Games › Trading › Trading + Nature
Should I ship a Nature Trading game?
Trading + Nature
Of 27 developers who shipped a Nature Trading 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.. 63 more are announced, ×3.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $3.1k, ×6.6 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.2k; 1 in 20 cleared $760k, ×1602 the market median. Revenue is up 865% on the market; 63 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $1.2k (exactly $1,198) |
|---|---|
| Median | $3.1k (exactly $3,146) |
| Top 25% | $42k (exactly $42,088) |
| Top 5% | $761k (exactly $760,834) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 27 |
| Released games | 65 |
| Announced | 63 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 865% on the market, supply 45% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 23%, 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
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Trading; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Management, Simulation, Economy
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, Isometric, 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 91% positive over 12,544 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $1.2k. 7 in 10 of the 14 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 63 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Trading with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + MiningFair
- + Score AttackFair
- + MMORPGPoor odds
- + Character CustomizationPoor odds
- + Online Co-OpPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + FlightPoor odds
- + SportsPoor odds
- + CollectathonPoor odds
- + PhysicsPoor odds
- + DrivingPoor odds
- + LootPoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Eco | · EA older | $29.99 | 11,375 80% | 341k | $10M (exactly $10,234,088) | Strange Loop Games |
| | Tiny Bookshop | $19.99 | 6,967 96% | 209k | $4.2M (exactly $4,178,110) | neoludic games | |
| | The Oregon Trail | older | $29.99 | 1,220 79% | 37k | $1.1M (exactly $1,097,634) | Gameloft |
| | Hundred Days - Winemaking Simulator | older | $24.99 | 1,033 77% | 31k | $774k (exactly $774,440) | Broken Arms Games |
| | Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping | $7.49 | 3,386 95% | 102k | $761k (exactly $760,834) | Lunheim Studios | |
| | Synergy | $24.99 | 693 79% | 21k | $520k (exactly $519,542) | Leikir Studio | |
| | Industry Giant 4.0 | $24.99 | 506 33% | 15k | $379k (exactly $379,348) | Don VS Dodo | |
| | Time on Frog Island | older | $19.99 | 284 71% | 8.5k | $170k (exactly $170,315) | Half Past Yellow |
| | Garden Simulator | older | $14.99 | 358 82% | 11k | $161k (exactly $160,993) | PRODUKTIVKELLER Studios |
| | Tlatoani: Aztec Cities | $19.99 | 180 83% | 5.4k | $108k (exactly $107,946) | Perspective Games, Bellwood Studios | |
| | Lure Of Passion | $5.99 | 452 89% | 14k | $81k (exactly $81,224) | Snakerser's Games | |
| | Tiny Garden | $12.99 | 108 85% | 3.2k | $42k (exactly $42,088) | Ao Norte | |
| | Minsgon Simulator | $9.99 | 112 78% | 3.4k | $34k (exactly $33,566) | Vokcen | |
| | Nom Nom: Cozy Forest Café | $12.99 | 80 92% | 2.4k | $31k (exactly $31,176) | Anaïs Salla | |
| | Village Merchant | $14.99 | 60 68% | 1.8k | $27k (exactly $26,982) | Beast Games S. A., Console Labs S. A. |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.