Do I ship it?

GamesGamblingGambling + Psychological

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Psychological Gambling game?

Gambling + Psychological

Of 27 developers who shipped a Psychological 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.. 38 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.1k, ×4.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $720; 1 in 20 cleared $180k, ×380 the market median. Revenue is up 1315% on the market; 38 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 4.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 1315% on the market, 38 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Gambling + Psychological
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 27
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $29k → $22k → $1.3k → $8.8k (still earning) → $2.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Gambling + Psychological: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 27
Bottom 30% $718 (exactly $718)
Median $2.1k (exactly $2,063)
Top 25% $22k (exactly $22,438)
Top 5% $180k (exactly $180,429)
Developers, 2 yr 27
Released games 40
Announced 38
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 1315% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 20%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Gambling
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band
Psychological
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Gambling; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Turn-Based Tactics, PvP
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, First-Person, Dark
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 27,174 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $720, median $2.1k, 1 in 4 over $22k, 1 in 20 over $180k.

3 in 10 developers made under $720. 6 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 38 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RomanceStrong odds11 devs · median $5.7k · 9 announced
  2. + Dungeon CrawlerFair16 devs · median $7.0k · 17 announced
  3. + Visual NovelFair16 devs · median $5.7k · 12 announced
  4. + Online Co-OpFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 34 announced
  5. + Co-opFair22 devs · median $4.4k · 32 announced
  6. + FPSFair24 devs · median $4.1k · 22 announced
  7. + Life SimFair28 devs · median $4.0k · 32 announced
  8. + SandboxFair25 devs · median $2.5k · 31 announced
  9. + Female ProtagonistFair20 devs · median $2.4k · 10 announced
  10. + Multiple EndingsFair30 devs · median $1.8k · 42 announced
  11. + ArcadeFair96 devs · median $1.3k · 129 announced
  12. + MysteryFair23 devs · median $1.2k · 26 announced

All 71 pairs on the Gambling page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Buckshot Roulette older $2.99 110,042 95% 3.3M $9.9M (exactly $9,870,767) Mike Klubnika
CloverPit $9.99 24,710 90% 741k $7.4M (exactly $7,405,587) Panik Arcade
Menherarium: Deadly Dice $8.99 669 92% 20k $180k (exactly $180,429) テスカトリポカ
SIDE EFFECTS $4.99 858 83% 26k $128k (exactly $128,443) hirohun, Mr.Pootsley, Jaybooty, Lofar42
Cut That Wire $6.99 243 84% 7.3k $51k (exactly $50,957) WakaStudio
Bonesaw $6.66 179 89% 5.4k $36k (exactly $35,764) Blood Pact Studios
Dice Tavern: Farkle Roguelike $9.99 112 90% 3.4k $34k (exactly $33,566) Cavi Studio
FINAL SPIN older $4.99 195 91% 5.9k $29k (exactly $29,192) bati, loardjosef
Deadly Heart Gambit $6.99 107 90% 3.2k $22k (exactly $22,438) Blink Hydrate ブリンク
Lust Poker Club $7.99 89 78% 2.7k $21k (exactly $21,333) Cutie Booty
ARSONATE $2.99 158 87% 4.7k $14k (exactly $14,173) Nash
Dystopian Pet Simulator · EA $5.99 49 93% 1.5k $8.8k (exactly $8,805) dinca.team

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