Do I ship it?

Games › Platformer › Platformer + Interactive Fiction

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Interactive Fiction Platformer?

Platformer + Interactive Fiction

Of 36 developers who shipped an Interactive Fiction Platformer 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.. 62 more are announced, ×4.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.2k, ×4.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $28k, ×61 the market median. Revenue is down 75% on the market; 62 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 4.5 times the market baseline, revenue down 75% on the market, 62 announced, ×4.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Platformer + Interactive Fiction
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 36
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.2k → $299 → $748 → $3.9k → $898 → $719 → $3.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Platformer + Interactive Fiction: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 36
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $2.2k (exactly $2,156)
Top 25% $4.7k (exactly $4,676)
Top 5% $29k (exactly $28,786)
Developers, 2 yr 36
Released games 117
Announced 62
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 down 75% on the market, supply 45% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 21%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Interactive Fiction
effort 1 / 10 · high · prose plus a state machine

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Platformer, Interactive Fiction; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Exploration, 2D Platformer
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, Atmospheric, Surreal
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 528 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $2.2k, 1 in 4 over $4.6k, 1 in 20 over $28k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 30 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 62 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Dating SimStrong odds19 devs · median $3.0k · 15 announced
  2. + PinballStrong odds10 devs · median $2.5k · 6 announced
  3. + Combat RacingFair28 devs · median $899 · 38 announced
  4. + FMVFair9 devs · median $899 · 10 announced
  5. + SimulationFair281 devs · median $628 · 235 announced
  6. + Grid-Based MovementFair23 devs · median $539 · 18 announced
  7. + AutomationFair13 devs · median $449 · 16 announced
  8. + Turn-Based TacticsLong shot15 devs · median $360 · 18 announced
  9. + LGBTQ+Poor odds42 devs · median $7.2k · 90 announced
  10. + Co-op CampaignPoor odds32 devs · median $6.5k · 90 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds14 devs · median $5.8k · 38 announced
  12. + SkateboardingPoor odds14 devs · median $4.8k · 23 announced

All 206 pairs on the Platformer page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum™ 2023 · $1.3M The Artful Escape 2021 · $1.1M ITORAH 2022 · $429k GOODBYE WORLD 2022 · $276k Time Loader 2021 · $93k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
The Lord of the Rings: Gollum™ older $49.99 839 41% 25k $1.3M (exactly $1,258,248) Daedalic Entertainment
The Artful Escape older $19.99 1,801 91% 54k $1.1M (exactly $1,080,060) Beethoven and Dinosaur
ITORAH older $19.99 715 72% 21k $429k (exactly $428,785) Grimbart Tales
GOODBYE WORLD older $11.99 766 84% 23k $276k (exactly $275,530) YO FUJII
Time Loader older $7.99 387 83% 12k $93k (exactly $92,764) Flazm
Tin Hearts older $19.99 75 85% 2.3k $45k (exactly $44,978) Rogue Sun
Cape Hideous $5.99 242 98% 7.3k $43k (exactly $43,487) Jake Clover
romantic player older $2.99 424 73% 13k $38k (exactly $38,033) Ronin SoftWork
The Lost Legends of Redwall™: The Scout Anthology older $24.99 41 85% 1.2k $31k (exactly $30,738) Soma Games
Forgotlings $19.99 48 79% 1.4k $29k (exactly $28,786) Throughline Games
Death Frame $14.99 57 98% 1.7k $26k (exactly $25,633) EpiXR Games UG
Island Off Outer Darkness $13.99 49 100% 1.5k $21k (exactly $20,565) Zugerujk
Alice's Lullaby $14.99 37 83% 1.1k $17k (exactly $16,639) Ape Law
Kejora $17.99 26 76% 780 $14k (exactly $14,032) Berangin Creative
I'll be Brave, Tomorrow $11.99 19 100% 570 $6.8k (exactly $6,834) InkForge Studios
YinYang Street: Separate Ways $7.99 27 85% 810 $6.5k (exactly $6,472) 彼云工作室
An Aisling $11.99 13 92% 390 $4.7k (exactly $4,676) Club Cotton Games
The Mansion of The Macabre $14.99 10 20% 300 $4.5k (exactly $4,497) Team Tatou

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