Games › Roguelite › Roguelite + Dating Sim
Should I ship a Dating Sim Roguelite?
Roguelite + Dating Sim
Of 33 developers who shipped a Dating Sim Roguelite 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.. 50 more are announced, ×2.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $19k, ×40 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.8k; 1 in 20 cleared $2.7M, ×5702 the market median. Revenue is up 665% on the market; 50 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $1.8k (exactly $1,799) |
|---|---|
| Median | $19k (exactly $18,873) |
| Top 25% | $105k (exactly $105,219) |
| Top 5% | $2.7M (exactly $2,708,543) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 33 |
| Released games | 81 |
| Announced | 50 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $8.99 |
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 665% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 5%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Roguelite
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Dating Sim
- effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Roguelite, Dating Sim; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Simulation, Multiple Endings
- Price point
- $8.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
- Art
- 7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, Anime, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.
The top 10 games average 68% positive over 68,189 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $1.8k. 6 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 50 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.9 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Roguelite with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Real-TimeFair
- + ProgrammingFair
- + VampiresFair
- + TypingFair
- + Grand StrategyFair
- + IdlerFair
- + DogsFair
- + Walking SimulatorFair
- + Score AttackFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + LogicFair
- + DwarvesPoor odds
Comparable games
The Scroll of Taiwu : Beyond The Dome 2026 · $51M 
Yog-Sothoth’s Yard 2023 · $3.4M 
School Days 2026 · $2.7M 
Boyfriend Dungeon 2021 · $1.3M 
DRAPLINE 2025 · EA · $547k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | The Scroll of Taiwu : Beyond The Dome | $29.99 | 56,535 65% | 1.7M | $51M (exactly $50,864,540) | ConchShip Games | |
| | Yog-Sothoth’s Yard | older | $10.99 | 10,207 93% | 306k | $3.4M (exactly $3,365,248) | Bone Nail |
| | School Days | $14.99 | 6,023 77% | 181k | $2.7M (exactly $2,708,543) | 白雨工作室 | |
| | Boyfriend Dungeon | older | $19.99 | 2,105 91% | 63k | $1.3M (exactly $1,262,368) | Kitfox Games |
| | DRAPLINE | · EA | $9.99 | 1,826 96% | 55k | $547k (exactly $547,252) | KANAWO |
 | Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator | older | $19.99 | 827 92% | 25k | $496k (exactly $495,952) | Strange Scaffold |
 | ISEKAI QUEST | older | $3.99 | 3,679 85% | 110k | $440k (exactly $440,376) | Studio Ginkgo |
 | Nigate Tale | $19.99 | 678 67% | 20k | $407k (exactly $406,597) | Hermit Games, 2P Games | |
 | Rebirth Pub | $17.99 | 700 92% | 21k | $378k (exactly $377,790) | Seikou Soft. | |
 | Wings of Seduction: Bust 'em out! | older | $12.99 | 904 93% | 27k | $352k (exactly $352,289) | Ramen Cat Studio |
 | 轮回修仙传 | $4.99 | 1,085 81% | 33k | $162k (exactly $162,424) | Collider Studio | |
 | 👑Idle Calibur：Zero💕（选王之剑：零） | $10.99 | 445 80% | 13k | $147k (exactly $146,716) | 绝汪 | |
 | Becoming a King | $14.99 | 281 77% | 8.4k | $126k (exactly $126,366) | Lustration Team, TopHouse Studio | |
 | Hypnosis Card 2 Happy Life | $12.99 | 270 91% | 8.1k | $105k (exactly $105,219) | Naku Kinoko | |
 | Find the Demon 恶魔鉴定守则 | $7.99 | 346 89% | 10k | $83k (exactly $82,936) | SHAKINO_UNION |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.