Do I ship it?

GamesPhysicsPhysics + Match 3

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Physics Match 3?

Physics + Match 3

Of 37 developers who shipped a Physics Match 3 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.. 19 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $450 in the last 2 years and $300 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 22 developers shipped in the last year and 19 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.7 times the market baseline, revenue down 55% on the market, 19 announced, ×0.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Physics + Match 3
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 37
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $269 → $179 → $1.2k → $1.9k → $178 → $179 (still earning) → $1.2k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Physics + Match 3: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 37
Bottom 30% $148 (exactly $148)
Median $449 (exactly $449)
Top 25% $1.9k (exactly $1,946)
Top 5% $212k (exactly $212,188)
Developers, 2 yr 37
Released games 94
Announced 19
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $3.99

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 45% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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
Match 3
effort 2 / 10 · high · grid matching rules and cascades

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Physics, Match 3; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Arcade, Score Attack
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $8.50 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $8.50 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 4,601 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $450, 1 in 4 over $1.9k, 1 in 20 over $210k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 16 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 19 games are announced against 22 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Physics with a different second tag, 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
POPUCOM $19.99 3,432 87% 103k $2.1M (exactly $2,058,170) Hypergryph
Zuma Deluxe older $4.99 6,481 95% 194k $970k (exactly $970,206) PopCap Games, Inc.
Dogpile $9.99 708 95% 21k $212k (exactly $212,188) Studio Folly, Toot Games, Foot
Tumblebugs older $19.99 123 91% 3.7k $74k (exactly $73,763) Wildfire Studios
PancitoMerge $7.99 158 99% 4.7k $38k (exactly $37,873) Fáyer, Sketchy Ceviche
Rainbow Reactor older $14.99 71 94% 2.1k $32k (exactly $31,929) Tunermaxx Media GmbH, Muikkumedia Oy
sobosuba $3.99 178 99% 5.3k $21k (exactly $21,307) keepeetron
Tiny Bubbles older $9.99 44 90% 1.3k $13k (exactly $13,187) Pine Street Codeworks LLC
Candy Blast older $4.99 82 78% 2.5k $12k (exactly $12,275) White Rabbit Games
Atlantis: Pearls of the Deep older $6.99 57 82% 1.7k $12k (exactly $11,953) Alder Games
Slime Soup $4.99 50 90% 1.5k $7.5k (exactly $7,485) VANDERMAESEN GAMES
Spire Blast $6.99 17 100% 510 $3.6k (exactly $3,565) Orbital Knight
Zooika $4.99 18 100% 540 $2.7k (exactly $2,695) Graphic Reality
Witchpop $8.50 10 100% 300 $2.6k (exactly $2,550) Havlark Games
Pinball Hero $3.99 17 76% 510 $2.0k (exactly $2,035) COSO
Popcorn Fever $4.99 13 100% 390 $1.9k (exactly $1,946) Yunicorn Studio

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