Should I ship an FMV Life Sim?
FMV + Life Sim
Of 38 developers who shipped an FMV Life Sim 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.. 21 more are announced.
Verdict: strong odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $54k, ×113 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 7 in 10 cleared $13k. Revenue is up 95% on the market; 21 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year, ×1.0 per shipper.
| Bottom 30% | $13k (exactly $13,193) |
|---|---|
| Median | $54k (exactly $53,514) |
| Top 25% | $117k (exactly $117,432) |
| Top 5% | $452k (exactly $451,948) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 38 |
| Released games | 83 |
| Announced | 21 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $9.99 |
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 95% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 4%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- FMV, Life Sim; all of the top 25% also carry Immersive Sim, Multiple Endings, Simulation
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $11.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, First-Person, Emotional
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $11.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 11,334 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $14k. 3 in 10 of the 24 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 21 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
FMV with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + SurvivalStrong odds
- + Post-apocalypticStrong odds
- + StrategyStrong odds
- + Multiple EndingsStrong odds
- + Immersive SimStrong odds
- + Choices MatterStrong odds
- + Dating SimStrong odds
- + RomanceStrong odds
- + SimulationStrong odds
- + JRPGStrong odds
- + Visual NovelStrong odds
- + RPGStrong odds
Comparable games
Love is All Around 2 2025 · $1.1M 
Vanity Fair: The Pursuit 2024 · $842k 
恋爱单选题 2024 · $799k 
Motesolo : No Girlfriend Since Birth 2021 · $697k 
Super Seducer : How to Talk to Girls 2018 · $624k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Love is All Around 2 | $9.99 | 3,749 83% | 112k | $1.1M (exactly $1,123,575) | intiny | |
| | Vanity Fair: The Pursuit | older | $6.99 | 4,014 87% | 120k | $842k (exactly $841,736) | 木焱工作室 |
| | 恋爱单选题 | older | $10.99 | 2,424 81% | 73k | $799k (exactly $799,193) | 无忧传媒 |
| | Motesolo : No Girlfriend Since Birth | older | $22.99 | 1,011 86% | 30k | $697k (exactly $697,287) | INDICAVA INTERACTIVE |
| | Super Seducer : How to Talk to Girls | older | $12.99 | 1,602 83% | 48k | $624k (exactly $624,299) | RLR Training Inc |
 | 恋爱吗？我家猫会后空翻 | $9.99 | 1,508 96% | 45k | $452k (exactly $451,948) | 光循花火工作室 | |
 | Blood Money: Lethal Eden | $8.99 | 1,262 91% | 38k | $340k (exactly $340,361) | 碧火互娱 | |
 | Cellveillance | $15.99 | 531 85% | 16k | $255k (exactly $254,721) | KARMAGAME HK LIMITED | |
 | Love in Summer | $9.99 | 793 84% | 24k | $238k (exactly $237,662) | intiny | |
 | Such a guy | $12.99 | 477 95% | 14k | $186k (exactly $185,887) | SUCH ONE STUDIO | |
 | I've Fallen For You! | $7.99 | 729 88% | 22k | $175k (exactly $174,741) | LOVE MOOD STUDIO LIMITED | |
 | 我的机器人女友 | $4.99 | 911 90% | 27k | $136k (exactly $136,377) | 时娱游戏 | |
 | Roommates, Romance, and Ringing Hearts | $11.99 | 346 93% | 10k | $124k (exactly $124,456) | TV Asahi Corporation, Aiming Inc. | |
 | 你好！我们还有场恋爱没谈-番外篇 | $3.99 | 1,028 93% | 31k | $123k (exactly $123,052) | 念念而忘(Echofall Studio) |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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