Games › Hidden Object › Hidden Object + Futuristic
Should I ship a Futuristic Hidden Object?
Hidden Object + Futuristic
Of 62 developers who shipped a Futuristic 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.. 65 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $480 in the last 2 years and $480 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 4 / 10 build. 25 developers shipped in the last year and 65 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $180 (exactly $180) |
|---|---|
| Median | $479 (exactly $479) |
| Top 25% | $3.8k (exactly $3,776) |
| Top 5% | $118k (exactly $117,741) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 62 |
| Released games | 175 |
| Announced | 65 |
| 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 55% on the market, supply 35% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, 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
- Futuristic
- 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, Exploration, Puzzle
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $15.00 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Atmospheric, First-Person
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $15.00 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 86% positive over 2,823 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 43 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 65 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 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
Approximately Up 2026 · $746k 
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day 2016 · $503k 
FORM 2017 · $430k 
Machinika: Museum 2021 · $284k 
LIFE EFFECT Survival 2026 · EA · $219k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Approximately Up | $24.99 | 995 93% | 30k | $746k (exactly $745,952) | Approximately Games | |
| | The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day | older | $9.99 | 1,680 76% | 50k | $503k (exactly $503,496) | ComonGames |
| | FORM | older | $14.99 | 957 90% | 29k | $430k (exactly $430,363) | Charm Games |
| | Machinika: Museum | older | $7.99 | 1,184 91% | 36k | $284k (exactly $283,805) | Littlefield Studio |
| | LIFE EFFECT Survival | · EA | $14.99 | 488 85% | 15k | $219k (exactly $219,454) | LIFE EFFECT |
 | Machinika: Atlas | $11.99 | 574 76% | 17k | $206k (exactly $206,468) | Littlefield Studio | |
 | Rumu | older | $9.99 | 530 89% | 16k | $159k (exactly $158,841) | Robot House |
 | マーダーミステリーパラドクス このひと夏の十五年 | older | $19.99 | 249 85% | 7.5k | $149k (exactly $149,325) | 213℉ |
 | Space Accident VR | $16.99 | 231 82% | 6.9k | $118k (exactly $117,741) | VR-WRG | |
 | The Abandoned Planet | older | $14.99 | 197 93% | 5.9k | $89k (exactly $88,591) | Dexter Team Games |
 | Dofamine VR | $9.99 | 173 82% | 5.2k | $52k (exactly $51,848) | VR-WRG | |
 | no signal | $15.00 | 69 98% | 2.1k | $31k (exactly $31,050) | exodrifter | |
 | Take Notes | $6.99 | 93 96% | 2.8k | $20k (exactly $19,502) | Stoneware Game Studio | |
 | Niktophobia | $7.99 | 63 66% | 1.9k | $15k (exactly $15,101) | OldYacht | |
 | Au Revoir | $4.99 | 92 95% | 2.8k | $14k (exactly $13,772) | Invisible Studio | |
 | Mimicry! | $9.99 | 45 97% | 1.4k | $13k (exactly $13,486) | Wayward Skies Studio |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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