Do I ship it?

GamesImmersive SimImmersive Sim + Walking Simulator

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Walking Simulator Immersive Sim?

Immersive Sim + Walking Simulator

Of 414 developers who shipped a Walking Simulator Immersive Sim 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.. 537 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.6k, ×1.1 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $480; 1 in 20 cleared $130k, ×93 the market median. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 537 games are announced against 240 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 537 announced, ×2.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Immersive Sim + Walking Simulator
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 414
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.0k → $3.8k → $2.4k → $2.9k → $2.7k → $2.2k → $1.2k (still earning) → $1.1k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Immersive Sim + Walking Simulator: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 414
Bottom 30% $479 (exactly $479)
Median $1.6k (exactly $1,615)
Top 25% $7.3k (exactly $7,340)
Top 5% $139k (exactly $138,638)
Developers, 2 yr 414
Released games 927
Announced 537
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 10% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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
Walking Simulator
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, Walking Simulator; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Simulation, Exploration
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $10.99 or above
Art
7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, 3D, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $10.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 42,213 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $480, median $1.6k, 1 in 4 over $7.3k, 1 in 20 over $130k.

3 in 10 developers made under $480. 8 in 10 of the 247 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 537 games are announced against 240 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 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
theHunter: Call of the Wild™ older $19.99 170,472 89% 5.1M $102M (exactly $102,232,058) Expansive Worlds
My Winter Car · EA $14.99 18,614 94% 558k $8.4M (exactly $8,370,716) Amistech Games
Call of the Wild: The Angler™ older $29.99 6,122 63% 184k $5.5M (exactly $5,507,963) Expansive Worlds
Streamer Life Simulator older $19.99 7,066 77% 212k $4.2M (exactly $4,237,480) Cheesecake Dev
INFRA older $29.99 3,467 88% 104k $3.1M (exactly $3,119,260) Loiste Interactive
King of Retail older $25.99 2,982 88% 89k $2.3M (exactly $2,325,065) Freaking Games
Train Sim World® 2020 older $12.99 5,912 77% 177k $2.3M (exactly $2,303,906) Dovetail Games
Pathologic Classic HD older $12.99 3,931 87% 118k $1.5M (exactly $1,531,911) Ice-Pick Lodge, General Arcade
The Exit 8 older $3.99 10,946 93% 328k $1.3M (exactly $1,310,236) KOTAKE CREATE
Ultimate Fishing® Simulator 2 $19.99 2,077 66% 62k $1.2M (exactly $1,245,577) Silent Bear Studio, SHINING GAMES
The Complex: Expedition $14.99 2,620 89% 79k $1.2M (exactly $1,178,214) pgWave
DON'T SCREAM $7.99 4,505 65% 135k $1.1M (exactly $1,079,848) Digital Cybercherries
Prison Escape Simulator: Dig Out $7.99 3,490 85% 105k $837k (exactly $836,553) Digital Melody
Lushfoil Photography Sim $14.99 1,718 91% 52k $773k (exactly $772,585) Matt2
Millennium Dream $7.99 2,598 92% 78k $623k (exactly $622,741) LucidDreamLab
DON'T SCREAM TOGETHER $7.99 2,314 49% 69k $555k (exactly $554,666) Digital Cybercherries
Supermarket Chaos $4.99 3,266 92% 98k $489k (exactly $488,920) BunnyHop
despelote $14.99 1,011 95% 30k $455k (exactly $454,647) Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena

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