Do I ship it?

Games › Investigation › Investigation + Hacking

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Hacking Investigation game?

Investigation + Hacking

Of 34 developers who shipped a Hacking Investigation 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.. 74 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.6k, ×3.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $780; 1 in 20 cleared $340k, ×729 the market median. Revenue is up 35% on the market; 74 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 35% on the market, 74 announced, ×3.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Investigation + Hacking
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 34
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $6.6k → $955 → $77k → $1.3k → $4.5k (still earning) → $848 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Investigation + Hacking: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 34
Bottom 30% $779 (exactly $779)
Median $1.6k (exactly $1,559)
Top 25% $7.6k (exactly $7,645)
Top 5% $346k (exactly $346,421)
Developers, 2 yr 34
Released games 75
Announced 74
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $9.99

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 35% on the market, supply 85% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 7%, 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.

Investigation
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Hacking
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
Investigation; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Simulation, Adventure
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, 3D, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 10,110 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $780, median $1.6k, 1 in 4 over $7.6k, 1 in 20 over $340k.

3 in 10 developers made under $780. 8 in 10 of the 13 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 74 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Escape RoomFair61 devs · median $2.1k · 50 announced
  2. + IdlerFair15 devs · median $898 · 16 announced
  3. + TriviaLong shot8 devs · median $215 · 9 announced
  4. + LGBTQ+Poor odds42 devs · median $39k · 70 announced
  5. + JRPGPoor odds16 devs · median $12k · 27 announced
  6. + HistoricalPoor odds64 devs · median $9.0k · 121 announced
  7. + RomancePoor odds62 devs · median $9.0k · 101 announced
  8. + GothicPoor odds26 devs · median $8.1k · 54 announced
  9. + LovecraftianPoor odds56 devs · median $7.2k · 104 announced
  10. + Dating SimPoor odds37 devs · median $6.6k · 50 announced
  11. + Card GamePoor odds14 devs · median $6.6k · 34 announced
  12. + SciencePoor odds21 devs · median $5.9k · 36 announced

All 134 pairs on the Investigation page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Cyber Manhunt 2021 · $4.4M Operation: Tango 2021 · $4.3M Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You 2016 · $2.7M Observer: System Redux 2020 · $2.2M Cyber Manhunt 2: New World - The Hacking Simulator 2025 · $2.0M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Cyber Manhunt older $9.99 14,520 92% 436k $4.4M (exactly $4,351,644) Aluba Van+
Operation: Tango older $19.99 7,167 86% 215k $4.3M (exactly $4,298,050) Clever Plays
Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You older $9.99 8,936 90% 268k $2.7M (exactly $2,678,119) Osmotic Studios
Observer: System Redux older $29.99 2,462 84% 74k $2.2M (exactly $2,215,061) Bloober Team, Anshar Studios
Cyber Manhunt 2: New World - The Hacking Simulator $12.99 5,191 92% 156k $2.0M (exactly $2,022,933) Aluba Van+
ANONYMOUS;CODE older $59.99 510 78% 15k $918k (exactly $917,847) MAGES. Inc.
USAC: Code Breach older $14.99 1,067 91% 32k $480k (exactly $479,830) Questions Factory
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength older $9.99 1,506 77% 45k $451k (exactly $451,348) Osmotic Studios
s.p.l.i.t $2.99 3,862 92% 116k $346k (exactly $346,421) Mike Klubnika
Cybernetic Fault $14.99 679 78% 20k $305k (exactly $305,346) Whale Rock Games
Vtuber Hack $54.99 83 74% 2.5k $137k (exactly $136,925) ベルゼブブ
Carmen Sandiego $29.99 86 67% 2.6k $77k (exactly $77,374) Gameloft
Backseat $9.99 85 71% 2.6k $25k (exactly $25,474) HOGO Games
Cyber Warrior $19.99 39 84% 1.2k $23k (exactly $23,388) Dunke Games
Fixer Undercover $17.99 34 91% 1.0k $18k (exactly $18,350) Creativity AR
Void Future: Hacking Protocol $14.99 17 88% 510 $7.6k (exactly $7,645) RVL Interactive
GAME.exe 2 - Phantom Strike $5.99 34 76% 1.0k $6.1k (exactly $6,110) Punx Studios

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