Games › Open World › Open World + Word Game
Should I ship a Word Game Open World game?
Open World + Word Game
Only 16 developers shipped a Word Game Open World 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, Noun Town Language Learning, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 21 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.6k, ×1.1 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $420k, ×283 the market median. Revenue is up 290% on the market; 21 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $179 (exactly $179) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.6k (exactly $1,619) |
| Top 25% | $5.9k (exactly $5,930) |
| Top 5% | $425k (exactly $424,588) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 16 |
| Released games | 38 |
| Announced | 21 |
| Effort | 8 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $5.00 |
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 290% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 18%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Open World
- effort 8 / 10 · low · effort 8 sits in the low band
- Word Game
- effort 1 / 10 · high · dictionary logic and simple UI
What it takes
- Effort
- 8 / 10 · online systems, open world
- Systems
- Open World, Word Game; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Exploration, Puzzle, Simulation
- Price point
- $5.00 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Cartoon, 2D, Stylized
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.00.
The top 10 games average 83% positive over 1,108 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 21 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Open World with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + WuxiaFair
- + 4 Player LocalFair
- + VampiresFair
- + TrainsFair
- + FMVFair
- + GothicFair
- + MarsFair
- + TanksFair
- + FaithLong shot
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + Co-op CampaignPoor odds
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Noun Town Language Learning | $19.99 | 708 84% | 21k | $425k (exactly $424,588) | SUPER HYPER MEGA | |
| | 灵墟 | older | $10.99 | 946 86% | 28k | $312k (exactly $311,896) | HappyTall Game |
| | Lingo | older | $9.99 | 788 93% | 24k | $236k (exactly $236,164) | Brenton Wildes |
| | TIME TO STARⅡ偶像之路终极版 | $12.99 | 124 70% | 3.7k | $48k (exactly $48,323) | 随便做做游戏组 | |
| | The Quest For Excalibur - Puy Du Fou | older | $14.99 | 15 53% | 450 | $6.7k (exactly $6,746) | Balio Studio |
| | 鸿运修仙传 | $5.99 | 34 76% | 1.0k | $6.1k (exactly $6,110) | 玉米工作室 | |
| | Horizons: The End Of Words | $5.99 | 33 87% | 990 | $5.9k (exactly $5,930) | PUNKCAKE Delicieux | |
| | Wuwei Cultivation | $1.50 | 107 86% | 3.2k | $4.8k (exactly $4,815) | 程序员小灰 | |
| | Runren Simulator | $1.99 | 59 91% | 1.8k | $3.5k (exactly $3,522) | K.K. | |
| | Humanoid | older | $14.99 | 7 0% | 210 | $3.1k (exactly $3,148) | BinaryBrigade, Seywan Jahani |
| | 云玩家:口口 | $3.99 | 20 75% | 600 | $2.4k (exactly $2,394) | 猫不在 / Cat404 | |
| | FootballLife | $17.99 | 3 33% | 90 | $1.6k (exactly $1,619) | 小伍 | |
| | Monkeys & Typewriters! | · EA | $2.99 | 15 93% | 450 | $1.3k (exactly $1,346) | Mage & Friends |
| | SUIKAWA LEAD | $7.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $1.2k (exactly $1,198) | くそいサイト |
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.