Games › Strategy › Strategy + Pinball
Should I ship a Pinball Strategy game?
Strategy + Pinball
Of 28 developers who shipped a Pinball Strategy 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.. 58 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $8.2k, ×13 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.3k; 1 in 20 cleared $130k, ×211 the market median. Revenue is up 415% on the market; 58 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $2.3k (exactly $2,274) |
|---|---|
| Median | $8.2k (exactly $8,234) |
| Top 25% | $35k (exactly $35,463) |
| Top 5% | $133k (exactly $132,662) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 28 |
| Released games | 38 |
| Announced | 58 |
| Effort | 5 / 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 415% on the market, supply 735% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, 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
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Strategy, Pinball; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Roguelike, Arcade, Deckbuilding
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, 2D, Colorful
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 83% positive over 3,954 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $2.3k. 58 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Strategy with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + BaseballFair
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + WuxiaFair
- + FarmingFair
- + Martial ArtsFair
- + SubmarineFair
- + NavalFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Shop KeeperFair
- + HackingFair
Comparable games
Peglin 2024 · $10M 
Peggle Deluxe 2007 · $1.9M 
Ballionaire 2024 · $888k 
Flick Shot Rogues 2025 · $133k 
Cult of PiN 2026 · $83k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Peglin | older | $19.99 | 16,626 83% | 499k | $10M (exactly $9,970,612) | Red Nexus Games Inc. |
| | Peggle Deluxe | older | $4.99 | 12,613 97% | 378k | $1.9M (exactly $1,888,166) | PopCap Games, Inc. |
| | Ballionaire | $12.34 | 2,398 85% | 72k | $888k (exactly $887,740) | newobject | |
| | Flick Shot Rogues | $14.99 | 295 87% | 8.9k | $133k (exactly $132,662) | Butter By The Fish | |
| | Cult of PiN | $14.99 | 184 77% | 5.5k | $83k (exactly $82,745) | KennyMakesGames | |
 | Plinbo: Roguelike Plinko | $6.99 | 379 67% | 11k | $79k (exactly $79,476) | Raphus & Co. | |
 | Super Cabbage Kabumi | $14.99 | 125 67% | 3.8k | $56k (exactly $56,212) | Vividesca Games | |
 | Idle Gumball Machine | $4.99 | 255 90% | 7.7k | $38k (exactly $38,174) | Antique Gear Games | |
 | ploink | $12.99 | 91 96% | 2.7k | $35k (exactly $35,463) | Pyrocreep | |
 | Ricochet Abyss | · EA | $12.99 | 78 75% | 2.3k | $30k (exactly $30,397) | DreamForge |
 | Beast Breaker | $14.99 | 67 95% | 2.0k | $30k (exactly $30,130) | Vodeo Games, Huey Games | |
 | Ballatory | $7.99 | 82 78% | 2.5k | $20k (exactly $19,655) | Mini Fun Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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