Do I ship it?

GamesHidden ObjectHidden Object + Pirates

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Pirate Hidden Object?

Hidden Object + Pirates

Only 14 developers shipped a Pirate Hidden Object in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Seven Seas Jewels 2 Collector's Edition, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 17 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $920, ×1.5 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $600. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 17 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.5 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 17 announced, ×1.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hidden Object + Pirates
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 14
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $719 → $1.2k → $629 (still earning) → $807 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hidden Object + Pirates: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 14
Bottom 30% $599 (exactly $599)
Median $921 (exactly $921)
Top 25% $1.2k (exactly $1,247)
Top 5% $2.9k (exactly $2,878)
Developers, 2 yr 14
Released games 39
Announced 17
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $3.99

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 10% on the market, supply 80% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 8%, 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.

Hidden Object
effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets
Pirates
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Hidden Object; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Point & Click, Puzzle
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $15.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Atmospheric, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $15.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 126 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $600, median $920, 1 in 4 over $1.2k, 1 in 20 over $2.8k.

3 in 10 developers made under $600. All of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 17 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds17 devs · median $11k · 21 announced
  2. + Level EditorFair12 devs · median $7.6k · 14 announced
  3. + Dating SimFair46 devs · median $3.5k · 41 announced
  4. + CatsFair128 devs · median $1.5k · 160 announced
  5. + DogsFair35 devs · median $1.5k · 18 announced
  6. + RomanceFair60 devs · median $1.5k · 48 announced
  7. + FlightFair9 devs · median $1.3k · 10 announced
  8. + City BuilderFair16 devs · median $1.3k · 20 announced
  9. + SimulationFair475 devs · median $1.2k · 555 announced
  10. + UnderwaterFair21 devs · median $1.2k · 19 announced
  11. + Word GameFair29 devs · median $1.2k · 26 announced
  12. + Point & ClickFair470 devs · median $1.2k · 502 announced

All 188 pairs on the Hidden Object page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Hero of the Kingdom II older $8.99 1,900 95% 57k $512k (exactly $512,430) Lonely Troops
Uncharted Tides: Port Royal older $14.99 138 83% 4.1k $62k (exactly $62,059) Cordelia Games
Curse of Black Bone older $14.99 123 61% 3.7k $55k (exactly $55,313) Entropy Digital Entertainment
Wet Sand · EA older $9.99 113 93% 3.4k $34k (exactly $33,866) Likho Games
Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony older $9.99 97 79% 2.9k $29k (exactly $29,071) Madcraft Studios
100 hidden cups older $0.99 431 42% 13k $13k (exactly $12,801) Anatoliy Loginovskikh, Igor Shalimov
Pixel Pirate older $24.99 14 78% 420 $10k (exactly $10,496) Stas Paty9mkin
STAR MARS · EA older $19.99 15 53% 450 $9.0k (exactly $8,996) Magic Dude
Heart of Moon : The Mask of Seasons older $5.99 34 100% 1.0k $6.1k (exactly $6,110) Unikgame
Arizona Rose and the Pirates' Riddles older $9.99 20 85% 600 $6.0k (exactly $5,994) Anawiki Games
Seven Seas Jewels 2 Collector's Edition $15.99 6 100% 180 $2.9k (exactly $2,878) Anawiki Games
Adventure Seekers: Lost to Sea Collector's Edition $11.99 5 20% 150 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) Do Games Limited
Cannonball Crew $2.99 20 85% 600 $1.8k (exactly $1,794) Sweetbeard
100 Find Kitties: Pirates $0.99 42 83% 1.3k $1.2k (exactly $1,247) Sons of Welder
Reef Defense $9.99 4 100% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) Swift Creek Games
Kiana & Biscuit - Pirates on a Visit! $9.99 4 50% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) SpicyFuse
Hentai Elizabeth $0.99 31 87% 930 $921 (exactly $921) Cyber Keks
Pile Up, Pirate! $2.99 9 100% 270 $807 (exactly $807) Red Ridge Studio
Hidden Legends $6.99 3 66% 90 $629 (exactly $629) 17Studio
Lost Soul of the Missing Island $9.99 2 100% 60 $599 (exactly $599) CDIS Lab.

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