Do I ship it?

Games › Collectathon › Collectathon + Cooking

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Collectathon Cooking game?

Collectathon + Cooking

Of 37 developers who shipped a Collectathon Cooking 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.. 48 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×5.1 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $480; 1 in 20 cleared $450k, ×955 the market median. Revenue is up 145% on the market; 48 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 5.1 times the market baseline, revenue up 145% on the market, 48 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Collectathon + Cooking
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 37
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $7.2k → $2.4k → $2.0k → $4.4k → $898 (still earning) → $449 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Collectathon + Cooking: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 37
Bottom 30% $479 (exactly $479)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,422)
Top 25% $21k (exactly $20,992)
Top 5% $454k (exactly $453,742)
Developers, 2 yr 37
Released games 65
Announced 48
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $6.99

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 145% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 15%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Collectathon
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Cooking
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Collectathon, Cooking; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Exploration, Management
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $18.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cute, 2D, Relaxing
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $18.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 5,602 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $480, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $20k, 1 in 20 over $450k.

3 in 10 developers made under $480. 7 in 10 of the 20 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 48 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds33 devs · median $33k · 42 announced
  2. + CapitalismStrong odds76 devs · median $6.2k · 75 announced
  3. + Turn-BasedFair7 devs · median $14k · 8 announced
  4. + EconomyFair125 devs · median $3.8k · 151 announced
  5. + ManagementFair182 devs · median $3.5k · 230 announced
  6. + CrimeFair10 devs · median $3.4k · 14 announced
  7. + Level EditorFair15 devs · median $3.4k · 17 announced
  8. + Artificial IntelligenceFair46 devs · median $2.7k · 30 announced
  9. + SokobanFair12 devs · median $2.4k · 9 announced
  10. + MythologyFair18 devs · median $2.4k · 20 announced
  11. + UnderwaterFair37 devs · median $2.3k · 37 announced
  12. + Combat RacingFair10 devs · median $2.2k · 12 announced

All 178 pairs on the Collectathon page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town 2024 · $753k Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi 2025 · $454k Maid Cafe on Electric Street 2024 · $339k Cinnabunny 2025 · $302k Love Tavern 2023 · $280k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town $29.99 837 95% 25k $753k (exactly $753,049) h.a.n.d., Inc.
Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi $5.99 2,525 96% 76k $454k (exactly $453,742) Kygua Tech
Maid Cafe on Electric Street $18.99 595 82% 18k $339k (exactly $338,972) Adventurer's Tavern
Cinnabunny $24.99 403 96% 12k $302k (exactly $302,129) Reky Studios
Love Tavern older $11.99 778 73% 23k $280k (exactly $279,847) Secret Labo
World End Diner $16.99 415 93% 12k $212k (exactly $211,525) Andymente
Grindstone older $19.99 244 93% 7.3k $146k (exactly $146,327) Capybara Games
Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge older $19.99 230 86% 6.9k $138k (exactly $137,931) Humble Reeds
Box Bakery $12.99 321 86% 9.6k $125k (exactly $125,094) mangobox games
Abyss Kitchen $11.99 202 89% 6.1k $73k (exactly $72,659) Pico Games
UMAMI $13.99 153 98% 4.6k $64k (exactly $64,214) Mimmox
Baking Bad · EA $10.99 123 32% 3.7k $41k (exactly $40,553) FunkyArmor
Skystead Ranch $24.99 28 71% 840 $21k (exactly $20,992) ToastieLabs

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