Do I ship it?

Games › Inventory Management › Inventory Management + Shoot 'Em Up

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Inventory Management Shoot 'Em Up?

Inventory Management + Shoot 'Em Up

Only 14 developers shipped an Inventory Management Shoot 'Em Up 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, SealChain: Call of Blood, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 34 more are announced, ×3.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×2.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $140k, ×305 the market median. Revenue is down 60% on the market; 34 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.5 times the market baseline, revenue down 60% on the market, 34 announced, ×3.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Inventory Management + Shoot 'Em Up
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 14
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $599 → $1.2k → $898 → $599 (still earning) → $4.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Inventory Management + Shoot 'Em Up: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 14
Bottom 30% $300 (exactly $300)
Median $1.2k (exactly $1,198)
Top 25% $4.7k (exactly $4,676)
Top 5% $145k (exactly $144,829)
Developers, 2 yr 14
Released games 44
Announced 34
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $8.99

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 60% on the market, supply 265% 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Inventory Management
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Shoot 'Em Up
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Inventory Management, Shoot 'Em Up; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Action Roguelike, Arcade
Price point
$8.99 typical · top 25% priced $12.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Pixel Graphics, Top-Down
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $12.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.

The top 10 games average 63% positive over 1,004 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $1.2k, 1 in 4 over $4.6k, 1 in 20 over $140k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 34 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Job SimulatorStrong odds69 devs · median $15k · 62 announced
  2. + LGBTQ+Fair10 devs · median $17k · 13 announced
  3. + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair43 devs · median $12k · 47 announced
  4. + Artificial IntelligenceFair34 devs · median $11k · 44 announced
  5. + WargameFair21 devs · median $4.6k · 20 announced
  6. + Time ManagementFair181 devs · median $2.9k · 228 announced
  7. + DeckbuildingFair98 devs · median $2.5k · 137 announced
  8. + LogicFair70 devs · median $1.7k · 74 announced
  9. + Card GameFair65 devs · median $1.6k · 86 announced
  10. + Trading Card GameFair21 devs · median $1.5k · 28 announced
  11. + Puzzle PlatformerFair20 devs · median $1.1k · 26 announced
  12. + God GameFair16 devs · median $1.1k · 15 announced

All 164 pairs on the Inventory Management page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Alien Shooter 2 - The Legend 2020 · $489k Spell Disk 2024 · $434k SealChain: Call of Blood 2026 · $145k Zombie Shooter 2009 · $136k Alien Shooter 2 - New Era 2022 · $82k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Alien Shooter 2 - The Legend older $14.99 1,087 52% 33k $489k (exactly $488,824) Sigma Team Inc.
Spell Disk older $14.99 965 89% 29k $434k (exactly $433,960) Sunpeak Games
SealChain: Call of Blood $8.99 537 56% 16k $145k (exactly $144,829) AliveGameStudio
Zombie Shooter older $4.99 911 82% 27k $136k (exactly $136,377) Sigma Team Inc.
Alien Shooter 2 - New Era older $9.99 272 50% 8.2k $82k (exactly $81,518) Sigma Team Inc.
Soulforge Lost Path $8.99 302 69% 9.1k $81k (exactly $81,449) Ziyue
They Are Coming · EA older $2.99 624 90% 19k $56k (exactly $55,973) OnHit Developments
ASTRO AQUA KITTY older $14.99 79 87% 2.4k $36k (exactly $35,526) TIKIPOD
Alien Hallway 2 older $4.99 137 67% 4.1k $21k (exactly $20,509) Sigma Team Inc.
Vortex Attack: ボルテックスアタック older $7.99 77 77% 2.3k $18k (exactly $18,457) KaleidoGames
Blitzkrieg Express $4.99 121 74% 3.6k $18k (exactly $18,114) Maksym Melnyk
Cloudbreaker $12.99 12 91% 360 $4.7k (exactly $4,676) Ballast Games
Meowmunitions $12.99 10 50% 300 $3.9k (exactly $3,897) Pete Karesisto
ReUse $9.99 4 100% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) BakeONsoft
Thunder Infinity $4.99 8 75% 240 $1.2k (exactly $1,198) Enrique G. Galvez
Idle Shooter $5.99 5 40% 150 $898 (exactly $898) Tickle Games
Monster Rush Survivors $4.99 4 100% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Cube Games
Ashes Remember Us · EA $9.99 1 100% 30 $300 (exactly $300) indiegates

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