Should I ship a Space Idler?
Idler + Space
Of 134 developers who shipped a Space 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.. 171 more are announced.
Verdict: fair, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.0k, ×1.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $480. Revenue is up 155% on the market; 171 games are announced against 107 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $479 (exactly $479) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.0k (exactly $1,048) |
| Top 25% | $6.3k (exactly $6,287) |
| Top 5% | $74k (exactly $73,814) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 134 |
| Released games | 250 |
| Announced | 171 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 155% on the market, supply 280% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 17%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Idler; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Incremental, Simulation, Strategy
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $6.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Relaxing, Colorful
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $6.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 89% positive over 12,585 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $480. 8 in 10 of the 37 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 171 games are announced against 107 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
To The Core 2023 · $1.2M 
A Game About Feeding A Black Hole 2025 · $727k 
Space Rock Breaker 2025 · $419k 
Mountain 2014 · $384k 
Galactic Mining Corp 2021 · $338k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | To The Core | older | $7.99 | 5,087 92% | 153k | $1.2M (exactly $1,219,354) | SomethingExtra |
| | A Game About Feeding A Black Hole | $6.99 | 3,467 88% | 104k | $727k (exactly $727,030) | Aarimous, Thornity | |
| | Space Rock Breaker | $2.99 | 4,671 96% | 140k | $419k (exactly $418,989) | WAKA WAKA | |
| | Mountain | older | $0.99 | 12,921 88% | 388k | $384k (exactly $383,754) | David OReilly |
| | Galactic Mining Corp | older | $12.99 | 868 84% | 26k | $338k (exactly $338,260) | Windybeard |
 | SPACEPLAN | older | $2.99 | 3,315 91% | 99k | $297k (exactly $297,356) | Jake Hollands |
 | Microcosmum: survival of cells | older | $7.99 | 1,117 80% | 34k | $268k (exactly $267,745) | Satur Entertainment |
 | The Last Cat in the Universe | $6.99 | 1,153 95% | 35k | $242k (exactly $241,784) | Apamate Studio, Diora | |
 | Space industrial empire | older | $5.99 | 1,022 85% | 31k | $184k (exactly $183,653) | 游戏养家工作室 |
 | Starvester | $6.99 | 790 69% | 24k | $166k (exactly $165,663) | Syphono4 | |
 | Vanguard Galaxy | · EA | $8.99 | 565 90% | 17k | $152k (exactly $152,380) | Bat Roost Games |
 | Void Miner – Incremental Asteroids Roguelite | $5.99 | 698 83% | 21k | $125k (exactly $125,431) | RyanJakob | |
 | Rock Crusher | $6.99 | 352 84% | 11k | $74k (exactly $73,814) | Mini Fun Games | |
 | How To Grow a Black Hole | $3.99 | 573 67% | 17k | $69k (exactly $68,588) | Desolation Digital | |
 | ANLIFE: Motion-Learning Life Evolution | $13.99 | 161 83% | 4.8k | $68k (exactly $67,572) | Attructure Inc. | |
 | LUST Company 👾 | $9.99 | 155 65% | 4.7k | $46k (exactly $46,454) | Taboo Tales 💘 |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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