Do I ship it?

GamesLevel EditorLevel Editor + Local Co-Op

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Level Editor Local Co-Op game?

Level Editor + Local Co-Op

Only 18 developers shipped a Level Editor Local Co-Op game 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, Rhythm Doctor, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 43 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $11k, ×17 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.1k; 1 in 20 cleared $15M, ×23893 the market median. Revenue is down 25% on the market; 43 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 17.4 times the market baseline, revenue down 25% on the market, 43 announced, ×3.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Level Editor + Local Co-Op
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 18
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $29k → $43k → $29k → $5.1k → $27k → $16k → $6.5k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Level Editor + Local Co-Op: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 18
Bottom 30% $2.1k (exactly $2,098)
Median $11k (exactly $10,912)
Top 25% $27k (exactly $26,629)
Top 5% $15M (exactly $15,005,094)
Developers, 2 yr 18
Released games 104
Announced 43
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 down 25% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Level Editor
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Local Co-Op
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Level Editor, Local Co-Op; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Co-op, Local Multiplayer
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Colorful, Cute, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 97% positive over 27,484 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $2.1k, median $11k, 1 in 4 over $26k, 1 in 20 over $15M.

3 in 10 developers made under $2.1k. 7 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 43 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Multiple EndingsFair17 devs · median $8.1k · 23 announced
  2. + Hidden ObjectFair12 devs · median $7.6k · 14 announced
  3. + CollectathonFair15 devs · median $3.4k · 17 announced
  4. + Time AttackFair12 devs · median $748 · 14 announced
  5. + IdlerFair19 devs · median $719 · 12 announced
  6. + Score AttackFair51 devs · median $598 · 62 announced
  7. + AutomationLong shot27 devs · median $300 · 32 announced
  8. + TransportationPoor odds10 devs · median $43k · 17 announced
  9. + TrainsPoor odds10 devs · median $43k · 11 announced
  10. + MilitaryPoor odds22 devs · median $43k · 46 announced
  11. + City BuilderPoor odds20 devs · median $24k · 50 announced
  12. + Online Co-OpPoor odds36 devs · median $19k · 111 announced

All 136 pairs on the Level Editor page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
BattleBlock Theater® older $14.99 55,793 97% 1.7M $25M (exactly $25,090,112) The Behemoth
Ultimate Chicken Horse older $14.99 41,060 95% 1.2M $18M (exactly $18,464,682) Clever Endeavour Games
Rhythm Doctor $19.99 25,021 98% 751k $15M (exactly $15,005,094) 7th Beat Games
SpeedRunners older $14.99 22,842 94% 685k $10M (exactly $10,272,047) DoubleDutch Games
Door Kickers: Action Squad older $13.99 8,778 95% 263k $3.7M (exactly $3,684,127) PixelShard, KillHouse Games
Cricket 24 older $44.99 2,435 79% 73k $3.3M (exactly $3,286,520) Big Ant Studios
Contagion older $9.99 10,042 75% 301k $3.0M (exactly $3,009,587) Monochrome, Inc
Hero's Hour older $17.99 4,643 79% 139k $2.5M (exactly $2,505,827) Benjamin "ThingOnItsOwn" Hauer
AO Tennis 2 older $49.99 1,236 70% 37k $1.9M (exactly $1,853,629) Big Ant Studios
Trackmania® Turbo older $39.99 1,520 66% 46k $1.8M (exactly $1,823,544) Nadeo
Unrailed 2: Back on Track $19.99 1,794 88% 54k $1.1M (exactly $1,075,862) Indoor Astronaut
Summer Islands $14.99 190 81% 5.7k $85k (exactly $85,443) Marttalin Games
Chaos Faction Legacy Collection $4.99 234 93% 7.0k $35k (exactly $35,030) George "EON" Eade
Let's Cook Together 2 $23.99 37 75% 1.1k $27k (exactly $26,629) Yellow Dot
Mythic Kart Maker · EA $11.99 53 83% 1.6k $19k (exactly $19,064) Dream Mix Games
Concerto on White: Cajon Story $8.99 59 94% 1.8k $16k (exactly $15,912) C11 Games
The Shadowed Rune · EA $9.95 41 100% 1.2k $12k (exactly $12,238) Javifugitivo
Delta Manager · EA $12.99 28 92% 840 $11k (exactly $10,912) Fassi Blue
The Clubies $7.99 27 100% 810 $6.5k (exactly $6,472) Cluby Games

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