Games › Life Sim › Life Sim + Magic
Should I ship a Magic Life Sim?
Life Sim + Magic
Of 46 developers who shipped a Magic Life 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.. 138 more are announced, ×4.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $9.9k, ×21 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.1k; 1 in 20 cleared $3.4M, ×7229 the market median. Revenue is down 75% on the market; 138 games are announced against 32 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $2.1k (exactly $2,098) |
|---|---|
| Median | $9.9k (exactly $9,891) |
| Top 25% | $94k (exactly $93,538) |
| Top 5% | $3.4M (exactly $3,433,909) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 46 |
| Released games | 117 |
| Announced | 138 |
| Effort | 4 / 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 75% on the market, supply 115% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Life Sim; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, RPG, Character Customization
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cute, Relaxing, Cozy
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 91% positive over 33,901 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $2.1k. 6 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 138 games are announced against 32 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Life Sim with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + MinigamesStrong odds
- + MusicStrong odds
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + Football (Soccer)Fair
- + FaithFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceFair
- + GamblingFair
- + DemonsFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + LogicFair
- + ZombiesFair
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Disney Dreamlight Valley | older | $39.99 | 22,027 92% | 661k | $26M (exactly $26,425,792) | Gameloft |
| | Sun Haven | older | $24.99 | 22,069 79% | 662k | $17M (exactly $16,545,129) | Pixel Sprout Studios |
| | Little Witch in the Woods | $19.99 | 11,691 89% | 351k | $7.0M (exactly $7,011,093) | SUNNY SIDE UP | |
| | Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma | $59.99 | 2,947 88% | 88k | $5.3M (exactly $5,303,716) | Marvelous Inc. | |
| | Magical Princess | $14.99 | 7,636 96% | 229k | $3.4M (exactly $3,433,909) | Neotro Inc., MAGI Inc. | |
| | Cat Mail Co. | $14.99 | 6,289 92% | 189k | $2.8M (exactly $2,828,163) | Maracas Studio | |
| | Moonlight Peaks | $34.99 | 1,793 88% | 54k | $1.9M (exactly $1,882,112) | Little Chicken | |
| | Wylde Flowers | older | $24.99 | 2,329 95% | 70k | $1.7M (exactly $1,746,051) | Studio Drydock Pty Ltd |
| | Calico | older | $11.99 | 3,238 88% | 97k | $1.2M (exactly $1,164,709) | Peachy Keen Games |
| | Ithya: Magic Studies | $10.99 | 2,103 97% | 63k | $693k (exactly $693,359) | BlueTurtle | |
| | The Lust City 2 | $15.99 | 315 79% | 9.5k | $151k (exactly $151,106) | Candylight Studio | |
| | Ritual of Raven | $14.99 | 325 88% | 9.8k | $146k (exactly $146,152) | Spellgarden Games | |
| | Seeds of Calamity | $14.99 | 271 78% | 8.1k | $122k (exactly $121,869) | Laborious Lark Studios | |
| | Loafing Town | $6.99 | 531 85% | 16k | $111k (exactly $111,351) | GoblinZz |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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