Do I ship it?

GamesPoint & ClickPoint & Click + Hacking

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Hacking Point & Click game?

Point & Click + Hacking

Of 22 developers who shipped a Hacking Point & Click 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.. 45 more are announced, ×3.5 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 $480; 1 in 20 cleared $23k, ×49 the market median. Revenue is down 45% on the market; 45 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.3 times the market baseline, revenue down 45% on the market, 45 announced, ×3.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Point & Click + Hacking
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 22
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $599 → $955 → $6.3k → $1.1k → $3.4k (still earning) → $1.3k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Point & Click + Hacking: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 22
Bottom 30% $479 (exactly $479)
Median $1.6k (exactly $1,574)
Top 25% $4.8k (exactly $4,795)
Top 5% $23k (exactly $23,388)
Developers, 2 yr 22
Released games 59
Announced 45
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 down 45% on the market, supply 45% 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Point & Click
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 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
Point & Click; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Logic, Simulation
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 5,488 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $480, median $1.6k, 1 in 4 over $4.7k, 1 in 20 over $23k.

3 in 10 developers made under $480. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 45 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Point & Click with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + JRPGFair41 devs · median $8.4k · 45 announced
  2. + Job SimulatorFair50 devs · median $5.8k · 56 announced
  3. + Party-Based RPGFair17 devs · median $2.5k · 20 announced
  4. + Life SimFair162 devs · median $2.4k · 219 announced
  5. + Local MultiplayerFair14 devs · median $2.0k · 8 announced
  6. + MiningFair36 devs · median $1.9k · 39 announced
  7. + CookingFair68 devs · median $1.8k · 79 announced
  8. + Escape RoomFair62 devs · median $1.8k · 51 announced
  9. + UnderwaterFair21 devs · median $1.8k · 20 announced
  10. + Local Co-OpFair12 devs · median $1.8k · 9 announced
  11. + Online Co-OpFair28 devs · median $1.7k · 34 announced
  12. + Word GameFair60 devs · median $1.6k · 56 announced

All 200 pairs on the Point & Click page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You older $9.99 8,936 90% 268k $2.7M (exactly $2,678,119) Osmotic Studios
Cyber Manhunt 2: New World - The Hacking Simulator $12.99 5,191 92% 156k $2.0M (exactly $2,022,933) Aluba Van+
Beyond a Steel Sky older $34.99 1,295 87% 39k $1.4M (exactly $1,359,362) Revolution Software Ltd
Song of Farca older $19.99 1,385 78% 42k $831k (exactly $830,584) Wooden Monkeys
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength older $9.99 1,506 77% 45k $451k (exactly $451,348) Osmotic Studios
Welcome to the Game older $4.99 2,335 84% 70k $350k (exactly $349,550) Reflect Studios
SIMULACRA 2 older $7.99 1,378 87% 41k $330k (exactly $330,307) Kaigan Games
Nancy Drew®: Mystery of the Seven Keys™ older $32.00 318 56% 9.5k $305k (exactly $305,280) HeR Interactive
Polda 7 older $17.99 496 92% 15k $268k (exactly $267,691) Zima software
Else Heart.Break() older $24.99 347 78% 10k $260k (exactly $260,146) Erik Svedäng, El Huervo / Niklas Åkerbl… (Erik Svedäng, El Huervo / Niklas Åkerblad, Tobias Sjögren, Oscar "Ratvader" Rydelius, Johannes Gotlén)
Cyber Warrior $19.99 39 84% 1.2k $23k (exactly $23,388) Dunke Games
Venice After Dark $19.99 22 90% 660 $13k (exactly $13,193) Sebastian Grünwald, Weltenwandler Desig… (Sebastian Grünwald, Weltenwandler Designagentur GmbH)
Breadbox $11.99 34 97% 1.0k $12k (exactly $12,230) Bitfall
SpreadCheat $6.99 30 96% 900 $6.3k (exactly $6,291) Games People Play, Rubarb
Project DeepWeb: Eternal Nightmare $9.99 16 93% 480 $4.8k (exactly $4,795) NightCat Studios
Bytecollector $1.99 76 80% 2.3k $4.5k (exactly $4,537) TheTallLeaf
PINEAPPLE: A Bittersweet Revenge $4.99 24 83% 720 $3.6k (exactly $3,593) PATRONES & ESCONDITES
Uninstall Simulator $2.99 38 84% 1.1k $3.4k (exactly $3,409) Thirdpark Games
Macro Data Refinement Simulator $4.99 18 77% 540 $2.7k (exactly $2,695) Macro Data Refinement Dept

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