Do I ship it?

GamesCraftingCrafting + Visual Novel

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Crafting Visual Novel?

Crafting + Visual Novel

Of 40 developers who shipped a Crafting Visual Novel 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.. 64 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $3.6k, ×5.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $870; 1 in 20 cleared $660k, ×1058 the market median. Revenue is up 140% on the market; 64 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 5.7 times the market baseline, revenue up 140% on the market, 64 announced, ×3.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Crafting + Visual Novel
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: $21k → $21k → $277k → $90k → $3.6k → $17k → $839 (still earning) → $6.3k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Crafting + Visual Novel: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 40
Bottom 30% $861 (exactly $861)
Median $3.6k (exactly $3,596)
Top 25% $43k (exactly $42,861)
Top 5% $665k (exactly $664,649)
Developers, 2 yr 40
Released games 107
Announced 64
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 up 140% on the market, supply 20% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 20%, 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.

Crafting
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Visual Novel
effort 2 / 10 · high · script, choices and static art

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Crafting, Visual Novel; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Cooking, RPG, Simulation
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $18.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Anime, Cute, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $18.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 5,245 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $870, median $3.6k, 1 in 4 over $42k, 1 in 20 over $660k.

3 in 10 developers made under $870. 7 in 10 of the 26 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 64 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds62 devs · median $15k · 65 announced
  2. + SportsFair24 devs · median $37k · 26 announced
  3. + Turn-BasedFair16 devs · median $17k · 24 announced
  4. + IdlerFair235 devs · median $1.7k · 338 announced
  5. + SolitaireFair12 devs · median $809 · 20 announced
  6. + LovecraftianPoor odds17 devs · median $174k · 39 announced
  7. + MMORPGPoor odds25 devs · median $111k · 155 announced
  8. + LGBTQ+Poor odds19 devs · median $90k · 50 announced
  9. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds160 devs · median $77k · 369 announced
  10. + WesternPoor odds13 devs · median $69k · 23 announced
  11. + Bullet HeavenPoor odds20 devs · median $44k · 25 announced
  12. + TrainsPoor odds17 devs · median $39k · 30 announced

All 200 pairs on the Crafting page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Coffee Talk older $12.99 11,271 94% 338k $4.4M (exactly $4,392,309) Toge Productions
Wild West Legacy older $26.99 1,706 39% 51k $1.4M (exactly $1,381,348) Moon Punch Studio
We. The Revolution older $19.99 1,997 73% 60k $1.2M (exactly $1,197,601) Polyslash
Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly older $14.99 2,492 96% 75k $1.1M (exactly $1,120,652) Toge Productions
Venba older $14.99 2,393 93% 72k $1.1M (exactly $1,076,132) Visai Games
In Falsus $39.99 788 89% 24k $945k (exactly $945,364) lowiro
Summer in Mara older $19.99 1,464 75% 44k $878k (exactly $877,961) Chibig
Sensei! I Like You So Much! $16.99 1,304 86% 39k $665k (exactly $664,649) LaoO Studio (Shanghai Ou Ou Xi Network… (LaoO Studio (Shanghai Ou Ou Xi Network Technology Co. LTD))
Witchy Life Story older $19.99 965 80% 29k $579k (exactly $578,710) Sundew Studios
Fallen Priestess: My Sister's Demonic Bloodline $18.99 622 72% 19k $354k (exactly $354,353) BBQ大好き
GIRLS MADE PUDDING $9.99 866 95% 26k $260k (exactly $259,540) Kazuhide Oka
CraftCraft: Fantasy Merchant Simulator $15.99 531 81% 16k $255k (exactly $254,721) Placeholder Gameworks, Pineapple Works
Kitchen Sync: Aloha! $19.99 159 99% 4.8k $95k (exactly $95,352) Lemonpepper Games
Anime City · EA $14.99 201 72% 6.0k $90k (exactly $90,390) Shoujo City Developer
Chinese Street Food Legend $3.99 525 98% 16k $63k (exactly $62,842) HoHo Game Studio
Bonjour, Cream Inside 💦 $14.99 119 68% 3.6k $54k (exactly $53,514) Juicy Peach Games 🍑
Body Sushi $10.99 130 90% 3.9k $43k (exactly $42,861) AOTINA Technology Innovations Ltd.

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