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Should I ship a Fantasy Hidden Object?
Hidden Object + Fantasy
Of 206 developers who shipped a Fantasy Hidden Object 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.. 261 more are announced, ×2.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $630, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $82k, ×174 the market median. Revenue is up 80% on the market; 261 games are announced against 107 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $239 (exactly $239) |
|---|---|
| Median | $629 (exactly $629) |
| Top 25% | $3.6k (exactly $3,598) |
| Top 5% | $82k (exactly $82,482) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 206 |
| Released games | 991 |
| Announced | 261 |
| Effort | 4 / 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 up 80% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 9%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Hidden Object
- effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets
- Fantasy
- 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
- Hidden Object; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Puzzle, Point & Click
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Story Rich, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 30,736 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. Nearly all of the 210 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 261 games are announced against 107 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Hidden Object with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Job SimulatorStrong odds
- + Level EditorFair
- + Dating SimFair
- + CatsFair
- + DogsFair
- + RomanceFair
- + FlightFair
- + City BuilderFair
- + SimulationFair
- + UnderwaterFair
- + Word GameFair
- + Point & ClickFair
Comparable games
Fran Bow 2015 · $9.3M 
Witch It 2020 · $8.7M 
Librarian: Tidy Up the Arcane Library! 2026 · $4.4M 
The Night of the Rabbit 2013 · $1.7M 
The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav 2012 · $1.2M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Fran Bow | older | $14.99 | 20,579 97% | 617k | $9.3M (exactly $9,254,376) | Killmonday Games AB |
| | Witch It | older | $19.99 | 14,540 89% | 436k | $8.7M (exactly $8,719,638) | Barrel Roll Games |
| | Librarian: Tidy Up the Arcane Library! | $5.99 | 24,497 94% | 735k | $4.4M (exactly $4,402,111) | ArtRising | |
| | The Night of the Rabbit | older | $19.99 | 2,757 89% | 83k | $1.7M (exactly $1,653,373) | Daedalic Entertainment |
| | The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav | older | $19.99 | 2,074 86% | 62k | $1.2M (exactly $1,243,778) | Daedalic Entertainment |
 | CATO: Buttered Cat | older | $10.99 | 2,794 98% | 84k | $921k (exactly $921,182) | Team Woll |
 | Last Room | older | $29.99 | 953 73% | 29k | $857k (exactly $857,414) | Quantum Forge Studios |
 | Hero of the Kingdom | older | $7.99 | 3,574 94% | 107k | $857k (exactly $856,688) | Lonely Troops |
 | Stonemachia | $19.99 | 1,244 95% | 37k | $746k (exactly $746,027) | Crossfall Games | |
 | Doors: Paradox | older | $14.99 | 1,579 91% | 47k | $710k (exactly $710,076) | Big Loop Studios |
 | The Legend of Fancy Realm Remake | $24.99 | 897 86% | 27k | $672k (exactly $672,481) | USERJOY Technology Co.,Ltd. | |
 | Amerzone - The Explorer's Legacy | $39.99 | 526 90% | 16k | $631k (exactly $631,042) | Microids Studio Paris | |
 | holoVillage: Our Cozy Days | $24.99 | 518 83% | 16k | $388k (exactly $388,345) | Roboqlo | |
 | Slender Threads | $19.99 | 574 90% | 17k | $344k (exactly $344,228) | Blyts | |
 | Shattered Divinities | $9.99 | 906 94% | 27k | $272k (exactly $271,528) | 星魂游戏 | |
 | Tales of the Moon | $9.99 | 471 93% | 14k | $141k (exactly $141,159) | Cella | |
 | Shelves and Sorcery: Tidy Up the Enchanted Shop | $5.99 | 627 93% | 19k | $113k (exactly $112,672) | Teddy Bear Games LLC | |
 | Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 3 | $6.99 | 476 91% | 14k | $100k (exactly $99,817) | Lonely Troops |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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