Do I ship it?

GamesOutbreak SimOutbreak Sim + Horror

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Horror Outbreak Sim?

Outbreak Sim + Horror

Of 27 developers who shipped a Horror Outbreak Sim 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.. 51 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.4k, ×3.0 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $420; 1 in 20 cleared $12M, ×25772 the market median. Revenue is up 630% on the market; 51 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 630% on the market, 51 announced, ×3.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Outbreak Sim + Horror
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 27
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.5k → $1.8k → $3.2k → $1.6k → $420 → $98k → $270 (still earning) → $74k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Outbreak Sim + Horror: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 27
Bottom 30% $420 (exactly $420)
Median $1.4k (exactly $1,438)
Top 25% $98k (exactly $97,585)
Top 5% $12M (exactly $12,241,733)
Developers, 2 yr 27
Released games 81
Announced 51
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $7.99

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 630% on the market, supply as many developers as 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Outbreak Sim
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Horror
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Outbreak Sim; 3 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Simulation, Action
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, First-Person, Dark
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 81% positive over 48,008 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $420, median $1.4k, 1 in 4 over $97k, 1 in 20 over $12M.

3 in 10 developers made under $420. 9 in 10 of the 14 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 51 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RTSFair16 devs · median $2.6k · 14 announced
  2. + ZombiesFair45 devs · median $1.9k · 49 announced
  3. + Real Time TacticsFair12 devs · median $1.8k · 14 announced
  4. + Walking SimulatorFair11 devs · median $1.3k · 11 announced
  5. + Survival HorrorFair22 devs · median $958 · 24 announced
  6. + Sci-fiLong shot15 devs · median $270 · 20 announced
  7. + City BuilderPoor odds10 devs · median $16k · 16 announced
  8. + Base BuildingPoor odds22 devs · median $13k · 30 announced
  9. + ManagementPoor odds26 devs · median $10k · 45 announced
  10. + Resource ManagementPoor odds24 devs · median $10k · 43 announced
  11. + Life SimPoor odds16 devs · median $6.1k · 26 announced
  12. + Time ManagementPoor odds12 devs · median $4.3k · 19 announced

All 41 pairs on the Outbreak Sim page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
No More Room in Hell 2 $29.99 16,725 62% 502k $15M (exactly $15,047,482) Torn Banner Studios
No, I'm not a Human $14.99 27,222 93% 817k $12M (exactly $12,241,733) Trioskaz
60 Seconds! Reatomized older $9.99 18,362 94% 551k $5.5M (exactly $5,503,091) Robot Gentleman
Dread Dawn $19.99 2,113 71% 63k $1.3M (exactly $1,267,166) Kioop
Bio Inc. Redemption older $12.99 3,051 87% 92k $1.2M (exactly $1,188,975) DryGin Studios
Shadows of Forbidden Gods older $19.99 1,046 91% 31k $627k (exactly $627,286) Bobby Two Hands
The Fabulous Fear Machine older $17.99 542 89% 16k $293k (exactly $292,517) Fictiorama Studios
MOLDRISE $11.99 486 96% 15k $175k (exactly $174,814) Raffaele Picca
SLEEP AWAKE $29.99 164 71% 4.9k $148k (exactly $147,551) EYES OUT, LLC.
Execute $5.99 679 91% 20k $122k (exactly $122,016) Payne Robinson
Infinite Lives $14.99 217 76% 6.5k $98k (exactly $97,585) MDickie
Survivor's Notes $6.99 352 91% 11k $74k (exactly $73,814) MYSTERY CROWN, YESPLAY
Day Zero · EA $4.99 39 79% 1.2k $5.8k (exactly $5,838) Imdie Studios
Backrooms: Partygoers $11.99 11 90% 330 $4.0k (exactly $3,957) Mascot Bro Studio

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