Games › Strategy › Strategy + Music
Should I ship a Music Strategy game?
Strategy + Music
Of 30 developers who shipped a Music Strategy 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.. 38 more are announced, ×2.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.7k, ×2.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $120k, ×201 the market median. Revenue is up 70% on the market; 38 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $150 (exactly $150) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.7k (exactly $1,710) |
| Top 25% | $6.6k (exactly $6,555) |
| Top 5% | $126k (exactly $125,916) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 30 |
| Released games | 116 |
| Announced | 38 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $5.99 |
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 70% on the market, supply 15% 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.
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Strategy; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Management, Rhythm
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 95% positive over 2,095 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $150. 8 in 10 of the 16 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 38 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Strategy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + BaseballFair
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + WuxiaFair
- + FarmingFair
- + Martial ArtsFair
- + SubmarineFair
- + NavalFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Shop KeeperFair
- + HackingFair
Comparable games
Geometry Dash 2014 · $89M 
Just Shapes & Beats 2018 · $14M 
Brutal Legend 2013 · $5.1M 
Party Hard 2 2018 · $1.5M 
FRAMED Collection 2018 · $700k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Geometry Dash | older | $4.99 | 595,606 93% | 18M | $89M (exactly $89,162,218) | RobTop Games |
| | Just Shapes & Beats | older | $19.99 | 24,041 97% | 721k | $14M (exactly $14,417,388) | Berzerk Studio |
| | Brutal Legend | older | $14.99 | 11,365 94% | 341k | $5.1M (exactly $5,110,840) | Double Fine Productions |
| | Party Hard 2 | older | $19.99 | 2,419 78% | 73k | $1.5M (exactly $1,450,674) | Pinokl Games, Kverta, Hologryph |
| | FRAMED Collection | older | $9.99 | 2,336 94% | 70k | $700k (exactly $700,099) | Loveshack Entertainment |
 | Fretless - The Wrath of Riffson | $14.99 | 1,399 98% | 42k | $629k (exactly $629,130) | Ritual Studios | |
 | Rock 'N' Roll Defense | older | $4.99 | 3,646 87% | 109k | $546k (exactly $545,806) | NukGames |
 | Hatsune Miku Logic Paint S | older | $13.99 | 1,078 93% | 32k | $452k (exactly $452,437) | Crypton Future Media |
 | Bardbarian | older | $7.99 | 773 90% | 23k | $185k (exactly $185,288) | TreeFortress Games |
 | Hatsune Miku Logic Paint S+ | $14.99 | 280 89% | 8.4k | $126k (exactly $125,916) | Crypton Future Media | |
 | CD Market - Music Label Sim | $19.99 | 105 97% | 3.2k | $63k (exactly $62,968) | Lost Star Games | |
 | Bean Beasts | $13.99 | 113 89% | 3.4k | $47k (exactly $47,426) | Anxious Noob | |
 | Electro Bop Boxing League | $14.99 | 84 79% | 2.5k | $38k (exactly $37,775) | Developer Dob | |
 | RHYTHMKILL | $9.99 | 45 82% | 1.4k | $13k (exactly $13,486) | GETTAKE | |
 | Shady O'Grady's™ Overnight Sensation | · EA | $14.99 | 20 90% | 600 | $9.0k (exactly $8,994) | Gilligames |
 | Streaming Race | $11.50 | 19 73% | 570 | $6.6k (exactly $6,555) | Miranda Studios | |
 | Pop! Pachinko | $12.99 | 13 100% | 390 | $5.1k (exactly $5,066) | Pangolin Interactive, Robot Lion Games | |
 | Bass Defense - Rhythm Meets Strategy | $5.99 | 17 100% | 510 | $3.1k (exactly $3,055) | WOMBEX Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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