Do I ship it?

GamesFMVFMV + Crime

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Crime FMV?

FMV + Crime

Only 19 developers shipped a Crime FMV in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Misty Judgment, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 33 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $44k, ×70 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $600; 1 in 20 cleared $310k, ×502 the market median. Revenue is up 18765% on the market; 33 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 70.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 18765% on the market, 33 announced, ×2.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
FMV + Crime
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 19
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $146k → $12k → $599 → $251k → $63k (still earning) → $79k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for FMV + Crime: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 19
Bottom 30% $599 (exactly $599)
Median $44k (exactly $43,961)
Top 25% $251k (exactly $250,933)
Top 5% $316k (exactly $315,549)
Developers, 2 yr 19
Released games 46
Announced 33
Effort 6 / 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 18765% on the market, supply 115% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 2%, 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.

FMV
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Crime
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
FMV; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Immersive Sim, RPG, Adventure
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cinematic, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 84% positive over 5,291 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $600, median $44k, 1 in 4 over $250k, 1 in 20 over $310k.

3 in 10 developers made under $600. 6 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 33 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

FMV with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SurvivalStrong odds14 devs · median $74k · 10 announced
  2. + Post-apocalypticStrong odds8 devs · median $74k · 5 announced
  3. + StrategyStrong odds50 devs · median $65k · 27 announced
  4. + Multiple EndingsStrong odds128 devs · median $65k · 93 announced
  5. + Immersive SimStrong odds112 devs · median $63k · 58 announced
  6. + Choices MatterStrong odds108 devs · median $58k · 91 announced
  7. + Dating SimStrong odds148 devs · median $57k · 111 announced
  8. + RomanceStrong odds101 devs · median $56k · 63 announced
  9. + SimulationStrong odds150 devs · median $55k · 81 announced
  10. + JRPGStrong odds12 devs · median $54k · 6 announced
  11. + Visual NovelStrong odds166 devs · median $54k · 146 announced
  12. + RPGStrong odds169 devs · median $54k · 144 announced

All 63 pairs on the FMV page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
The Operator older $13.99 8,515 91% 255k $3.6M (exactly $3,573,746) Bureau 81
Late Shift older $14.99 7,762 86% 233k $3.5M (exactly $3,490,571) CtrlMovie
Her Story older $9.99 8,367 89% 251k $2.5M (exactly $2,507,590) Sam Barlow
Peeping Dorm Manager older $10.99 6,206 92% 186k $2.0M (exactly $2,046,118) HornyDoge
Contradiction: Spot The Liar older $12.99 2,838 94% 85k $1.1M (exactly $1,105,969) Baggy Cat Ltd.
Telling Lies older $19.99 1,250 62% 38k $750k (exactly $749,625) Sam Barlow, Half Mermaid, Furious Bee L… (Sam Barlow, Half Mermaid, Furious Bee Limited)
She Sees Red - Interactive Movie older $7.99 2,739 77% 82k $657k (exactly $656,538) Rhinotales
Erica older $11.99 1,629 78% 49k $586k (exactly $585,951) Flavourworks
Misty Judgment $8.99 1,170 92% 35k $316k (exactly $315,549) 次元边界
Who Pressed Mute on Uncle Marcus? older $14.99 669 71% 20k $301k (exactly $300,849) Wales Interactive, Good Gate Media
Undercover $14.99 667 77% 20k $300k (exactly $299,950) intiny
The Endless Abyss: A Busty Cop’s Corrupted Soul $12.99 683 71% 20k $266k (exactly $266,165) GiraffeLiam
Evil School $7.99 1,058 92% 32k $254k (exactly $253,603) CineGame Interactive
Refate: Echoes of Desire $14.99 558 87% 17k $251k (exactly $250,933) Terraflame Entertainment
Queen's Gamble $12.99 294 61% 8.8k $115k (exactly $114,572) Black Square Games
The Narcotic Operation $8.99 356 87% 11k $96k (exactly $96,013) Beijing Kuailai Technology Co., Ltd.
FRESHIE SISTERS $12.99 202 73% 6.1k $79k (exactly $78,719) Bimbo Sisters Games
WANTED: Wild Sluts 🔞 $14.99 140 68% 4.2k $63k (exactly $62,958) Lewd Star
Punishment NyanNyan R $8.99 163 95% 4.9k $44k (exactly $43,961) ぬるぬる坊主

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