Do I ship it?

GamesImmersive SimImmersive Sim + Destruction

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Destruction Immersive Sim?

Immersive Sim + Destruction

Of 30 developers who shipped a Destruction Immersive Sim 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.. 75 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.6k, level with the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $900; 1 in 20 cleared $820k, ×550 the market median. Revenue is up 50% on the market; 75 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 50% on the market, 75 announced, ×3.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Immersive Sim + Destruction
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 30
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $45k → $43k → $104k → $44k → $2.1k → $1.5k → $899 (still earning) → $3.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Immersive Sim + Destruction: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 30
Bottom 30% $899 (exactly $899)
Median $1.6k (exactly $1,559)
Top 25% $20k (exactly $19,780)
Top 5% $824k (exactly $823,988)
Developers, 2 yr 30
Released games 102
Announced 75
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $9.99

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 50% on the market, supply 110% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 15%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Immersive Sim
effort 8 / 10 · low · effort 8 sits in the low band
Destruction
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
8 / 10 · online systems, open world
Systems
Immersive Sim, Destruction; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Building, Physics
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Realistic, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 75% positive over 16,296 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $900, median $1.6k, 1 in 4 over $19k, 1 in 20 over $820k.

3 in 10 developers made under $900. 6 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 75 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Immersive Sim with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + FMVStrong odds112 devs · median $63k · 58 announced
  2. + Trading Card GameStrong odds18 devs · median $30k · 13 announced
  3. + MinigamesStrong odds15 devs · median $24k · 11 announced
  4. + WesternStrong odds17 devs · median $4.4k · 14 announced
  5. + BoxingStrong odds16 devs · median $2.7k · 12 announced
  6. + Job SimulatorFair152 devs · median $20k · 180 announced
  7. + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair8 devs · median $17k · 10 announced
  8. + Dating SimFair295 devs · median $13k · 296 announced
  9. + RomanceFair254 devs · median $12k · 266 announced
  10. + LGBTQ+Fair87 devs · median $11k · 93 announced
  11. + Visual NovelFair399 devs · median $7.8k · 453 announced
  12. + Split ScreenFair12 devs · median $6.0k · 14 announced

All 219 pairs on the Immersive Sim page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Universe Sandbox · EA older $29.99 27,843 96% 835k $25M (exactly $25,050,347) Giant Army
Contraband Police older $29.99 24,882 95% 746k $22M (exactly $22,386,335) Crazy Rocks
RoadCraft $39.99 13,527 74% 406k $16M (exactly $16,228,342) Saber Interactive
Gunner, HEAT, PC! · EA older $29.99 7,603 91% 228k $6.8M (exactly $6,840,419) Radian Simulations LLC
OUTBRK · EA older $34.99 3,221 82% 97k $3.4M (exactly $3,381,084) Sublime
Electrician Simulator older $17.99 4,061 80% 122k $2.2M (exactly $2,191,722) Take IT Studio!
Hotel Renovator older $24.99 2,223 77% 67k $1.7M (exactly $1,666,583) Two Horizons
House Builder older $19.99 2,194 79% 66k $1.3M (exactly $1,315,742) FreeMind S.A.
Warbox · EA older $9.99 3,430 55% 103k $1.0M (exactly $1,027,971) Mantaliss
Builder Simulator older $19.99 1,637 72% 49k $982k (exactly $981,709) Live Motion Games, Frozen Way
Deconstruction Simulator $19.99 1,374 74% 41k $824k (exactly $823,988) Games Incubator, Hypnotic Ants
Smash Hit Museum $6.99 507 85% 15k $106k (exactly $106,318) InIt Games
Junkyard Builder $14.99 223 70% 6.7k $100k (exactly $100,283) FreeMind S.A.
Rock Crusher $6.99 352 84% 11k $74k (exactly $73,814) Mini Fun Games
Good Kill! · EA $13.99 104 68% 3.1k $44k (exactly $43,649) gamegine
Medieval Machines Builder $11.99 99 77% 3.0k $36k (exactly $35,610) FreeMind S.A., Solverto
The Dream Office $9.99 66 86% 2.0k $20k (exactly $19,780) BEPLAYER, Nesalis Games
Flip My Room: Makeover $12.99 27 70% 810 $11k (exactly $10,522) CGI LAB GmbH
The Core · EA $19.99 17 70% 510 $10k (exactly $10,195) Electric Machine Games

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