Do I ship it?

GamesCo-opCo-op + Thriller

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Thriller Co-op game?

Co-op + Thriller

Of 63 developers who shipped a Thriller Co-op 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.. 140 more are announced, ×3.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $4.9k, ×3.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $900; 1 in 20 cleared $160k, ×112 the market median. Revenue is down 20% on the market; 140 games are announced against 37 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.3 times the market baseline, revenue down 20% on the market, 140 announced, ×3.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Co-op + Thriller
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 63
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.5k → $8.1k → $1.8k → $11k → $5.7k → $27k → $2.9k (still earning) → $4.0k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Co-op + Thriller: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 63
Bottom 30% $898 (exactly $898)
Median $4.9k (exactly $4,940)
Top 25% $42k (exactly $41,804)
Top 5% $168k (exactly $167,738)
Developers, 2 yr 63
Released games 154
Announced 140
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 20% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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
Thriller
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; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Online Co-Op, Action-Adventure
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.49 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, 3D, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $13.49 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 75% positive over 12,014 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $900, median $4.9k, 1 in 4 over $41k, 1 in 20 over $160k.

3 in 10 developers made under $900. 7 in 10 of the 31 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 140 games are announced against 37 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.8 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
Phasmophobia · EA older $19.99 684,009 94% 21M $410M (exactly $410,200,197) Kinetic Games
Little Nightmares II older $29.99 50,280 92% 1.5M $45M (exactly $45,236,916) Tarsier Studios
The Quarry older $59.99 16,127 83% 484k $29M (exactly $29,023,762) Supermassive Games
Beyond: Two Souls older $19.99 37,154 87% 1.1M $22M (exactly $22,281,254) Quantic Dream
Demonologist older $19.99 18,886 85% 567k $11M (exactly $11,325,934) Clock Wizard Games
Choo-Choo Charles older $19.99 16,292 91% 489k $9.8M (exactly $9,770,312) Two Star Games
Secret Neighbor: Hello Neighbor Multiplayer older $19.99 14,865 86% 446k $8.9M (exactly $8,914,540) Hologryph, Eerie Guest Studios
港詭實錄ParanormalHK older $12.99 18,874 89% 566k $7.4M (exactly $7,355,198) Ghostpie Studio
Dead Space™ 3 older $19.99 12,238 72% 367k $7.3M (exactly $7,339,129) Visceral Games
Pacify older $4.99 32,921 86% 988k $4.9M (exactly $4,928,274) Shawn Hitchcock
Fears to Fathom® - Scratch Creek $7.99 7,141 75% 214k $1.7M (exactly $1,711,698) Rayll
Clawed $19.99 729 52% 22k $437k (exactly $437,181) Flatrock Games
Project Unknown $9.99 776 81% 23k $233k (exactly $232,567) PsychoRavens
Unpossess: Exorcism Simulator $14.99 373 70% 11k $168k (exactly $167,738) Chreseeba Games
School 666 $9.99 555 82% 17k $166k (exactly $166,334) Lokin
Backroom Company $8.99 608 81% 18k $164k (exactly $163,978) Hypercent Inc.
La Quimera · EA $29.99 167 51% 5.0k $150k (exactly $150,250) Reburn
Lost Lullabies: The Orphanage Chronicles $10.99 445 70% 13k $147k (exactly $146,716) Pugsy Studios
the cabin game · EA $11.99 362 86% 11k $130k (exactly $130,211) Twisted Corridor👻
SIDE EFFECTS $4.99 858 83% 26k $128k (exactly $128,443) hirohun, Mr.Pootsley, Jaybooty, Lofar42

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