Do I ship it?

GamesPhysicsPhysics + Lovecraftian

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Lovecraftian Physics game?

Physics + Lovecraftian

Only 11 developers shipped a Lovecraftian Physics 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, We Gotta Go, 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, ×4.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $4.7k, ×7.4 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.7k; 1 in 20 cleared $71k, ×113 the market median. Revenue is up 350% on the market; 34 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 7.4 times the market baseline, revenue up 350% on the market, 34 announced, ×4.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Physics + Lovecraftian
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 11
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.6k → $17k (still earning) → $6.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Physics + Lovecraftian: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 11
Bottom 30% $2.7k (exactly $2,697)
Median $4.7k (exactly $4,676)
Top 25% $17k (exactly $16,519)
Top 5% $71k (exactly $71,029)
Developers, 2 yr 11
Released games 41
Announced 34
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 up 350% on the market, supply 165% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 15%, 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.

Physics
effort 5 / 10 · low · emergent simulation bugs need hands-on tuning
Lovecraftian
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
Physics
Price point
$8.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 78% positive over 599 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $2.7k, median $4.7k, 1 in 4 over $16k, 1 in 20 over $71k.

3 in 10 developers made under $2.7k. 34 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Physics with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Roguelike DeckbuilderStrong odds31 devs · median $8.1k · 30 announced
  2. + Dating SimFair28 devs · median $5.9k · 20 announced
  3. + PinballFair62 devs · median $2.5k · 80 announced
  4. + World War IIFair11 devs · median $1.4k · 16 announced
  5. + Mini GolfFair40 devs · median $1.2k · 44 announced
  6. + GolfFair55 devs · median $987 · 59 announced
  7. + CollectathonFair179 devs · median $718 · 230 announced
  8. + IdlerFair142 devs · median $718 · 167 announced
  9. + Hidden ObjectFair162 devs · median $600 · 157 announced
  10. + CatsFair76 devs · median $599 · 101 announced
  11. + Mystery DungeonFair22 devs · median $539 · 20 announced
  12. + BilliardsFair36 devs · median $538 · 32 announced

All 251 pairs on the Physics page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
CARRION older $19.99 33,270 94% 998k $20M (exactly $19,952,019) Phobia Game Studio
Amnesia: The Dark Descent older $19.99 20,420 95% 613k $12M (exactly $12,245,874) Frictional Games
Amnesia: Rebirth older $29.99 7,894 77% 237k $7.1M (exactly $7,102,232) Frictional Games
Gloomwood · EA older $19.99 7,495 95% 225k $4.5M (exactly $4,494,752) Dillon Rogers, David Szymanski, Nate Be… (Dillon Rogers, David Szymanski, Nate Berens, Thomas Porta)
CULTIC older $9.99 8,027 97% 241k $2.4M (exactly $2,405,692) Jasozz Games
Source of Madness older $19.99 1,410 69% 42k $846k (exactly $845,577) Carry Castle
The Baby In Yellow · EA older $8.99 2,340 96% 70k $631k (exactly $631,098) Team Terrible
Feed the Deep older $6.99 460 88% 14k $96k (exactly $96,462) Luke Muscat
Morkredd older $19.99 158 71% 4.7k $95k (exactly $94,753) Hyper Games
Batbarian: Testament of the Primordials older $14.99 210 80% 6.3k $94k (exactly $94,437) Unspeakable Pixels
We Gotta Go $9.99 237 60% 7.1k $71k (exactly $71,029) FuzzyBot
SmashCore $4.99 122 94% 3.7k $18k (exactly $18,263) Braian
SECTOR ZERO $3.99 138 93% 4.1k $17k (exactly $16,519) Ondrej Angelovic
CTHULOOT $14.99 32 81% 960 $14k (exactly $14,390) Pixelnest Studio, Headbang Club
Hell Cleaners · EA $14.99 15 60% 450 $6.7k (exactly $6,746) WFP Entertainment
Eldritch Climb: A Cursed Ascent · EA $12.99 12 100% 360 $4.7k (exactly $4,676) Covert Wonders
MEATHOOK $6.99 20 80% 600 $4.2k (exactly $4,194) Alex Rassloff
CyberCook $8.99 10 90% 300 $2.7k (exactly $2,697) Vesvese Studios
A Call From Under the House $2.99 10 90% 300 $897 (exactly $897) Party Crasher Studios
The Portsmoor Abysm $8.99 3 66% 90 $809 (exactly $809) Renons Studios

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