Do I ship it?

GamesImmersive SimImmersive Sim + Outbreak Sim

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Outbreak Sim Immersive Sim?

Immersive Sim + Outbreak Sim

Only 19 developers shipped an Outbreak Sim Immersive Sim in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Politics The Game, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 39 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $4.0k, ×2.6 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $420; 1 in 20 cleared $750k, ×505 the market median. Revenue is up 5470% on the market; 39 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 5470% on the market, 39 announced, ×3.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Immersive Sim + Outbreak Sim
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 19
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $6.5k → $148k → $13k (still earning) → $10k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Immersive Sim + Outbreak Sim: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 19
Bottom 30% $420 (exactly $420)
Median $4.0k (exactly $3,957)
Top 25% $53k (exactly $52,610)
Top 5% $757k (exactly $757,042)
Developers, 2 yr 19
Released games 47
Announced 39
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $9.99

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 5470% on the market, supply 85% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 9%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Immersive Sim
effort 8 / 10 · low · effort 8 sits in the low band
Outbreak Sim
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
8 / 10 · online systems, open world
Systems
Immersive Sim, Outbreak Sim; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Interactive Fiction, Adventure
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, 3D, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 4,202 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 $4.0k, 1 in 4 over $52k, 1 in 20 over $750k.

3 in 10 developers made under $420. All of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Immersive Sim with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + FMVStrong odds112 devs · median $63k · 58 announced
  2. + Trading Card GameStrong odds18 devs · median $30k · 13 announced
  3. + MinigamesStrong odds15 devs · median $24k · 11 announced
  4. + WesternStrong odds17 devs · median $4.4k · 14 announced
  5. + BoxingStrong odds16 devs · median $2.7k · 12 announced
  6. + Job SimulatorFair152 devs · median $20k · 180 announced
  7. + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair8 devs · median $17k · 10 announced
  8. + Dating SimFair295 devs · median $13k · 296 announced
  9. + RomanceFair254 devs · median $12k · 266 announced
  10. + LGBTQ+Fair87 devs · median $11k · 93 announced
  11. + Visual NovelFair399 devs · median $7.8k · 453 announced
  12. + Split ScreenFair12 devs · median $6.0k · 14 announced

All 219 pairs on the Immersive Sim page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Infection Free Zone · EA older $24.99 16,568 80% 497k $12M (exactly $12,421,030) Jutsu Games
60 Seconds! Reatomized older $9.99 18,362 94% 551k $5.5M (exactly $5,503,091) Robot Gentleman
60 Seconds! older $8.99 10,491 84% 315k $2.8M (exactly $2,829,423) Robot Gentleman
Politics The Game $9.99 2,526 95% 76k $757k (exactly $757,042) Simplicity Games
CURE - A Hospital Simulator · EA $9.99 830 86% 25k $249k (exactly $248,751) Sentinel Games
SLEEP AWAKE $29.99 164 71% 4.9k $148k (exactly $147,551) EYES OUT, LLC.
Survivor's Notes $6.99 352 91% 11k $74k (exactly $73,814) MYSTERY CROWN, YESPLAY
ZOMBUTCHER: Monster Business Simulator $12.99 135 69% 4.1k $53k (exactly $52,610) ODIUS
Baby Blues Nightmares - Toddler Horror Game older $12.99 93 91% 2.8k $36k (exactly $36,242) Steelkrill Studio
Parasite Infection older $7.99 140 77% 4.2k $34k (exactly $33,558) Light Dark Deviant
Quarantine Zombies: Contamination $9.99 74 48% 2.2k $22k (exactly $22,178) Stones Games
Dead 4 Now: Bio-Weapon Simulator $14.99 29 75% 870 $13k (exactly $13,041) d'Evo
Alarm112: Fire Unit $14.99 23 73% 690 $10k (exactly $10,343) Control Room Labs
Symptoms of Infection · EA $3.50 58 89% 1.7k $6.1k (exactly $6,090) ORB Research & Broadcasting
Virus Lab $11.99 11 0% 330 $4.0k (exactly $3,957) Reset Games Studios

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