Games › Shoot 'Em Up › Shoot 'Em Up + Female Protagonist
Should I ship a Female-Led Shoot 'Em Up?
Shoot 'Em Up + Female Protagonist
Of 139 developers who shipped a Female-Led Shoot 'Em Up 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.. 153 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×3.8 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $220k, ×477 the market median. Revenue is up 55% on the market; 153 games are announced against 61 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $359 (exactly $359) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.8k (exactly $1,798) |
| Top 25% | $12k (exactly $11,997) |
| Top 5% | $227k (exactly $226,687) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 139 |
| Released games | 481 |
| Announced | 153 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $7.99 |
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 55% on the market, supply 25% 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.
- Shoot 'Em Up
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Female Protagonist
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Shoot 'Em Up; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Bullet Hell, Shooter
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Anime, 2D, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 76% positive over 21,640 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 85 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 153 games are announced against 61 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Shoot 'Em Up with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FaithFair
- + RomanceFair
- + VampiresFair
- + Quick-Time EventsFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Tower DefenseFair
- + Resource ManagementFair
- + ArcadeFair
- + SwordplayLong shot
- + MusicPoor odds
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
Comparable games
Subverse 2024 · $17M 
Saints Row®: The Third™ Remastered 2021 · $3.6M 
Touhou Koumakyou: New Classic - the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil 2026 · $2.0M 
Touhou Tenkuushou ~ Hidden Star in Four Seasons. 2017 · $1.9M 
The Citadel 2020 · $1.2M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Subverse | $39.99 | 13,781 66% | 413k | $17M (exactly $16,533,066) | Studio FOW Interactive | |
| | Saints Row®: The Third™ Remastered | older | $29.99 | 3,968 73% | 119k | $3.6M (exactly $3,570,010) | Deep Silver Volition, Sperasoft |
| | Touhou Koumakyou: New Classic - the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil | $17.99 | 3,740 98% | 112k | $2.0M (exactly $2,018,478) | 上海アリス幻樂団, 上海アリスReprise | |
| | Touhou Tenkuushou ~ Hidden Star in Four Seasons. | older | $14.99 | 4,312 98% | 129k | $1.9M (exactly $1,939,106) | 上海アリス幻樂団 |
| | The Citadel | older | $14.99 | 2,621 93% | 79k | $1.2M (exactly $1,178,664) | doekuramori, Top Hat Studios Inc |
 | Contra: Operation Galuga | older | $39.99 | 810 87% | 24k | $972k (exactly $971,757) | WayForward |
 | TouHou Makuka Sai ~ Fantastic Danmaku Festival Part II | older | $12.99 | 2,458 96% | 74k | $958k (exactly $957,883) | 东方幕华祭制作组 |
 | LEWDAPOCALYPSE Hentai Evil | older | $4.99 | 5,960 94% | 179k | $892k (exactly $892,212) | KG/AM |
 | Mushihimesama | older | $19.99 | 1,442 96% | 43k | $865k (exactly $864,767) | CAVE Interactive CO.,LTD. |
 | Assault Android Cactus+ | older | $19.99 | 1,325 94% | 40k | $795k (exactly $794,602) | Witch Beam |
 | TouHou Makuka Sai ~ Fantastic Danmaku Festival Part III | $13.99 | 1,242 90% | 37k | $521k (exactly $521,267) | 东方幕华祭制作组 | |
 | Touhou Kinjoukyou ～ Fossilized Wonders. | $14.99 | 832 91% | 25k | $374k (exactly $374,150) | 上海アリス幻樂団 | |
 | Whisker Squadron: Survivor | $19.99 | 485 77% | 15k | $291k (exactly $290,854) | Flippfly LLC | |
 | Earthion | $19.99 | 483 95% | 14k | $290k (exactly $289,655) | Ancient Corporation, Bitwave Games | |
 | Neon Inferno | $19.99 | 378 92% | 11k | $227k (exactly $226,687) | Zenovia Interactive | |
 | DoDonPachi Resurrection Reignite | $24.99 | 158 42% | 4.7k | $118k (exactly $118,453) | CAVE Interactive CO., LTD. | |
 | Shooty Shooty Robot Invasion | $9.99 | 353 93% | 11k | $106k (exactly $105,794) | Bubby Darkstar | |
 | Touhou Koumakyou: Classic - the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil | $17.99 | 188 98% | 5.6k | $101k (exactly $101,464) | 上海アリス幻樂団, 上海アリスReprise |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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