Do I ship it?

GamesFPSFPS + Choices Matter

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Choices Matter FPS?

FPS + Choices Matter

Of 119 developers who shipped a Choices Matter FPS 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.. 224 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×0.9 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $270; 1 in 20 cleared $930k, ×627 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 224 games are announced against 65 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.9 times the market baseline, revenue flat on the market, 224 announced, ×3.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
FPS + Choices Matter
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 119
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $9.0k → $898 → $2.6k → $898 → $5.9k → $449 → $1.4k (still earning) → $598 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for FPS + Choices Matter: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 119
Bottom 30% $269 (exactly $269)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,349)
Top 25% $10k (exactly $10,132)
Top 5% $940k (exactly $939,730)
Developers, 2 yr 119
Released games 322
Announced 224
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $5.99

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 20% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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.

FPS
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Choices Matter
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
FPS, Choices Matter; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, Shooter
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, Story Rich, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 81% positive over 162,835 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $270, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $10k, 1 in 20 over $930k.

3 in 10 developers made under $270. 7 in 10 of the 67 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 224 games are announced against 65 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

FPS with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + LGBTQ+Fair28 devs · median $32k · 22 announced
  2. + Dating SimFair47 devs · median $19k · 36 announced
  3. + IdlerFair22 devs · median $4.2k · 23 announced
  4. + GamblingFair24 devs · median $4.1k · 22 announced
  5. + FaithFair14 devs · median $1.9k · 12 announced
  6. + Precision PlatformerFair37 devs · median $1.6k · 38 announced
  7. + Martial ArtsFair13 devs · median $1.4k · 12 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair172 devs · median $1.2k · 190 announced
  9. + RunnerLong shot39 devs · median $958 · 43 announced
  10. + Action RTSLong shot16 devs · median $899 · 21 announced
  11. + Bullet HellLong shot130 devs · median $629 · 145 announced
  12. + DogsLong shot6 devs · median $594 · 7 announced

All 216 pairs on the FPS page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl $59.99 106,592 81% 3.2M $192M (exactly $191,833,622) GSC Game World
Insurgency: Sandstorm older $29.99 104,168 85% 3.1M $94M (exactly $93,719,950) New World Interactive
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon $44.99 33,560 87% 1.0M $45M (exactly $45,295,932) Questline
Terminator: Resistance older $39.99 16,665 91% 500k $20M (exactly $19,993,000) Teyon
Choo-Choo Charles older $19.99 16,292 91% 489k $9.8M (exactly $9,770,312) Two Star Games
Dishonored®: Death of the Outsider™ older $29.99 9,801 86% 294k $8.8M (exactly $8,817,960) Arkane Studios
Atomfall $49.99 4,526 76% 136k $6.8M (exactly $6,787,642) Rebellion
Call of Cthulhu® older $19.99 10,962 79% 329k $6.6M (exactly $6,573,911) Cyanide Studio
Riddle Joker older $34.99 5,715 97% 171k $6.0M (exactly $5,999,036) YUZUSOFT
Café Stella and the Reaper's Butterflies older $34.99 5,450 97% 164k $5.7M (exactly $5,720,865) YUZUSOFT
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chornobyl - Enhanced Edition $19.99 6,619 65% 199k $4.0M (exactly $3,969,414) GSC Game World
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Prypiat - Enhanced Edition $19.99 3,273 65% 98k $2.0M (exactly $1,962,818) GSC Game World
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky - Enhanced Edition $19.99 2,698 59% 81k $1.6M (exactly $1,617,991) GSC Game World
Hello Love: 18 Again $19.99 2,075 92% 62k $1.2M (exactly $1,244,378) 念念而忘(Echofall Studio)
The Thing: Remastered $29.99 1,203 89% 36k $1.1M (exactly $1,082,339) Nightdive Studios, Computer Artworks
Football Life Simulator · EA $19.99 1,567 68% 47k $940k (exactly $939,730) Ludu Arts
DRACU-RIOT! $34.99 722 98% 22k $758k (exactly $757,883) YUZUSOFT

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