced
  8. + Action RTSPoor odds14 devs · median $4.0k · 32 announced
  9. + HistoricalPoor odds18 devs · median $3.3k · 24 announced
  10. + ModernPoor odds13 devs · median $3.3k · 19 announced
  11. + CraftingPoor odds45 devs · median $3.1k · 125 announced
  12. + DystopianPoor odds24 devs · median $3.1k · 92 announced

All 150 pairs on the Top-Down Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Flame Over older $11.99 146 69% 4.4k $53k (exactly $52,516) Laughing Jackal LTD
Wildcat Gun Machine older $14.99 81 66% 2.4k $36k (exactly $36,426) Chunkybox Games
Pet the Cat $4.99 155 83% 4.7k $23k (exactly $23,204) MEWSTURBO
Kitty's Last Adventure $4.99 144 97% 4.3k $22k (exactly $21,557) Woum
Kill A Million Rats $10.99 64 89% 1.9k $21k (exactly $21,101) Nerdook Productions
Cat Girl Survivor $14.99 45 55% 1.4k $20k (exactly $20,236) Minimum Studio Corp.
Kitty Survivors: Rogues of Catmere older $2.99 106 83% 3.2k $9.5k (exactly $9,508) Little Horror Studios
9 Lives to Defend $3.99 64 84% 1.9k $7.7k (exactly $7,661) Goldarait
Paws Against the World $6.99 28 78% 840 $5.9k (exactly $5,872) GoldenGod Games
Catlike Magic older $4.99 37 97% 1.1k $5.5k (exactly $5,539) Blue9Fairy
Meowmunitions $12.99 10 50% 300 $3.9k (exactly $3,897) Pete Karesisto
Legend of Shawy Cat: Mafia Prepack $4.99 16 100% 480 $2.4k (exactly $2,395) 86岁按时吃饭
黄色猫片:爆射 $1.99 29 96% 870 $1.7k (exactly $1,731) 86岁按时吃饭
catgirl bloodhunt $2.99 18 100% 540 $1.6k (exactly $1,615) quiet4miu

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