Games › Swordplay › Swordplay + Hidden Object
Should I ship a Hidden Object Swordplay game?
Swordplay + Hidden Object
Only 13 developers shipped a Hidden Object Swordplay game 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, Stonemachia, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 13 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.5k, ×2.4 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $450; 1 in 20 cleared $740k, ×1188 the market median. Revenue is up 5920% on the market; 13 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $450 (exactly $450) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.5k (exactly $1,498) |
| Top 25% | $4.9k (exactly $4,852) |
| Top 5% | $746k (exactly $746,027) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 13 |
| Released games | 25 |
| Announced | 13 |
| Effort | 6 / 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 up 5920% on the market, supply 15% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 12%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Swordplay
- effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
- Hidden Object
- effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets
What it takes
- Effort
- 6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
- Systems
- Swordplay, Hidden Object
- Price point
- $6.99 typical
Why players buy here
The top 10 games average 94% positive over 1,450 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $450. All of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 13 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Swordplay with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Visual NovelFair
- + Strategy RPGFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + DeckbuildingFair
- + Shoot 'Em UpLong shot
- + SamuraiPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + Female ProtagonistPoor odds
- + FightingPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Base BuildingPoor odds
Comparable games
Stonemachia 2026 · $746k 
The Adventures of The Black Hawk 2024 · $30k 
Ladies, Don’t Tempt My Immortality 2026 · $19k 
Spellbound Beauties 2025 · $15k 
A Game About Breaking Pots 2026 · $4.9k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Stonemachia | $19.99 | 1,244 95% | 37k | $746k (exactly $746,027) | Crossfall Games | |
| | The Adventures of The Black Hawk | older | $12.99 | 77 85% | 2.3k | $30k (exactly $30,007) | Croqueta Asesina Studios |
| | Ladies, Don’t Tempt My Immortality | $10.99 | 57 89% | 1.7k | $19k (exactly $18,793) | 蒸汽满满工作室 | |
| | Spellbound Beauties | $6.99 | 72 83% | 2.2k | $15k (exactly $15,098) | Lunar Kiss Games | |
| | A Game About Breaking Pots | $5.99 | 27 100% | 810 | $4.9k (exactly $4,852) | Glenn Verheij | |
 | SEARCH ALL - RUNES | older | $2.99 | 42 92% | 1.3k | $3.8k (exactly $3,767) | Laush Dmitriy Sergeevich |
 | Ghost Infinite Labyrinth | $7.99 | 15 60% | 450 | $3.6k (exactly $3,596) | riinwin | |
 | Drag'N Dungeon | $9.99 | 11 90% | 330 | $3.3k (exactly $3,297) | Demon Girl | |
 | Shonen Adventure : The Dual Blades Hero | older | $13.99 | 5 60% | 150 | $2.1k (exactly $2,098) | Melvyn Boutel |
 | Super Bear: Hunt for the lost beer | older | $4.99 | 13 69% | 390 | $1.9k (exactly $1,946) | Tero Lunkka, Valkeala Software |
 | 虚衝 - Kyosho | $9.99 | 5 80% | 150 | $1.5k (exactly $1,498) | むつむつプロジェクト（Mutsu'pro） | |
 | Sexy Katana | $9.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $1.2k (exactly $1,199) | Doky | |
 | Where's My Bara Deck? Hardcastle | $1.99 | 10 90% | 300 | $597 (exactly $597) | Kopon Games | |
 | DarkShine | · EA | $3.00 | 5 100% | 150 | $450 (exactly $450) | DScorp |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.