Do I ship it?

GamesCo-opCo-op + Shop Keeper

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Co-op Shop Keeper?

Co-op + Shop Keeper

Of 40 developers who shipped a Co-op Shop Keeper 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.. 96 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $13k, ×8.4 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $4.2k; 1 in 20 cleared $570k, ×382 the market median. Revenue is down 85% on the market; 96 games are announced against 32 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 8.4 times the market baseline, revenue down 85% on the market, 96 announced, ×3.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Shop Keeper
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 40
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $89k → $6.7k → $13k (still earning) → $4.8k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Co-op + Shop Keeper: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 40
Bottom 30% $4.2k (exactly $4,190)
Median $13k (exactly $12,594)
Top 25% $95k (exactly $95,336)
Top 5% $572k (exactly $571,802)
Developers, 2 yr 40
Released games 47
Announced 96
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $9.99

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 85% on the market, supply 255% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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
Shop Keeper
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, Shop Keeper; all of the top 25% also carry Management, Online Co-Op, Simulation
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, 3D, Funny
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 12,237 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $4.2k, median $13k, 1 in 4 over $95k, 1 in 20 over $570k.

3 in 10 developers made under $4.2k. 5 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 96 games are announced against 32 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Co-op with a different second tag, 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
Grocery Store Simulator $14.99 5,337 90% 160k $2.4M (exactly $2,400,049) EXPERIMENT ONE
Boba Cafe Simulator $15.99 1,192 92% 36k $572k (exactly $571,802) Caikemi
Better Mart Simulator $14.99 1,238 89% 37k $557k (exactly $556,729) Exanticx Studio
Fuel Harvest Together $13.99 879 69% 26k $369k (exactly $368,916) Say2Sun
The House Always Wins $12.99 866 85% 26k $337k (exactly $337,480) Toxic Studio
Tobacco Shop Simulator $11.99 826 89% 25k $297k (exactly $297,112) Business Tycoon
Anime Shop Simulator ✨ $14.99 589 73% 18k $265k (exactly $264,873) One More Time
Retail Company Simulator older $11.99 603 90% 18k $217k (exactly $216,899) Business Tycoon
Rest Area Simulator $9.99 621 85% 19k $186k (exactly $186,114) Oriseus Studios
Happy's Humble Burger Cult $9.99 477 86% 14k $143k (exactly $142,957) Scythe Dev Team
Deep Blue Sushi · EA $14.99 212 75% 6.4k $95k (exactly $95,336) PaperPixel Games

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