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Should I ship a Science Idler?
Idler + Science
Of 30 developers who shipped a Science 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.. 39 more are announced.
Verdict: fair, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $720, ×1.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $360. Revenue is up 170% on the market; 39 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $359 (exactly $359) |
|---|---|
| Median | $719 (exactly $719) |
| Top 25% | $5.7k (exactly $5,662) |
| Top 5% | $65k (exactly $65,335) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 30 |
| Released games | 71 |
| Announced | 39 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $5.99 |
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 170% on the market, supply 550% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 21%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Idler; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Management, Economy
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, 2D, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 1,078 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $360. 7 in 10 of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Idler with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + FarmingStrong odds
- + Hack and SlashFair
- + DrivingFair
- + LootFair
- + FPSFair
- + Turn-Based CombatFair
- + Turn-Based StrategyFair
- + Dynamic NarrationFair
- + Dark FantasyFair
- + CapitalismFair
- + SwordplayFair
Comparable games
Fish Game 2023 · $442k 
ANLIFE: Motion-Learning Life Evolution 2026 · $68k 
The Bibites: Digital Life 2025 · EA · $65k 
My Little Spider 2025 · $58k 
PC Creator - PC Building Simulator 2021 · $35k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Fish Game | older | $24.99 | 589 93% | 18k | $442k (exactly $441,573) | A Shell in the Pit Games, Creative Ink… (A Shell in the Pit Games, Creative Ink Games) |
| | ANLIFE: Motion-Learning Life Evolution | $13.99 | 161 83% | 4.8k | $68k (exactly $67,572) | Attructure Inc. | |
| | The Bibites: Digital Life | · EA | $9.99 | 218 96% | 6.5k | $65k (exactly $65,335) | Omnia Studios |
| | My Little Spider | $4.99 | 389 94% | 12k | $58k (exactly $58,233) | 9FingerGames, Fatal Fawn Games | |
| | PC Creator - PC Building Simulator | older | $5.99 | 196 65% | 5.9k | $35k (exactly $35,221) | CREATY |
 | Lazy Galaxy | older | $4.99 | 188 78% | 5.6k | $28k (exactly $28,144) | Coldwild Games, Vladimir Slav, Elena Na… (Coldwild Games, Vladimir Slav, Elena Nazarenko) |
 | Fish Lab | $6.99 | 101 77% | 3.0k | $21k (exactly $21,180) | stonecodes | |
 | Seashell | older | $3.99 | 139 96% | 4.2k | $17k (exactly $16,638) | High Tea Frog |
 | Mars Rover Simulator | older | $19.99 | 24 25% | 720 | $14k (exactly $14,393) | DexterCoding |
 | Dr. Chatelet: Faith 神医 | · EA older | $4.00 | 95 80% | 2.9k | $11k (exactly $11,400) | MuccyGames |
 | Rat Overflow | · EA | $5.99 | 60 88% | 1.8k | $11k (exactly $10,782) | Little Beast Lab |
 | SysAdmin Odyssey - Back to the office | · EA | $8.30 | 40 75% | 1.2k | $10k (exactly $9,960) | Molodoy-GameDev |
 | Orebits | $6.99 | 42 66% | 1.3k | $8.8k (exactly $8,807) | Upgraded Studio | |
 | Incremental Orbits | $6.99 | 27 88% | 810 | $5.7k (exactly $5,662) | bytecatch | |
 | ORACLE: Humanity, Automated | · EA | $9.99 | 18 44% | 540 | $5.4k (exactly $5,395) | ZANKYO GAMES |
 | F.A.R.M.S.: Chill Factory | $7.99 | 22 72% | 660 | $5.3k (exactly $5,273) | Plema Crafts |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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