Do I ship it?

GamesRogueliteRoguelite + Mystery

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Mystery Roguelite?

Roguelite + Mystery

Of 131 developers who shipped a Mystery Roguelite 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.. 250 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $900, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $120k, ×266 the market median. Revenue is up 50% on the market; 250 games are announced against 88 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 50% on the market, 250 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Roguelite + Mystery
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 131
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $62k → $3.4k → $2.2k → $540 → $1.9k → $809 → $2.5k (still earning) → $359 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Roguelite + Mystery: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 131
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $899 (exactly $899)
Top 25% $5.7k (exactly $5,741)
Top 5% $126k (exactly $126,366)
Developers, 2 yr 131
Released games 250
Announced 250
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 50% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Roguelite
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Mystery
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Roguelite; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Roguelike, Adventure, Strategy
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, 2D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 33,420 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $900, 1 in 4 over $5.7k, 1 in 20 over $120k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 50 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 250 games are announced against 88 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Roguelite with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Real-TimeFair11 devs · median $11k · 14 announced
  2. + ProgrammingFair24 devs · median $9.3k · 28 announced
  3. + VampiresFair60 devs · median $4.8k · 62 announced
  4. + TypingFair29 devs · median $2.4k · 34 announced
  5. + Grand StrategyFair21 devs · median $2.0k · 23 announced
  6. + IdlerFair166 devs · median $1.5k · 235 announced
  7. + DogsFair30 devs · median $1.3k · 22 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair23 devs · median $1.1k · 23 announced
  9. + Score AttackFair344 devs · median $719 · 450 announced
  10. + Point & ClickFair94 devs · median $600 · 121 announced
  11. + LogicFair144 devs · median $599 · 143 announced
  12. + DwarvesPoor odds21 devs · median $74k · 24 announced

All 229 pairs on the Roguelite page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Blue Prince $29.99 17,498 85% 525k $16M (exactly $15,742,951) Dogubomb
WORLD OF HORROR older $19.99 8,991 89% 270k $5.4M (exactly $5,391,903) panstasz
GNOSIA older $24.99 4,855 93% 146k $3.6M (exactly $3,639,794) Petit Depotto
Sol Cesto $13.99 4,838 91% 145k $2.0M (exactly $2,030,509) Tambouille, Géraud Zucchini, Chariospir… (Tambouille, Géraud Zucchini, Chariospirale)
KLETKA $9.99 6,374 90% 191k $1.9M (exactly $1,910,288) Callback, ln404
OTXO older $14.99 3,303 93% 99k $1.5M (exactly $1,485,359) Lateralis Heavy Industries
Withering Rooms older $24.99 1,209 96% 36k $906k (exactly $906,387) Moonless Formless
Source of Madness older $19.99 1,410 69% 42k $846k (exactly $845,577) Carry Castle
Ultros older $24.99 787 80% 24k $590k (exactly $590,014) Hadoque
The Last Case of Benedict Fox Definitive Edition older $24.99 786 71% 24k $589k (exactly $589,264) Plot Twist
Hell Maiden · EA $9.99 1,834 90% 55k $550k (exactly $549,650) AstralShift
UnderMine 2 · EA $19.99 828 75% 25k $497k (exactly $496,552) Thorium
NO-SKIN $6.99 1,227 95% 37k $257k (exactly $257,302) NoEye-Soft
Deified · EA $14.99 281 96% 8.4k $126k (exactly $126,366) Unexpected
Kromlech · EA $29.99 136 65% 4.1k $122k (exactly $122,359) Perun Creative
Rina's Undercover Train Operation $13.99 286 70% 8.6k $120k (exactly $120,034) Metamorphose
THE SPIRIT LIFT $19.99 118 94% 3.5k $71k (exactly $70,765) prettysmart games

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