Games › Word Game › Word Game + Noir
Should I ship a Noir Word Game?
Word Game + Noir
Only 19 developers shipped a Noir Word Game 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 Séance of Blake Manor, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 26 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.7k, ×3.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $2.2M, ×4650 the market median. Revenue is up 130% on the market; 26 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $359 (exactly $359) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.7k (exactly $1,676) |
| Top 25% | $13k (exactly $13,432) |
| Top 5% | $2.2M (exactly $2,208,695) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 19 |
| Released games | 45 |
| Announced | 26 |
| 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 130% on the market, supply 70% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 9%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Word Game; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Strategy, Adventure
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $11.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, Anime, Dark
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $11.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 90% positive over 7,129 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $360. 7 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 26 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Word Game with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + SurvivalFair
- + TacticalFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + LootFair
- + AutomationFair
- + Choose Your Own AdventureFair
- + DetectiveFair
- + Procedural GenerationFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + Hidden ObjectFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + NatureFair
Comparable games
Word Game 2022 · $6.2M 
The Séance of Blake Manor 2025 · $2.2M 
DEATH NOTE Killer Within 2024 · $697k 
Roman's Christmas / 罗曼圣诞探案集 2020 · $460k 
CaseCracker2 2024 · $273k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Word Game | older | $34.99 | 5,930 93% | 178k | $6.2M (exactly $6,224,721) | Team9 |
| | The Séance of Blake Manor | $19.99 | 3,683 95% | 110k | $2.2M (exactly $2,208,695) | Spooky Doorway | |
| | DEATH NOTE Killer Within | $9.99 | 2,324 84% | 70k | $697k (exactly $696,503) | Grounding Inc. | |
| | Roman's Christmas / 罗曼圣诞探案集 | older | $10.99 | 1,395 95% | 42k | $460k (exactly $459,932) | SelfCrop Studio |
| | CaseCracker2 | older | $11.99 | 759 90% | 23k | $273k (exactly $273,012) | BlackRobe |
 | Lightracer: For Judge | $9.99 | 462 92% | 14k | $138k (exactly $138,461) | Smartmelon Games | |
 | Traditional Chinese Medicine Simulator | · EA older | $14.99 | 304 96% | 9.1k | $137k (exactly $136,709) | 曲波 |
 | Neyasnoe | older | $9.99 | 439 93% | 13k | $132k (exactly $131,568) | sad3d, ИЛЬЯМАЗО |
 | Word Game World | $11.99 | 114 62% | 3.4k | $41k (exactly $41,006) | Team9 | |
 | I live under your house. | older | $1.99 | 305 80% | 9.2k | $18k (exactly $18,208) | SpoocleMacBoogle |
 | How Much for the Body in the Freezer | $1.99 | 225 92% | 6.8k | $13k (exactly $13,432) | Renka | |
 | Mercury Elopement Syndrome | $1.99 | 171 82% | 5.1k | $10k (exactly $10,209) | Renka | |
 | Dingir OS | $4.99 | 60 85% | 1.8k | $9.0k (exactly $8,982) | SpoocleMacBoogle | |
 | Detective Worden | $4.99 | 54 85% | 1.6k | $8.1k (exactly $8,084) | Domestic Black Cat | |
 | Yesterday's News | $11.99 | 18 83% | 540 | $6.5k (exactly $6,475) | Rooibos Games | |
 | Text Escape: Doomsday City | $3.99 | 18 61% | 540 | $2.2k (exactly $2,155) | 齿轮游戏 |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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