Games › Perma Death › Perma Death + Gambling
Should I ship a Perma Death Gambling game?
Perma Death + Gambling
Of 21 developers who shipped a Perma Death Gambling game 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.. 39 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.7 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $130k, ×289 the market median. Revenue is up 25% on the market; 39 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $299 (exactly $299) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.3k (exactly $1,259) |
| Top 25% | $13k (exactly $13,473) |
| Top 5% | $137k (exactly $137,348) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 21 |
| Released games | 29 |
| Announced | 39 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $5.99 |
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 25% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Perma Death
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Gambling
- effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Perma Death, Gambling; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Roguelike, Deckbuilding, Roguelike Deckbuilder
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
- Art
- 3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Difficult
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 77% positive over 2,091 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 7 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Perma Death with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + LGBTQ+Strong odds
- + Turn-BasedFair
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair
- + Creature CollectorFair
- + Mystery DungeonFair
- + PiratesFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
- + Interactive FictionFair
- + Precision PlatformerFair
- + Time ManagementFair
- + Visual NovelFair
- + 3D PlatformerFair
Comparable games
Tharsis 2016 · $647k 
硬币与仙人掌 (Coins & Wishpalm) 2025 · $144k 
Spin Hero 2024 · $137k 
Dicealot 2025 · $98k 
Slot & Dungeons 2026 · $82k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Tharsis | older | $14.99 | 1,438 71% | 43k | $647k (exactly $646,669) | Choice Provisions |
| | 硬币与仙人掌 (Coins & Wishpalm) | $13.99 | 343 77% | 10k | $144k (exactly $143,957) | Moshow Games | |
| | Spin Hero | $7.99 | 573 73% | 17k | $137k (exactly $137,348) | Sphere Studios | |
| | Dicealot | $14.99 | 218 78% | 6.5k | $98k (exactly $98,035) | goodviewgames | |
| | Slot & Dungeons | $8.99 | 304 83% | 9.1k | $82k (exactly $81,989) | MUC GAMES | |
 | Plinbo: Roguelike Plinko | $6.99 | 379 67% | 11k | $79k (exactly $79,476) | Raphus & Co. | |
 | Dice of Kalma | $4.99 | 90 90% | 2.7k | $13k (exactly $13,473) | Pepperbox Studios | |
 | One More 6ix | $1.99 | 147 99% | 4.4k | $8.8k (exactly $8,776) | Crazish Games | |
 | TradingLife | · EA | $11.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $3.6k (exactly $3,597) | Fun(ctor) Studio |
 | Another World - Thought Taboo | older | $4.99 | 20 85% | 600 | $3.0k (exactly $2,994) | Ashwind |
 | One Armed Bandit | $4.99 | 17 88% | 510 | $2.5k (exactly $2,545) | Gral | |
 | Three Sisters | · EA | $5.99 | 10 90% | 300 | $1.8k (exactly $1,797) | CFG Studios |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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