Do I ship it?

GamesCo-opCo-op + Science

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Science Co-op game?

Co-op + Science

Only 10 developers shipped a Science 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, Forever Skies, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 27 more are announced, ×4.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $53k, ×35 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $6.6k; 1 in 20 cleared $7.3M, ×4888 the market median. Revenue is down 100% on the market; 27 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 35.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 100% on the market, 27 announced, ×4.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Science
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 10
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.6M → $1.3M → $6.6k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Co-op + Science: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 10
Bottom 30% $6.6k (exactly $6,597)
Median $53k (exactly $52,767)
Top 25% $1.3M (exactly $1,260,480)
Top 5% $7.3M (exactly $7,321,759)
Developers, 2 yr 10
Released games 38
Announced 27
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $15.99

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 100% on the market, supply 50% more 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.

Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync
Science
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
$15.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 8 games average 83% positive over 14,134 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $6.6k, median $53k, 1 in 4 over $1.2M, 1 in 20 over $7.3M.

3 in 10 developers made under $6.6k. 4 in 10 of the 5 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 27 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.5 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Portal 2 older $9.99 390,412 98% 12M $117M (exactly $117,006,476) Valve
The Outlast Trials older $39.99 90,997 92% 2.7M $109M (exactly $109,169,101) Red Barrels
ICARUS older $34.99 55,849 75% 1.7M $59M (exactly $58,624,695) RocketWerkz
Stationeers · EA older $34.99 8,597 88% 258k $9.0M (exactly $9,024,271) RocketWerkz
Forever Skies $29.99 8,138 78% 244k $7.3M (exactly $7,321,759) Far From Home
Expeditions: A MudRunner Game older $39.99 3,000 59% 90k $3.6M (exactly $3,599,100) Saber Interactive
Mars First Logistics $19.99 3,497 94% 105k $2.1M (exactly $2,097,151) Shape Shop
WolfQuest: Classic $29.99 1,401 90% 42k $1.3M (exactly $1,260,480) eduweb
Main Assembly older $19.99 1,004 83% 30k $602k (exactly $602,099) Bad Yolk Games
Take On Mars older $9.99 1,751 55% 53k $525k (exactly $524,775) Bohemia Interactive
Data Center $8.99 916 76% 27k $247k (exactly $247,045) Waseku
I Fetch Rocks $15.99 110 94% 3.3k $53k (exactly $52,767) SarumXR
Last Breath · EA $7.99 60 81% 1.8k $14k (exactly $14,382) Mx
Solvimus $19.99 11 90% 330 $6.6k (exactly $6,597) Iocus GmbH
Powdertron · EA $9.99 1 0% 30 $300 (exactly $300) SalE
Cell Scientist: Beyond $5.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) R-Next
Maze Simulator $3.35 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) hjdhdh

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