Games › Metroidvania › Metroidvania + Post-apocalyptic
Should I ship a Post-apocalyptic Metroidvania?
Metroidvania + Post-apocalyptic
Of 29 developers who shipped a Post-apocalyptic Metroidvania 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.. 136 more are announced, ×10 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $6.4k, ×10 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $840; 1 in 20 cleared $200k, ×319 the market median. Revenue is down 45% on the market; 136 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $838 (exactly $838) |
|---|---|
| Median | $6.4k (exactly $6,369) |
| Top 25% | $35k (exactly $34,627) |
| Top 5% | $200k (exactly $200,170) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 29 |
| Released games | 96 |
| Announced | 136 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $14.99 |
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 45% on the market, supply 20% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 8%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Metroidvania
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
- Post-apocalyptic
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Metroidvania; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Exploration, 2D Platformer
- Price point
- $14.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Side Scroller, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $14.99.
The top 10 games average 79% positive over 1,993 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $840. 8 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 136 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×10 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Metroidvania with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + ParkourPoor odds
- + Online Co-OpPoor odds
- + CraftingPoor odds
- + SimulationPoor odds
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + CollectathonPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Survival HorrorPoor odds
- + Souls-likePoor odds
- + VampiresPoor odds
- + Inventory ManagementPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
Comparable games
Rain World 2017 · $35M 
ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights 2021 · $32M 
Darksiders III 2018 · $15M 
Hyper Light Drifter 2016 · $9.3M 
Darksiders Warmastered Edition 2016 · $8.4M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Rain World | older | $24.99 | 46,871 94% | 1.4M | $35M (exactly $35,139,189) | Videocult |
| | ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights | older | $24.99 | 43,092 93% | 1.3M | $32M (exactly $32,306,072) | Live Wire, Adglobe |
| | Darksiders III | older | $39.99 | 12,519 75% | 376k | $15M (exactly $15,019,044) | Gunfire Games |
| | Hyper Light Drifter | older | $19.99 | 15,548 93% | 466k | $9.3M (exactly $9,324,136) | Heart Machine |
| | Darksiders Warmastered Edition | older | $19.99 | 13,942 88% | 418k | $8.4M (exactly $8,361,017) | KAIKO, Vigil Games |
 | Dread Delusion | older | $19.99 | 4,886 90% | 147k | $2.9M (exactly $2,930,134) | Lovely Hellplace |
 | Caravan SandWitch | older | $24.99 | 2,797 88% | 84k | $2.1M (exactly $2,096,911) | Studio Plane Toast |
 | HAAK | older | $17.99 | 3,149 89% | 94k | $1.7M (exactly $1,699,515) | Blingame |
 | The End Is Nigh | older | $14.99 | 3,291 93% | 99k | $1.5M (exactly $1,479,963) | Edmund McMillen, Tyler Glaiel |
 | UNSIGHTED | older | $19.99 | 1,863 93% | 56k | $1.1M (exactly $1,117,241) | Studio Pixel Punk |
 | The Devil Within: Satgat | $24.99 | 795 78% | 24k | $596k (exactly $596,012) | Newcore Games | |
 | Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution | $24.99 | 267 85% | 8.0k | $200k (exactly $200,170) | WayForward, Limited Run Games | |
 | INAYAH - Life after Gods | $15.99 | 230 71% | 6.9k | $110k (exactly $110,331) | Exogenesis Studios | |
 | Kentum | $17.99 | 172 75% | 5.2k | $93k (exactly $92,828) | Tlön Industries | |
 | Voltage High Society | $19.99 | 144 92% | 4.3k | $86k (exactly $86,357) | Platonic Partnership | |
 | Heavy Hearts | $14.99 | 98 70% | 2.9k | $44k (exactly $44,071) | Dammitbird | |
 | Rusty Rabbit | $19.99 | 59 67% | 1.8k | $35k (exactly $35,382) | NITRO PLUS | |
 | Last Vanguard | $14.99 | 77 81% | 2.3k | $35k (exactly $34,627) | Cool Tapir Studios | |
 | Alruna and the Necro-Industrialists | $9.99 | 113 84% | 3.4k | $34k (exactly $33,866) | Neckbolt | |
 | Gravity Castle | $14.99 | 38 89% | 1.1k | $17k (exactly $17,089) | Studio LEF |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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