Do I ship it?

GamesOpen WorldOpen World + Local Multiplayer

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Local Multiplayer Open World game?

Open World + Local Multiplayer

Of 35 developers who shipped a Local Multiplayer Open World game 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.. 51 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×1.6 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $540; 1 in 20 cleared $24M, ×16532 the market median. Revenue is down 60% on the market; 51 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.6 times the market baseline, revenue down 60% on the market, 51 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Open World + Local Multiplayer
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 35
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $900 → $58k → $299 → $6.0k → $4.5k → $3.6k → $860 (still earning) → $17k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Open World + Local Multiplayer: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 35
Bottom 30% $538 (exactly $538)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,395)
Top 25% $38k (exactly $37,781)
Top 5% $25M (exactly $24,765,590)
Developers, 2 yr 35
Released games 152
Announced 51
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 60% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 16%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Open World
effort 8 / 10 · low · effort 8 sits in the low band
Local Multiplayer
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
8 / 10 · online systems, open world
Systems
Open World, Local Multiplayer; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Co-op, Local Co-Op, Adventure
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Family Friendly, 3D, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 101,971 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $540, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $37k, 1 in 20 over $24M.

3 in 10 developers made under $540. 8 in 10 of the 20 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 51 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + WuxiaFair12 devs · median $634k · 17 announced
  2. + 4 Player LocalFair14 devs · median $82k · 20 announced
  3. + VampiresFair15 devs · median $23k · 21 announced
  4. + TrainsFair27 devs · median $21k · 25 announced
  5. + FMVFair11 devs · median $14k · 13 announced
  6. + GothicFair25 devs · median $5.4k · 32 announced
  7. + MarsFair12 devs · median $2.2k · 15 announced
  8. + TanksFair9 devs · median $1.3k · 11 announced
  9. + FaithLong shot11 devs · median $716 · 14 announced
  10. + DiplomacyPoor odds13 devs · median $1.8M · 38 announced
  11. + Real-Time with PausePoor odds8 devs · median $767k · 11 announced
  12. + Co-op CampaignPoor odds17 devs · median $267k · 65 announced

All 240 pairs on the Open World page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Human Fall Flat older $19.99 174,835 94% 5.2M $105M (exactly $104,848,549) No Brakes Games
DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO $49.99 50,395 86% 1.5M $76M (exactly $75,577,382) Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
Street Fighter™ 6 older $39.99 49,952 81% 1.5M $60M (exactly $59,927,414) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4 older $19.99 72,409 90% 2.2M $43M (exactly $43,423,677) CyberConnect2 Co. Ltd.
Wobbly Life $24.99 33,034 97% 991k $25M (exactly $24,765,590) RubberBandGames
Microsoft Flight Simulator X: Steam Edition older $24.99 23,349 86% 700k $18M (exactly $17,504,745) Microsoft Game Studios
Goat Simulator older $9.99 54,740 90% 1.6M $16M (exactly $16,405,578) Coffee Stain Studios
LEGO® Marvel™ Super Heroes older $19.99 22,663 95% 680k $14M (exactly $13,591,001) Traveller's Tales
LEGO® Star Wars™ - The Complete Saga older $19.99 20,768 96% 623k $12M (exactly $12,454,570) Traveller's Tales
For The King II older $24.99 12,708 71% 381k $9.5M (exactly $9,527,188) IronOak Games
Rocksmith® 2014 Edition REMASTERED LEARN & PLAY $9.99 15,615 85% 468k $4.7M (exactly $4,679,816) Ubisoft - San Francisco, Ubisoft - Osaka
Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage $19.99 1,897 71% 57k $1.1M (exactly $1,137,631) RGG Studio
DuneCrawl $19.99 568 74% 17k $341k (exactly $340,630) Alientrap
DSS 2: War Industry $17.99 183 83% 5.5k $99k (exactly $98,765) vikingfabian
HOT WHEELS™ Infinite Rush $49.99 55 65% 1.7k $82k (exactly $82,484) Milestone S.r.l.
Taival · EA $19.99 134 83% 4.0k $80k (exactly $80,360) Bonobo Software
A Corgi's Cozy Hike $19.99 63 100% 1.9k $38k (exactly $37,781) Scalisco
Bee Simulator: The Hive $24.99 27 55% 810 $20k (exactly $20,242) VARSAV Game Studios

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