Games › Exploration › Exploration + Quick-Time Events
Should I ship an Exploration Quick-Time Events game?
Exploration + Quick-Time Events
Of 83 developers who shipped an Exploration Quick-Time Events 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.. 121 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $720, ×1.5 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $210; 1 in 20 cleared $51k, ×109 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 121 games are announced against 54 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $210 (exactly $210) |
|---|---|
| Median | $719 (exactly $719) |
| Top 25% | $3.4k (exactly $3,443) |
| Top 5% | $52k (exactly $51,950) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 83 |
| Released games | 173 |
| Announced | 121 |
| Effort | 4 / 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 flat on the market, supply 85% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Exploration
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
- Quick-Time Events
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Exploration, Quick-Time Events; 3 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, RPG, Puzzle
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
- Art
- 3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, 3D, Atmospheric
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 85% positive over 6,648 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $210. 8 in 10 of the 37 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 121 games are announced against 54 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Exploration with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair
- + MinigamesFair
- + SpaceshipsFair
- + Escape RoomFair
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + WuxiaPoor odds
- + Extraction ShooterPoor odds
- + Martial ArtsPoor odds
- + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds
- + MMORPGPoor odds
- + FMVPoor odds
- + FarmingPoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Tomb Raider Game of the Year | older | $19.99 | 173,270 95% | 5.2M | $104M (exactly $103,910,019) | Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montréal, Feral… (Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montréal, Feral Interactive (Mac), Nixxes) |
| | The Beast Inside | older | $24.99 | 10,528 83% | 316k | $7.9M (exactly $7,892,842) | Illusion Ray |
| | Until Dawn™ | $59.99 | 3,564 82% | 107k | $6.4M (exactly $6,414,131) | Ballistic Moon | |
| | Shenmue I & II | older | $29.99 | 2,144 89% | 64k | $1.9M (exactly $1,928,957) | D3T |
| | 恋爱单选题 | older | $10.99 | 2,424 81% | 73k | $799k (exactly $799,193) | 无忧传媒 |
| | The Inn-Sanity | $7.99 | 1,561 96% | 47k | $374k (exactly $374,172) | Steppe Hare Studio | |
| | The Bad Kids | older | $7.99 | 577 75% | 17k | $138k (exactly $138,307) | Aluba Van+ |
| | Eyes: The Horror Game | older | $4.99 | 923 90% | 28k | $138k (exactly $138,173) | Fearless Games |
| | Didnapper 2 | older | $19.99 | 184 96% | 5.5k | $110k (exactly $110,345) | DID Games |
| | Rally Arcade Classics | $19.99 | 125 79% | 3.8k | $75k (exactly $74,962) | NETK2GAMES | |
| | 我的同事不对劲 | $8.99 | 215 89% | 6.5k | $58k (exactly $57,986) | 11J Studio | |
| | KunKunNest | $3.99 | 434 95% | 13k | $52k (exactly $51,950) | JNTM, KunKunRoom, 鸡你太美 | |
| | Nocan's Quest: Sex Gold Glory | $9.99 | 167 69% | 5.0k | $50k (exactly $50,050) | Kinky Business Group | |
| | 蜀汉再临:源起 Restart ShuHan Dynasty:Origin | $3.99 | 357 76% | 11k | $43k (exactly $42,733) | 浙江海蕊盈信网络科技有限公司 | |
| | Neon Blood | $17.99 | 73 60% | 2.2k | $39k (exactly $39,398) | ChaoticBrain Studios | |
| | U.N.P.O.C. Vessel of Opportunity | $12.99 | 70 68% | 2.1k | $27k (exactly $27,279) | Danny Ziemer | |
| | Sex Knight~Prey of the Lustful Nobles~ | $10.99 | 82 82% | 2.5k | $27k (exactly $27,035) | アイオライト |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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