Do I ship it?

Games › Management › Management + Dogs

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Dog Management game?

Management + Dogs

Of 20 developers who shipped a Dog Management 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.. 32 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $4.1k, ×6.6 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $900; 1 in 20 cleared $900k, ×1437 the market median. Revenue is down 100% on the market; 32 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 6.6 times the market baseline, revenue down 100% on the market, 32 announced, ×2.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Management + Dogs
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 20
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $104k → $192k → $12k → $1.1k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Management + Dogs: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 20
Bottom 30% $899 (exactly $899)
Median $4.1k (exactly $4,133)
Top 25% $145k (exactly $145,368)
Top 5% $903k (exactly $902,639)
Developers, 2 yr 20
Released games 58
Announced 32
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $5.99

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 100% on the market, supply 135% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 22%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Management
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Dogs
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Management; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Idler, Life Sim
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Atmospheric, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 6,402 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 $4.1k, 1 in 4 over $140k, 1 in 20 over $900k.

3 in 10 developers made under $900. 5 in 10 of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 32 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Management with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RomeFair21 devs · median $64k · 23 announced
  2. + Job SimulatorFair195 devs · median $17k · 225 announced
  3. + WesternFair18 devs · median $13k · 22 announced
  4. + Artificial IntelligenceFair114 devs · median $12k · 154 announced
  5. + JRPGFair37 devs · median $9.4k · 35 announced
  6. + MinigamesFair22 devs · median $7.4k · 15 announced
  7. + RhythmFair19 devs · median $5.9k · 24 announced
  8. + UnderwaterFair37 devs · median $5.0k · 54 announced
  9. + CollectathonFair182 devs · median $3.5k · 230 announced
  10. + DwarvesFair13 devs · median $3.2k · 18 announced
  11. + 3D FighterFair11 devs · median $3.1k · 15 announced
  12. + IncrementalFair611 devs · median $1.9k · 893 announced

All 214 pairs on the Management page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Animal Shelter 2022 · $2.2M To The Rescue! 2021 · $1.1M Animal Shelter 2 2025 · $903k Railbound 2022 · $708k Maltese's Fluffy Onsen 2025 · $490k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Animal Shelter older $19.99 3,642 87% 109k $2.2M (exactly $2,184,107) Games Incubator
To The Rescue! older $19.99 1,865 66% 56k $1.1M (exactly $1,118,440) Little Rock Games, indie.io
Animal Shelter 2 $24.99 1,204 79% 36k $903k (exactly $902,639) Games Incubator
Railbound older $12.99 1,818 94% 55k $708k (exactly $708,475) Afterburn
Maltese's Fluffy Onsen $5.99 2,727 94% 82k $490k (exactly $490,042) Sinkhole Studio, Moonlab Studio
Everdell older $19.99 577 90% 17k $346k (exactly $346,027) Dire Wolf
Above the Snow $24.99 383 75% 11k $287k (exactly $287,135) Above the Desk
Lyca $4.99 1,282 81% 38k $192k (exactly $191,915) Syphono4
Dog Brew older $3.50 1,522 97% 46k $160k (exactly $159,810) Yuliy Oneshko, S-Grade
Dog Sled Saga older $7.99 659 94% 20k $158k (exactly $157,962) Trichotomy
Not Monday Cafe $8.99 539 94% 16k $145k (exactly $145,368) Sunny Syrup Studio
Animal Trainer Simulator $14.99 29 37% 870 $13k (exactly $13,041) Games Incubator
Dawg Game $3.99 104 98% 3.1k $12k (exactly $12,449) Big Noses Entertainment
Bathhouse Creatures $4.99 62 98% 1.9k $9.3k (exactly $9,281) Sleepy Rocket
The Peak of Life $8.99 30 66% 900 $8.1k (exactly $8,091) XY Game
Puppy Park $4.99 42 59% 1.3k $6.3k (exactly $6,287) TM39

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