Do I ship it?

Games › Inventory Management › Inventory Management + Idler

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Inventory Management Idler?

Inventory Management + Idler

Of 127 developers who shipped an Inventory Management Idler 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.. 195 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×2.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $230k, ×485 the market median. Revenue is up 10% on the market; 195 games are announced against 88 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.5 times the market baseline, revenue up 10% on the market, 195 announced, ×2.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Inventory Management + Idler
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 127
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $6.1k → $898 → $63k → $449 → $3.8k → $1.6k → $1.1k (still earning) → $360 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Inventory Management + Idler: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 127
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $1.2k (exactly $1,199)
Top 25% $6.1k (exactly $6,110)
Top 5% $230k (exactly $230,260)
Developers, 2 yr 127
Released games 248
Announced 195
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 up 10% on the market, supply 120% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 30%, 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.

Inventory Management
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Idler
effort 1 / 10 · high · number growth curves and a UI

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Inventory Management, Idler; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Incremental, Resource Management, Simulation
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Relaxing
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 14,761 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $1.2k, 1 in 4 over $6.1k, 1 in 20 over $230k.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 58 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 195 games are announced against 88 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Inventory Management with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds69 devs · median $15k · 62 announced
  2. + LGBTQ+Fair10 devs · median $17k · 13 announced
  3. + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair43 devs · median $12k · 47 announced
  4. + Artificial IntelligenceFair34 devs · median $11k · 44 announced
  5. + WargameFair21 devs · median $4.6k · 20 announced
  6. + Time ManagementFair181 devs · median $2.9k · 228 announced
  7. + DeckbuildingFair98 devs · median $2.5k · 137 announced
  8. + LogicFair70 devs · median $1.7k · 74 announced
  9. + Card GameFair65 devs · median $1.6k · 86 announced
  10. + Trading Card GameFair21 devs · median $1.5k · 28 announced
  11. + Puzzle PlatformerFair20 devs · median $1.1k · 26 announced
  12. + God GameFair16 devs · median $1.1k · 15 announced

All 164 pairs on the Inventory Management page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Melvor Idle 2021 · $4.4M Farm Manager 2021 2021 · $1.4M Beer Factory 2024 · $803k Microcivilization 2026 · $776k Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping 2025 · $761k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Melvor Idle older $9.99 14,630 90% 439k $4.4M (exactly $4,384,611) Games by Malcs
Farm Manager 2021 older $19.99 2,296 79% 69k $1.4M (exactly $1,376,911) Cleversan Games
Beer Factory older $18.99 1,410 40% 42k $803k (exactly $803,277) MyceliumGames
Microcivilization $17.99 1,437 78% 43k $776k (exactly $775,549) Ondrej Homola
Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping $7.49 3,386 95% 102k $761k (exactly $760,834) Lunheim Studios
Fish to Dish: Idle Sushi $5.99 2,525 96% 76k $454k (exactly $453,742) Kygua Tech
Wretch: Divine Ascent $14.99 975 75% 29k $438k (exactly $438,458) Ogopogo
Loot of Baal $8.99 1,372 62% 41k $370k (exactly $370,028) Gleamer Studio
Aquarium Designer older $9.99 1,086 84% 33k $325k (exactly $325,474) Sigur Studio
Legends of Dragaea: Idle Dungeons $9.99 976 86% 29k $293k (exactly $292,507) Blast Programming
Cornerpond $2.99 2,567 97% 77k $230k (exactly $230,260) foolsroom
Military Incremental Complex $9.99 692 82% 21k $207k (exactly $207,392) Space Kraken Studios
Vending Machine Co. $14.99 441 85% 13k $198k (exactly $198,318) Rogue Duck Interactive
Behind Glass: Aquarium Simulator $14.99 390 95% 12k $175k (exactly $175,383) BitBros Inc

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