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Should I ship a Physics Life Sim?
Physics + Life Sim
Of 174 developers who shipped a Physics 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.. 232 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $2.8k, ×4.4 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $900; 1 in 20 cleared $2.1M, ×3389 the market median. Revenue is down 30% on the market; 232 games are announced against 113 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $898 (exactly $898) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.8k (exactly $2,753) |
| Top 25% | $39k (exactly $38,610) |
| Top 5% | $2.1M (exactly $2,128,292) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 174 |
| Released games | 360 |
| Announced | 232 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $7.99 |
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 30% on the market, supply 75% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Physics, Life Sim; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Immersive Sim, Sandbox
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with First-Person, 3D, Relaxing
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 107,121 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $900. 7 in 10 of the 79 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 232 games are announced against 113 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Physics with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderStrong odds
- + Dating SimFair
- + PinballFair
- + World War IIFair
- + Mini GolfFair
- + GolfFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Hidden ObjectFair
- + CatsFair
- + Mystery DungeonFair
- + BilliardsFair
Comparable games
Wobbly Life 2025 · $25M 
Mon Bazou 2025 · $9.6M 
Wobbledogs 2022 · $8.3M 
SimRail - The Railway Simulator 2024 · $5.6M 
Waterpark Simulator 2026 · $5.2M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Wobbly Life | $24.99 | 33,034 97% | 991k | $25M (exactly $24,765,590) | RubberBandGames | |
| | Mon Bazou | $15.99 | 19,922 97% | 598k | $9.6M (exactly $9,556,583) | Santa Goat | |
| | Wobbledogs | older | $19.99 | 13,770 98% | 413k | $8.3M (exactly $8,257,869) | Animal Uprising |
| | SimRail - The Railway Simulator | $34.99 | 5,307 85% | 159k | $5.6M (exactly $5,570,758) | SimRail S.A. | |
| | Waterpark Simulator | $12.99 | 13,280 96% | 398k | $5.2M (exactly $5,175,216) | CayPlay | |
 | Cash Cleaner Simulator | $19.99 | 7,334 92% | 220k | $4.4M (exactly $4,398,200) | Mind Control Games | |
 | Kebab Chefs! - Restaurant Simulator | $17.99 | 7,019 83% | 211k | $3.8M (exactly $3,788,154) | Biotech Gameworks | |
 | The Coin Game | $19.99 | 5,647 92% | 169k | $3.4M (exactly $3,386,506) | devotid | |
 | Cat Mail Co. | $14.99 | 6,289 92% | 189k | $2.8M (exactly $2,828,163) | Maracas Studio | |
 | Cheap Car Repair | $19.69 | 3,603 91% | 108k | $2.1M (exactly $2,128,292) | Little Dog Games | |
 | ANEURISM IV | $9.99 | 5,686 75% | 171k | $1.7M (exactly $1,704,094) | Vellocet |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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