Do I ship it?

GamesCollectathonCollectathon + Hidden Object

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Collectathon Hidden Object?

Collectathon + Hidden Object

Of 225 developers who shipped a Collectathon Hidden Object 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.. 309 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $920, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $270; 1 in 20 cleared $100k, ×224 the market median. Revenue is up 170% on the market; 309 games are announced against 144 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 170% on the market, 309 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Collectathon + Hidden Object
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 225
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.2k → $1.5k → $2.2k → $1.4k → $921 → $955 → $598 (still earning) → $1.5k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Collectathon + Hidden Object: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 225
Bottom 30% $269 (exactly $269)
Median $921 (exactly $921)
Top 25% $5.4k (exactly $5,373)
Top 5% $106k (exactly $106,318)
Developers, 2 yr 225
Released games 776
Announced 309
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $1.99

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 170% on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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
Hidden Object
effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Collectathon, Hidden Object; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Exploration, Adventure
Price point
$1.99 typical · top 25% priced $10.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Cute, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $10.99 or above; the middle game at $1.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 32,118 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $270, median $920, 1 in 4 over $5.3k, 1 in 20 over $100k.

3 in 10 developers made under $270. 8 in 10 of the 186 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 309 games are announced against 144 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Librarian: Tidy Up the Arcane Library! $5.99 24,497 94% 735k $4.4M (exactly $4,402,111) ArtRising
Cozy Grove older $14.99 7,512 89% 225k $3.4M (exactly $3,378,146) Spry Fox
Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective older $11.99 1,902 95% 57k $684k (exactly $684,149) Darjeeling
Hidden Through Time older $7.99 2,807 93% 84k $673k (exactly $672,838) Rogueside
Influent Language Learning Game older $19.99 973 73% 29k $584k (exactly $583,508) Rob Howland
Boo Men · EA older $7.99 2,088 88% 63k $500k (exactly $500,494) Twisted Corridor👻
A Castle Full of Cats older $3.99 4,073 99% 122k $488k (exactly $487,538) Devcats
Find Matt's Cats $19.99 719 98% 22k $431k (exactly $431,184) Matt Roszak
A Tower Full of Cats older $5.99 2,304 99% 69k $414k (exactly $414,029) Devcats
holoVillage: Our Cozy Days $24.99 518 83% 16k $388k (exactly $388,345) Roboqlo
My Wife Threw Out My Card Collection (So I Bought a Dump to Find Them All) ⭐ $7.95 1,601 65% 48k $382k (exactly $381,838) Polnoch
Sort Them Ducks $5.99 1,461 92% 44k $263k (exactly $262,542) Mr.Duck
A Building Full of Cats 2 $6.99 1,145 97% 34k $240k (exactly $240,106) Devcats
A Planet Full of Cats $7.99 581 89% 17k $139k (exactly $139,266) Devcats
Cellar Keeper $4.99 892 89% 27k $134k (exactly $133,532) EgoTrampoline
夏目友人帳 ~葉月の記~ $49.99 77 80% 2.3k $115k (exactly $115,477) Toydium
Shelves and Sorcery: Tidy Up the Enchanted Shop $5.99 627 93% 19k $113k (exactly $112,672) Teddy Bear Games LLC

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