Games › Crafting › Crafting + Puzzle
Should I ship a Crafting Puzzle game?
Crafting + Puzzle
Of 196 developers who shipped a Crafting Puzzle 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.. 296 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.1k, ×1.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $370k, ×603 the market median. Revenue is up 85% on the market; 296 games are announced against 107 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $300 (exactly $300) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.1k (exactly $1,079) |
| Top 25% | $12k (exactly $12,233) |
| Top 5% | $379k (exactly $378,591) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 196 |
| Released games | 581 |
| Announced | 296 |
| Effort | 5 / 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 85% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 12%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Crafting, Puzzle; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Adventure, Exploration
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Cute, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 92% positive over 53,435 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 110 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 296 games are announced against 107 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Crafting with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Job SimulatorStrong odds
- + SportsFair
- + Turn-BasedFair
- + IdlerFair
- + SolitaireFair
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + MMORPGPoor odds
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
- + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds
- + WesternPoor odds
- + Bullet HeavenPoor odds
- + TrainsPoor odds
Comparable games
The Escapists 2 2017 · $16M 
shapez 2 - Factory 2026 · $12M 
Hello Kitty Island Adventure 2025 · $12M 
The Escapists 2015 · $7.7M 
Little Witch in the Woods 2025 · $7.0M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | The Escapists 2 | older | $19.99 | 26,452 90% | 794k | $16M (exactly $15,863,264) | Team17, Mouldy Toof Studios |
| | shapez 2 - Factory | $29.99 | 13,846 96% | 415k | $12M (exactly $12,457,246) | tobspr Games | |
| | Hello Kitty Island Adventure | $39.99 | 9,637 93% | 289k | $12M (exactly $11,561,509) | Sunblink | |
| | The Escapists | older | $17.99 | 14,294 90% | 429k | $7.7M (exactly $7,714,472) | Mouldy Toof Studios |
| | Little Witch in the Woods | $19.99 | 11,691 89% | 351k | $7.0M (exactly $7,011,093) | SUNNY SIDE UP | |
 | Poly Bridge | older | $9.99 | 17,107 91% | 513k | $5.1M (exactly $5,126,968) | Dry Cactus |
 | shapez | older | $9.99 | 14,252 96% | 428k | $4.3M (exactly $4,271,324) | Tobias Springer |
 | Poly Bridge 2 | older | $14.99 | 7,875 95% | 236k | $3.5M (exactly $3,541,388) | Dry Cactus |
 | Survival: Fountain of Youth | older | $27.99 | 4,095 85% | 123k | $3.4M (exactly $3,438,572) | Odinsoft Inc. |
 | Turing Complete | · EA older | $19.99 | 5,520 95% | 166k | $3.3M (exactly $3,310,344) | LevelHead |
 | Cat Mail Co. | $14.99 | 6,289 92% | 189k | $2.8M (exactly $2,828,163) | Maracas Studio | |
 | Cheap Car Repair | $19.69 | 3,603 91% | 108k | $2.1M (exactly $2,128,292) | Little Dog Games | |
 | Trash Goblin | $19.99 | 1,574 87% | 47k | $944k (exactly $943,928) | Spilt Milk Studios Ltd | |
 | Orb of Creation | $11.99 | 2,167 84% | 65k | $779k (exactly $779,470) | MarpleGames | |
 | ShapeHero Factory | $23.99 | 991 88% | 30k | $713k (exactly $713,223) | Asobism.Co.,Ltd | |
 | Uncle Chop's Rocket Shop | $19.99 | 1,108 84% | 33k | $664k (exactly $664,468) | Beard Envy | |
 | Click Mage | $4.99 | 2,529 91% | 76k | $379k (exactly $378,591) | Tiny Crow Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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