Games › Platformer › Platformer + Demons
Should I ship a Demon Platformer?
Platformer + Demons
Of 70 developers who shipped a Demon 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.. 106 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $2.1k, ×4.4 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $610k, ×1286 the market median. Revenue is up 225% on the market; 106 games are announced against 35 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $359 (exactly $359) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.1k (exactly $2,096) |
| Top 25% | $11k (exactly $10,629) |
| Top 5% | $611k (exactly $610,693) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 70 |
| Released games | 248 |
| Announced | 106 |
| Effort | 4 / 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 up 225% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 14%, 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
- Demons
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Platformer; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, 2D Platformer, Adventure
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Retro
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 12,132 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 41 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 106 games are announced against 35 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 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
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | DmC: Devil May Cry | older | $29.99 | 20,938 93% | 628k | $19M (exactly $18,837,919) | Ninja Theory |
| | Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin | older | $29.99 | 5,004 92% | 150k | $4.5M (exactly $4,502,099) | Edelweiss |
| | Legacy of Kain™ Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered | $29.99 | 3,042 90% | 91k | $2.7M (exactly $2,736,887) | Aspyr, Crystal Dynamics | |
| | NINJA GAIDEN: Ragebound | $24.99 | 2,500 92% | 75k | $1.9M (exactly $1,874,250) | The Game Kitchen | |
| | Castlevania Dominus Collection | older | $24.99 | 2,362 94% | 71k | $1.8M (exactly $1,770,791) | KONAMI |
| | Castlevania Advance Collection | older | $19.99 | 2,149 91% | 64k | $1.3M (exactly $1,288,755) | KONAMI |
| | SEUM: Speedrunners from Hell | older | $14.99 | 2,050 95% | 62k | $922k (exactly $921,885) | Pine Studio |
| | Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus | older | $19.99 | 1,398 82% | 42k | $838k (exactly $838,381) | Squid Shock Studios, Christopher Stair,… (Squid Shock Studios, Christopher Stair, Trevor Youngquist) |
| | Hell Pie | older | $24.99 | 1,116 91% | 33k | $837k (exactly $836,665) | Sluggerfly |
| | Luna Abyss | $29.99 | 923 86% | 28k | $830k (exactly $830,423) | Kwalee Labs | |
| | BLADECHIMERA | $14.99 | 1,358 88% | 41k | $611k (exactly $610,693) | Team Ladybug, WSS playground | |
| | The Devil Within: Satgat | $24.99 | 795 78% | 24k | $596k (exactly $596,012) | Newcore Games | |
| | Dragon Is Dead | $19.99 | 661 75% | 20k | $396k (exactly $396,402) | TeamSuneat | |
| | Twin Shot Deluxe | $9.99 | 1,167 95% | 35k | $350k (exactly $349,750) | Nitrome Limited | |
| | Eternity Egg | · EA | $19.99 | 577 82% | 17k | $346k (exactly $346,027) | USERLANDS |
| | Mama's Sleeping Angels | $9.99 | 1,040 93% | 31k | $312k (exactly $311,688) | itamu | |
| | Ariana and the Elder Codex | $29.99 | 69 65% | 2.1k | $62k (exactly $62,079) | Idea Factory, Compile Heart, HYDE, Inc. |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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