Games › Physics › Physics + Modern
Should I ship a Modern-Day Physics game?
Physics + Modern
Of 84 developers who shipped a Modern-Day Physics 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.. 110 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×1.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $170k, ×285 the market median. Revenue is up 135% on the market; 110 games are announced against 51 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $299 (exactly $299) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.2k (exactly $1,166) |
| Top 25% | $9.0k (exactly $8,992) |
| Top 5% | $179k (exactly $178,872) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 84 |
| Released games | 229 |
| Announced | 110 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $6.99 |
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 135% on the market, supply 55% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Physics; 3 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Immersive Sim, Exploration
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Realistic, First-Person
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 75% positive over 16,541 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 37 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 110 games are announced against 51 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Physics with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderStrong odds
- + Dating SimFair
- + PinballFair
- + World War IIFair
- + Mini GolfFair
- + GolfFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Hidden ObjectFair
- + CatsFair
- + Mystery DungeonFair
- + BilliardsFair
Comparable games
Battlefield™ 2042 2021 · $468M 
RoadCraft 2025 · $16M 
Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 2021 · $15M 
Instruments of Destruction 2024 · $857k 
Bus Bound 2026 · $797k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Battlefield™ 2042 | older | $59.99 | 260,308 49% | 7.8M | $468M (exactly $468,476,308) | DICE |
| | RoadCraft | $39.99 | 13,527 74% | 406k | $16M (exactly $16,228,342) | Saber Interactive | |
| | Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 | older | $39.99 | 12,781 83% | 383k | $15M (exactly $15,333,366) | CI Games |
| | Instruments of Destruction | older | $19.99 | 1,429 91% | 43k | $857k (exactly $856,971) | Radiangames |
| | Bus Bound | $29.99 | 886 72% | 27k | $797k (exactly $797,134) | stillalive studios | |
 | CityDriver | older | $29.99 | 797 43% | 24k | $717k (exactly $717,061) | ViewApp |
 | Modern Naval Warfare | · EA | $59.99 | 237 58% | 7.1k | $427k (exactly $426,529) | Wave Ops |
 | Supermarket & Internet Cafe Simulator | older | $14.99 | 847 79% | 25k | $381k (exactly $380,896) | SmartPlayGames |
 | Zero Caliber 2 Remastered | $24.99 | 433 79% | 13k | $325k (exactly $324,620) | XREAL Games | |
 | Obsideo | · EA older | $11.99 | 797 61% | 24k | $287k (exactly $286,681) | Kyle's Garage |
 | Emergency Cleanup Co. | · EA | $12.99 | 459 89% | 14k | $179k (exactly $178,872) | Smallroom |
 | LOVE Hotel Simulator 🏩 | $14.99 | 241 70% | 7.2k | $108k (exactly $108,378) | Pocket Rocket Studio 🚀 | |
 | Content King | $11.99 | 293 95% | 8.8k | $105k (exactly $105,392) | Usurper Studios | |
 | Airport X-Ray Simulator | · EA | $12.99 | 253 80% | 7.6k | $99k (exactly $98,594) | Rainbow Lab |
 | Libertine: King of Hearts | $19.99 | 96 85% | 2.9k | $58k (exactly $57,571) | Hasnotalent Media | |
 | Global Magnates: Shipping Tycoon | $12.99 | 116 64% | 3.5k | $45k (exactly $45,205) | Aquila Chengdu |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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