Do I ship it?

GamesPvPPvP + Minigames

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a PvP Minigames game?

PvP + Minigames

Of 35 developers who shipped a PvP Minigames 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.. 59 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 $3.3k, ×2.2 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.4k; 1 in 20 cleared $910k, ×611 the market median. Revenue is down 25% on the market; 59 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 25% on the market, 59 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
PvP + Minigames
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: $5.0k → $4.0k → $9.0k → $3.3k → $13k (still earning) → $898 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for PvP + Minigames: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 35
Bottom 30% $1.3k (exactly $1,349)
Median $3.3k (exactly $3,297)
Top 25% $13k (exactly $12,808)
Top 5% $916k (exactly $915,883)
Developers, 2 yr 35
Released games 102
Announced 59
Effort 8 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 25% on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 22%, 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.

PvP
effort 8 / 10 · low · authoritative servers, latency compensation, cheating
Minigames
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
8 / 10 · online systems, open world
Systems
PvP, Minigames; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Party Game, Co-op, Online Co-Op
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Funny, Colorful, Cartoony
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 76% positive over 16,535 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.4k, median $3.3k, 1 in 4 over $12k, 1 in 20 over $910k.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.4k. 9 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 59 games are announced against 21 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + BaseballFair6 devs · median $7.6k · 9 announced
  2. + TransportationFair10 devs · median $5.7k · 11 announced
  3. + BasketballFair25 devs · median $2.6k · 28 announced
  4. + Football (American)Fair17 devs · median $1.8k · 12 announced
  5. + BikesFair10 devs · median $1.5k · 7 announced
  6. + GolfFair29 devs · median $1.4k · 34 announced
  7. + World War IFair12 devs · median $1.3k · 14 announced
  8. + IncrementalFair36 devs · median $1.2k · 48 announced
  9. + BilliardsFair18 devs · median $1.1k · 12 announced
  10. + TennisLong shot17 devs · median $899 · 15 announced
  11. + TypingLong shot28 devs · median $719 · 31 announced
  12. + SpellingLong shot14 devs · median $719 · 17 announced

All 247 pairs on the PvP page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Among Us older $4.99 659,003 92% 20M $99M (exactly $98,652,749) Innersloth
Plants vs. Zombies™: Replanted $19.99 6,898 66% 207k $4.1M (exactly $4,136,731) PopCap Games, The Lost Pixels
RUMBLE · EA older $24.99 3,158 87% 95k $2.4M (exactly $2,367,553) Buckethead Entertainment
First Class Trouble older $14.99 3,103 79% 93k $1.4M (exactly $1,395,419) Invisible Walls
FlatOut older $7.49 5,870 91% 176k $1.3M (exactly $1,318,989) Bugbear Entertainment, ZOOM Platform Me… (Bugbear Entertainment, ZOOM Platform Media, Jordan Freeman Group)
Among Us 3D $9.99 3,056 72% 92k $916k (exactly $915,883) Schell Games, Innersloth
Headbangers: Rhythm Royale older $29.99 983 69% 29k $884k (exactly $884,405) Glee-Cheese Studio
Feign $4.99 5,270 91% 158k $789k (exactly $788,919) Teneke Kafalar
Among Us 3D: VR older $9.99 2,449 75% 73k $734k (exactly $733,965) Schell Games, Innersloth, Robot Teddy
My Singing Monsters Playground older $39.99 263 82% 7.9k $316k (exactly $315,521) Big Blue Bubble
Youtubers Life 3 $19.99 468 50% 14k $281k (exactly $280,660) UPLAY Online
Feather Party $8.99 548 87% 16k $148k (exactly $147,796) threeW
Judofuri $14.99 80 100% 2.4k $36k (exactly $35,976) pataya
Villainy $7.99 88 94% 2.6k $21k (exactly $21,094) Studio Rend
Dino Party $11.99 56 98% 1.7k $20k (exactly $20,143) Studio Nachtwerk
Roombattle $7.49 57 98% 1.7k $13k (exactly $12,808) Dust Games
Pinchcliffe Grand Prix Anniversary Edition $29.99 14 78% 420 $13k (exactly $12,596) Ravn Studio, Rock Pocket Games, Invictu… (Ravn Studio, Rock Pocket Games, Invictus Games)

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