Games › Idler › Idler + Underwater
Should I ship an Underwater Idler?
Idler + Underwater
Of 66 developers who shipped an Underwater 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: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $950, ×1.5 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $170k, ×278 the market median. Revenue is down 35% on the market; 39 games are announced against 46 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $300 (exactly $300) |
|---|---|
| Median | $945 (exactly $945) |
| Top 25% | $6.4k (exactly $6,437) |
| Top 5% | $175k (exactly $174,680) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 66 |
| Released games | 90 |
| Announced | 39 |
| 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 down 35% on the market, supply 120% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 4%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Idler
- effort 1 / 10 · high · number growth curves and a UI
- Underwater
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Idler; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Creature Collector, Incremental
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $7.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Cute, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $7.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 14,465 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 24 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 46 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
Cast n Chill 2025 · $3.8M 
Chillquarium 2023 · $1.4M 
Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping 2025 · $761k 
Aquarist 2024 · $456k 
Fish Game 2023 · $442k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Cast n Chill | $14.99 | 8,383 94% | 251k | $3.8M (exactly $3,769,835) | Wombat Brawler | |
| | Chillquarium | older | $5.99 | 7,780 92% | 233k | $1.4M (exactly $1,398,066) | Ben Reber |
| | Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping | $7.49 | 3,386 95% | 102k | $761k (exactly $760,834) | Lunheim Studios | |
| | Aquarist | older | $15.99 | 950 81% | 29k | $456k (exactly $455,715) | FreeMind S.A. |
| | 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) |
 | Aquarium Designer | older | $9.99 | 1,086 84% | 33k | $325k (exactly $325,474) | Sigur Studio |
 | Microcosmum: survival of cells | older | $7.99 | 1,117 80% | 34k | $268k (exactly $267,745) | Satur Entertainment |
 | Behind Glass: Aquarium Simulator | $14.99 | 390 95% | 12k | $175k (exactly $175,383) | BitBros Inc | |
 | Fantasy Aquarium | $6.99 | 833 79% | 25k | $175k (exactly $174,680) | MOON SCAPE | |
 | Real VR Fishing | $19.99 | 184 73% | 5.5k | $110k (exactly $110,345) | Devs United Games, Inc | |
 | Joyquarium | $5.99 | 475 90% | 14k | $85k (exactly $85,358) | Easyfun Studio | |
 | With Me: Aquatic Time | · EA | $9.99 | 153 88% | 4.6k | $46k (exactly $45,854) | Sensory Patch Games |
 | Zen Aquarium | $4.99 | 302 93% | 9.1k | $45k (exactly $45,209) | Astro Cat | |
 | Idlequarium | $5.99 | 231 75% | 6.9k | $42k (exactly $41,511) | NutsX | |
 | Desktop Fishes | $5.99 | 128 82% | 3.8k | $23k (exactly $23,002) | Daniel Santalla |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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