Do I ship it?

Games › Desktop Companion › Desktop Companion + Incremental

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Desktop Companion Incremental game?

Desktop Companion + Incremental

Of 77 developers who shipped a Desktop Companion Incremental game 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.. 156 more are announced, ×2.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 1 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $3.6k, ×30 the market's $120 for a 1 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.3k; 1 in 20 cleared $450k, ×3813 the market median. Revenue is down 90% on the market; 156 games are announced against 66 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 30.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 90% on the market, 156 announced, ×2.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Desktop Companion + Incremental
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 77
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $178k → $230k → $7.2k → $3.3k (still earning) → $1.6k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Desktop Companion + Incremental: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 77
Bottom 30% $1.3k (exactly $1,256)
Median $3.6k (exactly $3,588)
Top 25% $20k (exactly $19,587)
Top 5% $454k (exactly $453,742)
Developers, 2 yr 77
Released games 109
Announced 156
Effort 1 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $4.99

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 500% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 16%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Desktop Companion
effort 1 / 10 · high · effort 1 sits in the high band
Incremental
effort 1 / 10 · high · formulas and upgrade tables

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
1 / 10 · text and UI only
Systems
Desktop Companion, Incremental; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Idler, Simulation, Creature Collector
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $5.99 or above
Art
8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Relaxing, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $5.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 91% positive over 24,396 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.3k, median $3.6k, 1 in 4 over $19k, 1 in 20 over $450k.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.3k. 3 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 156 games are announced against 66 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Desktop Companion with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + AnimalsFair22 devs · median $5.6k · 38 announced
  2. + CatsPoor odds20 devs · median $21k · 35 announced
  3. + BuildingPoor odds27 devs · median $20k · 28 announced
  4. + CollectathonPoor odds30 devs · median $6.6k · 45 announced
  5. + Point & ClickPoor odds29 devs · median $5.9k · 34 announced
  6. + Creature CollectorPoor odds63 devs · median $5.6k · 72 announced
  7. + ManagementPoor odds57 devs · median $5.6k · 75 announced
  8. + EconomyPoor odds32 devs · median $4.9k · 37 announced
  9. + RPGPoor odds21 devs · median $4.9k · 55 announced
  10. + Character CustomizationPoor odds44 devs · median $4.5k · 91 announced
  11. + Female ProtagonistPoor odds21 devs · median $4.5k · 24 announced
  12. + Resource ManagementPoor odds50 devs · median $3.7k · 81 announced

All 21 pairs on the Desktop Companion page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Tiny Pasture 2025 · $1.3M Crusaders Quest : Hero Town 2026 · $538k Ropuka's Idle Island 2025 · $485k Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi 2025 · $454k Desktop Defender 2025 · $263k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Tiny Pasture $5.99 7,055 92% 212k $1.3M (exactly $1,267,784) CaveLiquid
Crusaders Quest : Hero Town $6.99 2,564 76% 77k $538k (exactly $537,671) CQ LABS
Ropuka's Idle Island $3.99 4,048 95% 121k $485k (exactly $484,546) Moczan, Little Chmura, Begoña Pereda
Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi $5.99 2,525 96% 76k $454k (exactly $453,742) Kygua Tech
Desktop Defender $4.99 1,757 92% 53k $263k (exactly $263,023) Conradical Games
Cornerpond $2.99 2,567 97% 77k $230k (exactly $230,260) foolsroom
How to Train Your Cock $3.99 1,875 95% 56k $224k (exactly $224,438) Little Horror Studios
Desktop Raid $8.99 672 76% 20k $181k (exactly $181,238) Lee_Studio
Plantera 2: Golden Acorn older $4.99 1,191 93% 36k $178k (exactly $178,293) VaragtP
Tap Tap Loot $6.99 815 76% 24k $171k (exactly $170,906) Turtle Knight Games
Chonkers $4.99 518 87% 16k $78k (exactly $77,545) Solar Eclipse Games

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