Do I ship it?

Games › Platformer › Platformer + Roguelite

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Roguelite Platformer?

Platformer + Roguelite

Of 165 developers who shipped a Roguelite Platformer 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.. 242 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $720, ×1.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $88k, ×186 the market median. Revenue is up 85% on the market; 242 games are announced against 91 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.5 times the market baseline, revenue up 85% on the market, 242 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Platformer + Roguelite
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 165
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $5.1k → $6.3k → $7.2k → $599 → $718 → $2.2k → $716 (still earning) → $150 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Platformer + Roguelite: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 165
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $719 (exactly $719)
Top 25% $5.4k (exactly $5,395)
Top 5% $88k (exactly $88,478)
Developers, 2 yr 165
Released games 500
Announced 242
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $5.99

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 85% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 8%, excluded from money figures.

See every window in the explorer →

Plate 2 · systems and tooling

Can AI deliver it?

AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Roguelite
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Platformer, Roguelite; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Action Roguelike, Roguelike
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $16.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $16.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 21,105 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $720, 1 in 4 over $5.3k, 1 in 20 over $88k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 84 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 242 games are announced against 91 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Platformer with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Dating SimStrong odds19 devs · median $3.0k · 15 announced
  2. + PinballStrong odds10 devs · median $2.5k · 6 announced
  3. + Combat RacingFair28 devs · median $899 · 38 announced
  4. + FMVFair9 devs · median $899 · 10 announced
  5. + SimulationFair281 devs · median $628 · 235 announced
  6. + Grid-Based MovementFair23 devs · median $539 · 18 announced
  7. + AutomationFair13 devs · median $449 · 16 announced
  8. + Turn-Based TacticsLong shot15 devs · median $360 · 18 announced
  9. + LGBTQ+Poor odds42 devs · median $7.2k · 90 announced
  10. + Co-op CampaignPoor odds32 devs · median $6.5k · 90 announced
  11. + JRPGPoor odds14 devs · median $5.8k · 38 announced
  12. + SkateboardingPoor odds14 devs · median $4.8k · 23 announced

All 206 pairs on the Platformer page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Dead Cells 2018 · $117M Skul: The Hero Slayer 2021 · $30M Neon Abyss 2020 · $19M Rogue Legacy 2 2022 · $11M Crab Champions 2023 · EA · $8.0M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Dead Cells older $24.99 156,263 97% 4.7M $117M (exactly $117,150,371) Motion Twin
Skul: The Hero Slayer older $19.99 50,801 93% 1.5M $30M (exactly $30,465,360) SOUTHPAW GAMES
Neon Abyss older $31.49 19,709 86% 591k $19M (exactly $18,619,092) Veewo Games
Rogue Legacy 2 older $24.99 14,238 90% 427k $11M (exactly $10,674,229) Cellar Door Games
Crab Champions · EA older $9.99 26,546 97% 796k $8.0M (exactly $7,955,836) Noisestorm
Haste $19.99 12,690 92% 381k $7.6M (exactly $7,610,193) Landfall
Have a Nice Death older $24.99 9,729 85% 292k $7.3M (exactly $7,293,831) Magic Design Studios
Rogue Legacy older $14.99 15,877 92% 476k $7.1M (exactly $7,139,887) Cellar Door Games
ROUNDS older $5.99 35,738 95% 1.1M $6.4M (exactly $6,422,119) Landfall
Risk of Rain (2013) older $9.99 20,768 93% 623k $6.2M (exactly $6,224,170) Hopoo Games
The Rogue Prince of Persia $29.99 2,393 89% 72k $2.2M (exactly $2,152,982) Evil Empire
Neon Abyss 2 · EA $19.99 1,968 68% 59k $1.2M (exactly $1,180,210) Veewo Games
OVIS LOOP · EA $16.99 1,083 88% 32k $552k (exactly $552,005) LIFUEL
Dragon Is Dead $19.99 661 75% 20k $396k (exactly $396,402) TeamSuneat
Katanaut $17.99 484 88% 15k $261k (exactly $261,215) Voidmaw
Zad Archery $6.99 803 73% 24k $168k (exactly $168,389) Samharia Studios
Blood Dungeon $9.99 453 89% 14k $136k (exactly $135,764) Messhof
Moventure $12.34 239 67% 7.2k $88k (exactly $88,478) Pixelatto
IGNOBLE $6.99 331 82% 9.9k $69k (exactly $69,411) Retromagine

Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.