Do I ship it?

GamesThird-Person ShooterThird-Person Shooter + Crime

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Crime Third-Person Shooter?

Third-Person Shooter + Crime

Only 19 developers shipped a Crime Third-Person Shooter 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, Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 72 more are announced, ×8.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×1.2 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $180M, ×126597 the market median. Revenue is down 90% on the market; 72 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 90% on the market, 72 announced, ×8.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Third-Person Shooter + 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: $12M → $1.5k → $5.8k → $179 → $219k → $1.0k (still earning) → $898 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Third-Person Shooter + Crime: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 19
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 25% $20k (exactly $19,793)
Top 5% $190M (exactly $189,642,365)
Developers, 2 yr 19
Released games 91
Announced 72
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 down 90% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Third-Person Shooter
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low 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
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Third-Person Shooter; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, Combat
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Third Person, Atmospheric, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 82% positive over 233,287 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $1.8k, 1 in 4 over $19k, 1 in 20 over $180M.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 6 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 72 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year, ×8.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Third-Person Shooter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RhythmStrong odds6 devs · median $3.3k · 6 announced
  2. + WesternFair15 devs · median $1.4k · 16 announced
  3. + CollectathonLong shot19 devs · median $599 · 20 announced
  4. + Time ManagementLong shot15 devs · median $538 · 12 announced
  5. + Walking SimulatorLong shot27 devs · median $479 · 27 announced
  6. + Class-BasedPoor odds11 devs · median $13k · 53 announced
  7. + Creature CollectorPoor odds12 devs · median $13k · 15 announced
  8. + DinosaursPoor odds8 devs · median $9.0k · 14 announced
  9. + MechsPoor odds38 devs · median $7.2k · 63 announced
  10. + Alternate HistoryPoor odds12 devs · median $6.9k · 70 announced
  11. + Level EditorPoor odds10 devs · median $6.9k · 14 announced
  12. + CraftingPoor odds65 devs · median $5.1k · 156 announced

All 163 pairs on the Third-Person Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced $29.99 210,784 83% 6.3M $190M (exactly $189,642,365) Rockstar North
Watch_Dogs® 2 older $49.99 95,242 82% 2.9M $143M (exactly $142,834,427) Ubisoft
Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition older $19.99 180,637 83% 5.4M $108M (exactly $108,328,009) Rockstar North, Rockstar Toronto
Mafia: Definitive Edition older $39.99 88,955 86% 2.7M $107M (exactly $106,719,314) Hangar 13
Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition older $19.99 70,499 94% 2.1M $42M (exactly $42,278,250) United Front Games, Feral Interactive (… (United Front Games, Feral Interactive (Mac))
Mafia III: Definitive Edition older $29.99 41,612 57% 1.2M $37M (exactly $37,438,316) Hangar 13, Aspyr (Mac)
Mafia II (Classic) older $29.99 36,389 92% 1.1M $33M (exactly $32,739,183) 2K Czech
Mafia: The Old Country $49.99 20,909 71% 627k $31M (exactly $31,357,227) Hangar 13
Hitman: Absolution™ older $19.99 49,637 93% 1.5M $30M (exactly $29,767,309) Io-Interactive A/S
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – The Definitive Edition older $59.99 15,628 80% 469k $28M (exactly $28,125,712) Rockstar Games
Vivat Slovakia $19.99 827 50% 25k $496k (exactly $495,952) Team Vivat
The Boss Gangster: Criminal Empire · EA $18.99 385 81% 12k $219k (exactly $219,334) BEF GAMES
Oxide Room 208 $29.99 22 31% 660 $20k (exactly $19,793) WildSphere
Death row inmates on the run 2--The Resistance $6.99 86 55% 2.6k $18k (exactly $18,034) zzzgame
Antikiller $8.99 56 64% 1.7k $15k (exactly $15,103) Qbik Interactive
Ultra Cop $1.99 195 89% 5.9k $12k (exactly $11,642) JG Roos
Deliverage $12.99 17 82% 510 $6.6k (exactly $6,625) Majao Games
Limb Chopper $9.99 6 16% 180 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) Jade Pixel Games

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