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Should I ship a Mystery Tower Defense?
Tower Defense + Mystery
Only 18 developers shipped a Mystery Tower Defense in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, The Spotter: Dig or Die, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 37 more are announced, ×3.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $150 in the last 2 years and $90 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 12 developers shipped in the last year and 37 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $0 (exactly $0) |
|---|---|
| Median | $150 (exactly $150) |
| Top 25% | $1.1k (exactly $1,078) |
| Top 5% | $698k (exactly $698,342) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 18 |
| Released games | 34 |
| Announced | 37 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| Typical price | $4.99 |
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 615% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 3%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Tower Defense
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Mystery
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Tower Defense; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Action, Grid-Based Movement
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Isometric, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 84% positive over 1,879 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 37 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.1 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Tower Defense with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + DwarvesStrong odds
- + MiningFair
- + Survival HorrorFair
- + CapitalismFair
- + TanksFair
- + MechsFair
- + IdlerFair
- + PuzzleFair
- + Gun CustomizationFair
- + LogicFair
- + On-Rails ShooterFair
- + Psychological HorrorFair
Comparable games
The Spotter: Dig or Die 2026 · $698k 
JARS 2021 · $37k 
Fort Meow 2015 · $35k 
TD Worlds 2022 · $8.2k 
Heroic Aegisio: Origins 2025 · $6.5k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | The Spotter: Dig or Die | $12.99 | 1,792 84% | 54k | $698k (exactly $698,342) | Puppyroar Games | |
| | JARS | older | $11.99 | 104 71% | 3.1k | $37k (exactly $37,409) | Mousetrap Games |
| | Fort Meow | older | $7.99 | 145 92% | 4.4k | $35k (exactly $34,756) | Upper Class Walrus |
| | TD Worlds | older | $10.99 | 25 68% | 750 | $8.2k (exactly $8,242) | NewOldMax |
| | Heroic Aegisio: Origins | $7.99 | 27 77% | 810 | $6.5k (exactly $6,472) | Vview Games | |
 | Clockfall | · EA | $9.99 | 18 94% | 540 | $5.4k (exactly $5,395) | Rever Games GmbH |
 | 666 Second Rule | older | $4.99 | 24 95% | 720 | $3.6k (exactly $3,593) | Stray Feet |
 | Maze It Out | $4.99 | 15 93% | 450 | $2.2k (exactly $2,246) | Limit Test Games | |
 | Yoli | older | $1.99 | 27 100% | 810 | $1.6k (exactly $1,612) | Old School Vibes |
 | Otti: house keeper | older | $7.99 | 5 80% | 150 | $1.2k (exactly $1,198) | Maksym Vostruhin |
 | Vespia: Shield of Aberration | $5.99 | 6 83% | 180 | $1.1k (exactly $1,078) | Hourglass Games | |
 | Night of Nightmare | $3.99 | 9 44% | 270 | $1.1k (exactly $1,077) | Enter the Game Studios | |
 | Queen Of The Hill | $3.99 | 6 100% | 180 | $718 (exactly $718) | Veebs22 | |
 | The Last Purge | $4.99 | 4 75% | 120 | $599 (exactly $599) | Third Singular | |
 | Survivors SymphonYs | $4.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $150 (exactly $150) | Surfin Bird | |
 | Cascadence | $2.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $90 (exactly $90) | proxaCor |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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