Games › Investigation › Investigation + Dogs
Should I ship a Dog Investigation game?
Investigation + Dogs
Only 11 developers shipped a Dog Investigation game in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Enigma of Fear, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 16 more are announced, ×4.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.
Only 4 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $3.6k against a market of $480. 16 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $1.4k (exactly $1,438) |
|---|---|
| Median | $3.6k (exactly $3,598) |
| Top 25% | $36k (exactly $35,526) |
| Top 5% | $2.7M (exactly $2,739,586) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 11 |
| Released games | 26 |
| Announced | 16 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $13.99 |
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 365% on the market, supply 45% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 8%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Investigation
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Dogs
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Investigation
- Price point
- $13.99 typical
Why players buy here
The top 10 games average 95% positive over 3,657 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $1.5k. 7 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 16 games are announced against 4 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.0 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Investigation with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Escape RoomFair
- + IdlerFair
- + TriviaLong shot
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + HistoricalPoor odds
- + RomancePoor odds
- + GothicPoor odds
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + Dating SimPoor odds
- + Card GamePoor odds
- + SciencePoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Blair Witch | older | $29.99 | 6,489 78% | 195k | $5.8M (exactly $5,838,153) | Bloober Team SA |
| | Enigma of Fear | $29.99 | 3,045 95% | 91k | $2.7M (exactly $2,739,586) | Dumativa, Cellbit | |
| | The Beekeeper's Picnic - A Sherlockian Adventure | $13.99 | 467 97% | 14k | $196k (exactly $196,000) | The Wonder Room | |
| | The Good Life | older | $29.99 | 198 74% | 5.9k | $178k (exactly $178,141) | White Owls Inc. |
| | Blair Witch VR | older | $29.99 | 184 69% | 5.5k | $166k (exactly $165,545) | Bloober Team SA |
| | Inspector Waffles | older | $12.99 | 223 95% | 6.7k | $87k (exactly $86,903) | Goloso Games |
| | The Good Dog: Chasing Shadows | · EA | $14.99 | 79 86% | 2.4k | $36k (exactly $35,526) | Poultry Party Games |
| | Deep Beyond | older | $8.99 | 62 87% | 1.9k | $17k (exactly $16,721) | Avix Games |
| | Lost and Hound | older | $18.99 | 29 89% | 870 | $17k (exactly $16,521) | Daisy Ale Soundworks |
| | Animal Doctor | older | $19.99 | 27 25% | 810 | $16k (exactly $16,192) | Caipirinha Games |
| | Finch & Archie | · EA | $11.99 | 26 92% | 780 | $9.4k (exactly $9,352) | Octarine Arts |
| | Blood On The Thames | $14.99 | 16 93% | 480 | $7.2k (exactly $7,195) | Team Firestorm | |
| | The Empress Quest : Full Moons Saga | $19.99 | 6 100% | 180 | $3.6k (exactly $3,598) | Nine Stories Tower Studio | |
| | Sammy Jukes: Twin Lakes | $19.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $3.0k (exactly $2,998) | Wamill | |
| | Murder Is Game Over: The Blackinton Curse | $5.99 | 8 100% | 240 | $1.4k (exactly $1,438) | HitherYon Games | |
| | Like a dog | $6.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $839 (exactly $839) | NotSorry | |
| | Pack It Out | $4.99 | 1 0% | 30 | $150 (exactly $150) | Deadbug |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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