Games › Deckbuilding › Deckbuilding + Psychological Horror
Should I ship a Psychological-Horror Deckbuilding?
Deckbuilding + Psychological Horror
Of 35 developers who shipped a Psychological-Horror Deckbuilding 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.. 65 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $14k, ×30 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.1k; 1 in 20 cleared $1.5M, ×3278 the market median. Revenue is down 100% on the market; 65 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $2.1k (exactly $2,098) |
|---|---|
| Median | $14k (exactly $14,017) |
| Top 25% | $106k (exactly $106,294) |
| Top 5% | $1.6M (exactly $1,556,978) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 35 |
| Released games | 53 |
| Announced | 65 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| 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 100% on the market, supply 150% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Deckbuilding
- effort 3 / 10 · high · card pools and run logic
- Psychological Horror
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Deckbuilding; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Multiple Endings, RPG
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Stylized, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 31,193 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $2.1k. 2 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 65 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Deckbuilding with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + AutomationFair
- + Inventory ManagementFair
- + ArcadeFair
- + 2D FighterFair
- + Party GameFair
- + SwordplayFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
- + LogicFair
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + Dating SimPoor odds
- + Visual NovelPoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Library Of Ruina | older | $29.99 | 40,605 94% | 1.2M | $37M (exactly $36,532,318) | ProjectMoon |
| | Nubby's Number Factory | $4.99 | 18,138 97% | 544k | $2.7M (exactly $2,715,259) | MogDogBlog Productions | |
| | Matchmaking Inc. | $8.99 | 5,773 87% | 173k | $1.6M (exactly $1,556,978) | Wave Games | |
| | Spirit Island | older | $24.99 | 1,545 91% | 46k | $1.2M (exactly $1,158,286) | Handelabra Games Inc. |
| | Office Life | $19.99 | 1,725 88% | 52k | $1.0M (exactly $1,034,482) | LeiYun Games | |
| | Deck of Haunts | $19.99 | 1,206 84% | 36k | $723k (exactly $723,238) | Mantis | |
| | Out Of Hands | $17.99 | 1,322 93% | 40k | $713k (exactly $713,483) | Game River | |
| | METAL SLUG ATTACK RELOADED | older | $9.99 | 1,639 69% | 49k | $491k (exactly $491,208) | SNK CORPORATION |
| | Shadow Corridor 2 雨ノ四葩 | older | $18.99 | 853 87% | 26k | $486k (exactly $485,954) | Space Onigiri Game LLC |
| | Q-UP | $9.99 | 1,126 93% | 34k | $337k (exactly $337,462) | Everybody House Games | |
| | Roots Devour | $14.99 | 479 68% | 14k | $215k (exactly $215,406) | Rewinding Games | |
| | Kumitantei: Old-School Slaughter | $14.99 | 314 90% | 9.4k | $141k (exactly $141,206) | Mango Factory | |
| | ROGUE LIGHT DECK BUILDER | $3.99 | 888 94% | 27k | $106k (exactly $106,294) | Gil Lawson | |
| | Exorcism Agency | $12.99 | 222 91% | 6.7k | $87k (exactly $86,513) | YINGGUO GAME |
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.