Games › Choices Matter › Choices Matter + Dystopian
Should I ship a Dystopian Choices Matter game?
Choices Matter + Dystopian
Of 155 developers who shipped a Dystopian Choices Matter 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.. 462 more are announced, ×4.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.9k, ×4.0 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $450; 1 in 20 cleared $800k, ×1687 the market median. Revenue is down 15% on the market; 462 games are announced against 105 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $450 (exactly $450) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.9k (exactly $1,918) |
| Top 25% | $21k (exactly $21,094) |
| Top 5% | $801k (exactly $801,199) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 155 |
| Released games | 377 |
| Announced | 462 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $6.99 |
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 15% on the market, supply 105% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Choices Matter
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
- Dystopian
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Choices Matter; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Multiple Endings, Adventure, Simulation
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, Atmospheric, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 78% positive over 56,209 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $450. 7 in 10 of the 65 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 462 games are announced against 105 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Choices Matter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Escape RoomFair
- + SportsFair
- + RhythmFair
- + Hidden ObjectFair
- + TriviaFair
- + Board GameFair
- + RacingFair
- + ChessFair
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + RomePoor odds
- + World War IPoor odds
Comparable games
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series 2020 · $55M 
Papers, Please 2013 · $22M 
The Forever Winter 2024 · EA · $19M 
The Outer Worlds 2 2025 · $18M 
VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action 2016 · $15M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series | older | $49.99 | 36,594 96% | 1.1M | $55M (exactly $54,880,022) | Skybound Games |
| | Papers, Please | older | $9.99 | 73,406 97% | 2.2M | $22M (exactly $21,999,778) | Lucas Pope |
| | The Forever Winter | · EA | $29.99 | 21,376 68% | 641k | $19M (exactly $19,231,987) | Fun Dog Studios |
| | The Outer Worlds 2 | $69.99 | 8,450 73% | 254k | $18M (exactly $17,742,465) | Obsidian Entertainment | |
| | VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action | older | $14.99 | 33,838 97% | 1.0M | $15M (exactly $15,216,949) | Sukeban Games |
 | Road 96 🛣️ | older | $19.96 | 22,118 91% | 664k | $13M (exactly $13,244,258) | Digixart |
 | Pathologic 2 | older | $34.99 | 9,554 92% | 287k | $10M (exactly $10,028,834) | Ice-Pick Lodge |
 | Beholder | older | $13.99 | 23,199 91% | 696k | $9.7M (exactly $9,736,620) | Alawar Stargaze (Warm Lamp Games) |
 | Not For Broadcast | older | $24.99 | 10,337 94% | 310k | $7.7M (exactly $7,749,649) | NotGames |
 | Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne HD Remaster | older | $49.99 | 3,989 87% | 120k | $6.0M (exactly $5,982,303) | ATLUS |
 | Quasimorph | $24.99 | 7,196 82% | 216k | $5.4M (exactly $5,394,841) | Magnum Scriptum | |
 | Pathologic 3 | $34.99 | 2,528 80% | 76k | $2.7M (exactly $2,653,642) | Ice-Pick Lodge | |
 | Cyber Manhunt 2: New World - The Hacking Simulator | $12.99 | 5,191 92% | 156k | $2.0M (exactly $2,022,933) | Aluba Van+ | |
 | Beholder: Conductor | $13.99 | 4,532 91% | 136k | $1.9M (exactly $1,902,080) | Alawar | |
 | Desert Stalker | · EA | $17.99 | 3,012 95% | 90k | $1.6M (exactly $1,625,576) | Zetan |
 | As We Descend | · EA | $19.99 | 1,336 86% | 40k | $801k (exactly $801,199) | Box Dragon |
 | After Inc: Revival | $17.99 | 1,480 77% | 44k | $799k (exactly $798,756) | Ndemic Creations | |
 | Uncle Chop's Rocket Shop | $19.99 | 1,108 84% | 33k | $664k (exactly $664,468) | Beard Envy |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.