Do I ship it?

GamesFPSFPS + Noir

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Noir FPS?

FPS + Noir

Only 18 developers shipped a Noir FPS in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 48 more are announced, ×5.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $7.6k, ×5.0 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $600; 1 in 20 cleared $13M, ×8771 the market median. Revenue is down 20% on the market; 48 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 5.0 times the market baseline, revenue down 20% on the market, 48 announced, ×5.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
FPS + Noir
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 18
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.6k → $898 → $7.4k → $2.1k → $31k → $14k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for FPS + Noir: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 18
Bottom 30% $597 (exactly $597)
Median $7.6k (exactly $7,552)
Top 25% $31k (exactly $31,180)
Top 5% $13M (exactly $13,139,219)
Developers, 2 yr 18
Released games 74
Announced 48
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $6.99

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 down 20% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.

See every window in the explorer →

Plate 2 · systems and tooling

Can AI deliver it?

AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.

FPS
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Noir
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
FPS; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Shooter, Arena Shooter
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, Stylized, 1990's
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 18,760 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $600, median $7.6k, 1 in 4 over $31k, 1 in 20 over $13M.

3 in 10 developers made under $600. 6 in 10 of the 13 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 48 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

FPS with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + LGBTQ+Fair28 devs · median $32k · 22 announced
  2. + Dating SimFair47 devs · median $19k · 36 announced
  3. + IdlerFair22 devs · median $4.2k · 23 announced
  4. + GamblingFair24 devs · median $4.1k · 22 announced
  5. + FaithFair14 devs · median $1.9k · 12 announced
  6. + Precision PlatformerFair37 devs · median $1.6k · 38 announced
  7. + Martial ArtsFair13 devs · median $1.4k · 12 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair172 devs · median $1.2k · 190 announced
  9. + RunnerLong shot39 devs · median $958 · 43 announced
  10. + Action RTSLong shot16 devs · median $899 · 21 announced
  11. + Bullet HellLong shot130 devs · median $629 · 145 announced
  12. + DogsLong shot6 devs · median $594 · 7 announced

All 216 pairs on the FPS page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire $29.99 14,604 93% 438k $13M (exactly $13,139,219) Fumi Games
Fallen Aces · EA older $14.99 6,608 96% 198k $3.0M (exactly $2,971,618) Trey Powell, Jason Bond
Psycho Patrol R · EA $39.99 2,090 88% 63k $2.5M (exactly $2,507,373) Consumer Softproducts
Better Than Dead · EA $14.99 1,500 72% 45k $675k (exactly $674,550) MONTE GALLO
Lost2 older $15.99 1,382 81% 41k $663k (exactly $662,945) DSGame
Fashion Police Squad older $19.99 872 90% 26k $523k (exactly $522,938) Mopeful Games
Hellbreach: Vegas older $14.99 504 74% 15k $227k (exactly $226,649) Infinity Ape Studios
Thirty Flights of Loving older $4.99 1,284 70% 39k $192k (exactly $192,215) Blendo Games
illWill older $19.99 279 91% 8.4k $167k (exactly $167,316) Slava Bushuev
KINGDOM of the DEAD older $14.99 329 78% 9.9k $148k (exactly $147,951) DIRIGO GAMES
Midnight Murder Club $9.99 304 71% 9.1k $91k (exactly $91,109) Velan Studios
TEXNOPLAZM · EA $15.99 65 98% 2.0k $31k (exactly $31,180) Mothership Loudspeakerz
Outbreak: Shades of Horror Chromatic Split $24.99 24 50% 720 $18k (exactly $17,993) Dead Drop Studios LLC
Cheater's Table · EA $6.99 69 95% 2.1k $14k (exactly $14,469) Lagari
Operator8 $6.99 50 82% 1.5k $10k (exactly $10,485) Aligned Games
Witness the Dark - Episode 1 - Bloody Burger $8.99 28 75% 840 $7.6k (exactly $7,552) Cold Narrative
Kuromaku $5.99 26 76% 780 $4.7k (exactly $4,672) BabGamesStudio

Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.