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Should I ship a Desktop Companion Simulation game?
Simulation + Desktop Companion
Of 121 developers who shipped a Desktop Companion Simulation 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.. 186 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $3.2k, ×5.1 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.1k; 1 in 20 cleared $260k, ×419 the market median. Revenue is down 90% on the market; 186 games are announced against 97 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $1.1k (exactly $1,075) |
|---|---|
| Median | $3.2k (exactly $3,232) |
| Top 25% | $23k (exactly $23,222) |
| Top 5% | $263k (exactly $262,951) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 121 |
| Released games | 162 |
| Announced | 186 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 305% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Simulation
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
- Desktop Companion
- effort 1 / 10 · high · effort 1 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Simulation, Desktop Companion; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Idler, Creature Collector, Management
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $6.99 or above
- Art
- 8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Cute, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $6.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 94% positive over 32,908 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $1.1k. 4 in 10 of the 25 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 186 games are announced against 97 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Simulation with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Escape RoomStrong odds
- + World War IFair
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + PinballFair
- + Female ProtagonistFair
- + BirdsFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceFair
- + MusicFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + ProgrammingFair
Comparable games
Cast n Chill 2025 · $3.8M 
Rusty's Retirement 2024 · $2.9M 
Tiny Pasture 2025 · $1.3M 
Maltese's Fluffy Onsen 2025 · $490k 
Ropuka's Idle Island 2025 · $485k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Cast n Chill | $14.99 | 8,383 94% | 251k | $3.8M (exactly $3,769,835) | Wombat Brawler | |
| | Rusty's Retirement | older | $6.99 | 13,902 96% | 417k | $2.9M (exactly $2,915,249) | Mister Morris Games |
| | Tiny Pasture | $5.99 | 7,055 92% | 212k | $1.3M (exactly $1,267,784) | CaveLiquid | |
| | Maltese's Fluffy Onsen | $5.99 | 2,727 94% | 82k | $490k (exactly $490,042) | Sinkhole Studio, Moonlab Studio | |
| | Ropuka's Idle Island | $3.99 | 4,048 95% | 121k | $485k (exactly $484,546) | Moczan, Little Chmura, Begoña Pereda | |
 | Birdwatching Notebook | $9.99 | 1,588 97% | 48k | $476k (exactly $475,924) | Biekka Games | |
 | Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi | $5.99 | 2,525 96% | 76k | $454k (exactly $453,742) | Kygua Tech | |
 | Your Big, Cute Monster Farm | $7.99 | 1,097 78% | 33k | $263k (exactly $262,951) | KaiPlay Studio | |
 | 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 | |
 | My Little Life | $5.99 | 1,043 89% | 31k | $187k (exactly $187,427) | 9FingerGames |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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