Do I ship it?

Games › Co-op › Co-op + Hacking

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Hacking Co-op game?

Co-op + Hacking

Only 7 developers shipped a Hacking Co-op game in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Crime Simulator, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 17 more are announced, ×4.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 7 / 10 build.

Only 4 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $80k against a market of $1.5k. 17 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 53.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 160% on the market, 17 announced, ×4.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Hacking
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 7

not enough cohorts to draw

Outcomes for Co-op + Hacking: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 7
Bottom 30% $17k (exactly $16,553)
Median $80k (exactly $79,853)
Top 25% $560k (exactly $560,260)
Top 5% $2.8M (exactly $2,807,927)
Developers, 2 yr 7
Released games 34
Announced 17
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $11.99

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 up 160% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 24%, 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.

Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync
Hacking
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Co-op
Price point
$11.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

Fewer than 10 games in the last 2 years; sentiment and price figures use the all window.

The top 25% priced at $49.99 or above; the middle game at $14.99.

The top 10 games average 79% positive over 197,993 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $17k, median $80k, 1 in 4 over $560k, 1 in 20 over $2.8M.

3 in 10 developers made under $17k. 17 games are announced against 4 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Co-op with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SuperheroFair9 devs · median $11k · 17 announced
  2. + Boomer ShooterFair16 devs · median $6.9k · 24 announced
  3. + GamblingFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 32 announced
  4. + NinjaFair13 devs · median $4.2k · 13 announced
  5. + TypingLong shot16 devs · median $810 · 13 announced
  6. + Word GameLong shot23 devs · median $267 · 23 announced
  7. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds58 devs · median $515k · 127 announced
  8. + World War IIPoor odds12 devs · median $372k · 23 announced
  9. + AutomationPoor odds48 devs · median $369k · 110 announced
  10. + TransportationPoor odds17 devs · median $369k · 25 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds15 devs · median $164k · 19 announced
  12. + Turn-BasedPoor odds12 devs · median $131k · 19 announced

All 230 pairs on the Co-op page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Watch_Dogs® 2 2016 · $143M Watch_Dogs™ 2014 · $30M Watch Dogs®: Legion 2023 · $21M Call of Duty®: Ghosts 2014 · $16M Operation: Tango 2021 · $4.3M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Watch_Dogs® 2 older $49.99 95,242 82% 2.9M $143M (exactly $142,834,427) Ubisoft
Watch_Dogs™ older $19.99 49,193 79% 1.5M $30M (exactly $29,501,042) Ubisoft
Watch Dogs®: Legion older $59.99 11,891 56% 357k $21M (exactly $21,400,233) Ubisoft Toronto
Call of Duty®: Ghosts older $39.99 12,976 66% 389k $16M (exactly $15,567,307) Infinity Ward
Operation: Tango older $19.99 7,167 86% 215k $4.3M (exactly $4,298,050) Clever Plays
Thief Simulator 2 older $19.99 6,568 87% 197k $3.9M (exactly $3,938,830) CookieDev, Ultimate Games S.A.
Crime Simulator $14.99 6,244 82% 187k $2.8M (exactly $2,807,927) CookieDev
E.Y.E: Divine Cybermancy older $9.99 6,303 84% 189k $1.9M (exactly $1,889,009) Streum On Studio
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 older $14.99 1,546 84% 46k $695k (exactly $695,236) INTI CREATES CO., LTD.
Agent 64: Spies Never Die $21.64 863 86% 26k $560k (exactly $560,260) Replicant D6
Midnight Heist $9.99 389 92% 12k $117k (exactly $116,583) MediaTale
Unsafe Express $11.99 222 59% 6.7k $80k (exactly $79,853) OnSkull Games
Codename: Terranova $23.99 23 69% 690 $17k (exactly $16,553) ACGames
The Office Killer $9.99 13 92% 390 $3.9k (exactly $3,896) IceMoon Games
Eye X Eye $1.49 1 100% 30 $45 (exactly $45) Blarb Productions

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