Should I ship a Mars FPS?
FPS + Mars
Only 4 developers shipped a Mars FPS in the last 2 years. Over 4 years, 10 did: 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.. 10 more are announced, ×5.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 7 / 10 build.
Only 2 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $300 against a market of $1.5k. 10 games are announced.
not enough cohorts to draw
| Bottom 30% | $150 (exactly $150) |
|---|---|
| Median | $900 (exactly $900) |
| Top 25% | $3.1k (exactly $3,148) |
| Top 5% | $98k (exactly $98,484) |
| Developers, 4 yr | 10 |
| Released games | 33 |
| Announced | 10 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| 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 too few recent games to read momentum, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- FPS
- Price point
- $9.99 typical
Why players buy here
Fewer than 10 games in the last 4 years; sentiment and price figures use the all window.
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.
The top 10 games average 81% positive over 15,768 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $150. 10 games are announced against 2 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.0 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
FPS with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + Dating SimFair
- + IdlerFair
- + GamblingFair
- + FaithFair
- + Precision PlatformerFair
- + Martial ArtsFair
- + Walking SimulatorFair
- + RunnerLong shot
- + Action RTSLong shot
- + Bullet HellLong shot
- + DogsLong shot
Comparable games
DOOM 3 2012 · $2.7M 
Red Faction®: Armageddon™ 2011 · $1.6M 
Red Faction 2009 · $726k 
Chaser 2010 · $167k 
LEAP 2023 · $98k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | DOOM 3 | older | $9.99 | 9,133 85% | 274k | $2.7M (exactly $2,737,160) | id Software |
| | Red Faction®: Armageddon™ | older | $19.99 | 2,615 70% | 78k | $1.6M (exactly $1,568,215) | Volition |
| | Red Faction | older | $9.99 | 2,421 85% | 73k | $726k (exactly $725,574) | Volition |
| | Chaser | older | $4.99 | 1,113 72% | 33k | $167k (exactly $166,616) | Cauldron |
| | LEAP | older | $14.99 | 219 52% | 6.6k | $98k (exactly $98,484) | Blue Isle Studios |
 | Diluvian Ultra | older | $9.99 | 152 71% | 4.6k | $46k (exactly $45,554) | Cresthelm Studios |
 | KUR | older | $19.99 | 46 60% | 1.4k | $28k (exactly $27,586) | Really Ragdoll |
 | Unearthing Mars 2: The Ancient War | older | $19.99 | 21 57% | 630 | $13k (exactly $12,594) | Light Era Studio |
 | Corridor 7: Alien Invasion | older | $9.99 | 41 85% | 1.2k | $12k (exactly $12,288) | Capstone Software |
 | Scionide | · EA | $14.99 | 7 71% | 210 | $3.1k (exactly $3,148) | SYONIX |
 | Invasion 2 | $9.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $300 (exactly $300) | CDIS Lab. | |
 | Bryan's Indie Collection | $4.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $150 (exactly $150) | Bryan Veres | |
 | Zero-G Combat | · EA | $2.99 | 0 0% | 0 | $0 (exactly $0) | Fantasia for Information |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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