Games › Platformer › Platformer + Dark Fantasy
Should I ship a Dark-Fantasy Platformer?
Platformer + Dark Fantasy
Of 184 developers who shipped a Dark-Fantasy Platformer 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.. 410 more are announced, ×3.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $2.1k, ×3.3 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $210; 1 in 20 cleared $530k, ×858 the market median. Revenue is down 45% on the market; 410 games are announced against 105 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $210 (exactly $210) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.1k (exactly $2,098) |
| Top 25% | $17k (exactly $17,089) |
| Top 5% | $539k (exactly $538,531) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 184 |
| Released games | 574 |
| Announced | 410 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $7.99 |
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 45% on the market, supply 30% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Platformer
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Dark Fantasy
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Platformer; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, Action-Adventure
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, 2D, Difficult
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 90% positive over 36,742 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $210. 8 in 10 of the 94 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 410 games are announced against 105 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Platformer with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Dating SimStrong odds
- + PinballStrong odds
- + Combat RacingFair
- + FMVFair
- + SimulationFair
- + Grid-Based MovementFair
- + AutomationFair
- + Turn-Based TacticsLong shot
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
- + Co-op CampaignPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + SkateboardingPoor odds
Comparable games
Hollow Knight 2017 · $226M 
Dead Cells 2018 · $117M 
Blasphemous 2019 · $41M 
Nine Sols 2024 · $36M 
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night 2019 · $35M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Hollow Knight | older | $14.99 | 502,960 96% | 15M | $226M (exactly $226,181,112) | Team Cherry |
| | Dead Cells | older | $24.99 | 156,263 97% | 4.7M | $117M (exactly $117,150,371) | Motion Twin |
| | Blasphemous | older | $24.99 | 54,724 90% | 1.6M | $41M (exactly $41,026,583) | The Game Kitchen |
| | Nine Sols | older | $29.99 | 40,138 94% | 1.2M | $36M (exactly $36,112,159) | RedCandleGames |
| | Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night | older | $39.99 | 29,588 93% | 888k | $35M (exactly $35,496,724) | ArtPlay |
 | Blasphemous 2 | older | $29.99 | 16,808 91% | 504k | $15M (exactly $15,122,158) | The Game Kitchen |
 | ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist | $24.99 | 17,143 95% | 514k | $13M (exactly $12,852,107) | Adglobe, Live Wire | |
 | Salt and Sanctuary | older | $17.99 | 20,081 89% | 602k | $11M (exactly $10,837,716) | Ska Studios |
 | Alice: Madness Returns | older | $9.99 | 27,795 90% | 834k | $8.3M (exactly $8,330,162) | Spicy Horse Games |
 | Mina the Hollower | $19.99 | 7,562 88% | 227k | $4.5M (exactly $4,534,931) | Yacht Club Games | |
 | Mandragora: Whispers of the Witch Tree | $39.99 | 3,026 75% | 91k | $3.6M (exactly $3,630,292) | Primal Game Studio | |
 | Legacy of Kain™ Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered | $29.99 | 3,042 90% | 91k | $2.7M (exactly $2,736,887) | Aspyr, Crystal Dynamics | |
 | AWAKEN - Astral Blade | $19.99 | 1,121 82% | 34k | $672k (exactly $672,264) | Dark Pigeon Games | |
 | Bloodthief | $19.99 | 1,017 95% | 31k | $610k (exactly $609,895) | Blargis | |
 | The Devil Within: Satgat | $24.99 | 795 78% | 24k | $596k (exactly $596,012) | Newcore Games | |
 | Voidwrought | $19.99 | 936 77% | 28k | $561k (exactly $561,319) | Powersnake | |
 | JUMP KING QUEST | $14.99 | 1,202 88% | 36k | $541k (exactly $540,539) | Nexile | |
 | Shady Knight | $19.99 | 898 93% | 27k | $539k (exactly $538,531) | Alexey 'cptnsigh' |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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