Do I ship it?

GamesProcedural GenerationProcedural Generation + Grid-Based Movement

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Procedural Generation Grid-Based Movement game?

Procedural Generation + Grid-Based Movement

Of 105 developers who shipped a Procedural Generation Grid-Based Movement 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.. 179 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.5k, ×3.2 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $76k, ×162 the market median. Revenue is down 20% on the market; 179 games are announced against 66 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 20% on the market, 179 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Procedural Generation + Grid-Based Movement
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 105
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $23k → $4.2k → $3.6k → $3.3k → $3.0k → $1.0k → $1.4k (still earning) → $1.6k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Procedural Generation + Grid-Based Movement: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 105
Bottom 30% $299 (exactly $299)
Median $1.5k (exactly $1,497)
Top 25% $11k (exactly $10,789)
Top 5% $77k (exactly $76,752)
Developers, 2 yr 105
Released games 268
Announced 179
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 70% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Procedural Generation
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Grid-Based Movement
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Procedural Generation, Grid-Based Movement; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, RPG, Roguelike
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $15.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $15.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 6,574 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $1.5k, 1 in 4 over $10k, 1 in 20 over $76k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 41 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 179 games are announced against 66 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Procedural Generation with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SnowFair11 devs · median $3.0k · 16 announced
  2. + Traditional RoguelikeFair71 devs · median $2.0k · 93 announced
  3. + DetectiveFair29 devs · median $1.5k · 30 announced
  4. + Word GameFair22 devs · median $1.3k · 23 announced
  5. + TypingFair26 devs · median $1.1k · 11 announced
  6. + IdlerFair98 devs · median $807 · 107 announced
  7. + LogicFair137 devs · median $478 · 149 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair57 devs · median $449 · 62 announced
  9. + Precision PlatformerFair49 devs · median $449 · 42 announced
  10. + Hidden ObjectFair58 devs · median $418 · 56 announced
  11. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds31 devs · median $77k · 95 announced
  12. + TrainsPoor odds22 devs · median $30k · 35 announced

All 222 pairs on the Procedural Generation page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Sol Cesto $13.99 4,838 91% 145k $2.0M (exactly $2,030,509) Tambouille, Géraud Zucchini, Chariospir… (Tambouille, Géraud Zucchini, Chariospirale)
NEO Scavenger older $14.99 4,437 89% 133k $2.0M (exactly $1,995,319) Blue Bottle Games
Mashinky · EA older $24.99 2,361 84% 71k $1.8M (exactly $1,770,042) Jan Zelený
Jupiter Hell older $24.99 1,795 91% 54k $1.3M (exactly $1,345,712) ChaosForge
ADOM (Ancient Domains Of Mystery) older $14.99 1,253 86% 38k $563k (exactly $563,474) Thomas Biskup, Jochen Terstiege, Zeno R… (Thomas Biskup, Jochen Terstiege, Zeno Rogue, Krzysztof Dycha, Lucas Dieguez)
StarCrawlers older $19.99 793 82% 24k $476k (exactly $475,562) Juggernaut Games
Dungeon Drafters older $24.99 563 76% 17k $422k (exactly $422,081) Manalith Studios
For The Warp older $14.99 434 72% 13k $195k (exactly $195,170) Massive Galaxy Studios
Shattered Planet older $14.99 406 68% 12k $183k (exactly $182,578) Kitfox Games
THYSIASTERY $17.49 309 80% 9.3k $162k (exactly $162,132) DIRGA
Veterum $19.99 204 85% 6.1k $122k (exactly $122,339) Crasleen Games
Jupiter Hell Classic · EA $14.99 230 95% 6.9k $103k (exactly $103,431) ChaosForge
Together in Battle $19.99 134 90% 4.0k $80k (exactly $80,360) Sinister Design
Lost In The Open · EA $15.99 160 61% 4.8k $77k (exactly $76,752) Black Voyage Games
Trolddom $9.99 204 94% 6.1k $61k (exactly $61,139) Plant Based Games
Icaria $24.99 79 75% 2.4k $59k (exactly $59,226) Blindsight Games LLC
Into the Emberlands $6.59 253 79% 7.6k $50k (exactly $50,018) Tiny Roar
Cyclopean: The Great Abyss $9.99 163 89% 4.9k $49k (exactly $48,851) Schmidt Workshops

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