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Should I ship a Top-Down Shooter Management game?
Management + Top-Down Shooter
Of 26 developers who shipped a Top-Down Shooter Management 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.. 58 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×2.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $450; 1 in 20 cleared $78k, ×125 the market median. Revenue is down 55% on the market; 58 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $449 (exactly $449) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.8k (exactly $1,799) |
| Top 25% | $6.7k (exactly $6,736) |
| Top 5% | $79k (exactly $78,521) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 26 |
| Released games | 53 |
| Announced | 58 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $4.99 |
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 55% on the market, supply 90% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Management
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
- Top-Down Shooter
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Management, Top-Down Shooter; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Combat, Shooter
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $11.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Top-Down, 3D, Atmospheric
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $11.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 83% positive over 1,491 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $450. 8 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 58 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Management with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomeFair
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + WesternFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceFair
- + JRPGFair
- + MinigamesFair
- + RhythmFair
- + UnderwaterFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + DwarvesFair
- + 3D FighterFair
- + IncrementalFair
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Keep Her Safe | · EA | $9.99 | 382 97% | 11k | $114k (exactly $114,485) | Gugu Studio |
| | Apocalypse Express | $9.99 | 262 81% | 7.9k | $79k (exactly $78,521) | Llamaware Studios | |
| | Ash & Adam's Existential Treads | $6.99 | 340 92% | 10k | $71k (exactly $71,298) | Ash & Adam's Games | |
| | No Escape from Madness | $11.99 | 197 60% | 5.9k | $71k (exactly $70,861) | qiqin | |
| | Trashed | · EA older | $9.99 | 129 41% | 3.9k | $39k (exactly $38,661) | Josh Presseisen |
| | Dead Unending | older | $9.99 | 108 41% | 3.2k | $32k (exactly $32,368) | Tyler Hudson |
| | Try to survive Today | · EA | $10.99 | 77 68% | 2.3k | $25k (exactly $25,387) | VIVA |
| | Star Control I and II | older | $3.99 | 164 83% | 4.9k | $20k (exactly $19,631) | Toys for Bob |
| | Status One | $14.99 | 30 73% | 900 | $13k (exactly $13,491) | LastCall Studio | |
| | Valand | older | $7.99 | 54 59% | 1.6k | $13k (exactly $12,944) | LOMS Studio |
| | Kitchen Wars | $4.99 | 45 80% | 1.4k | $6.7k (exactly $6,736) | Silent Owl | |
| | Deepstone Rift | · EA | $4.99 | 45 68% | 1.4k | $6.7k (exactly $6,736) | Northend Games |
| | Shoot The Barrels | $1.99 | 103 72% | 3.1k | $6.1k (exactly $6,149) | BATTLE LAB | |
| | Enemy Inside | · EA | $12.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $3.9k (exactly $3,897) | Six Ways Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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