Do I ship it?

Games › Platformer › Platformer + Score Attack

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Score Attack Platformer?

Platformer + Score Attack

Of 228 developers who shipped a Score Attack 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.. 252 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $360 in the last 2 years and $450 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 121 developers shipped in the last year and 252 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.8 times the market baseline, revenue up 45% on the market, 252 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Platformer + Score Attack
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 228
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $898 → $629 → $535 → $629 → $479 → $359 → $599 (still earning) → $135 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Platformer + Score Attack: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 228
Bottom 30% $119 (exactly $119)
Median $359 (exactly $359)
Top 25% $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 5% $38k (exactly $38,191)
Developers, 2 yr 228
Released games 706
Announced 252
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 45% on the market, supply 15% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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
Score Attack
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, Score Attack; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, 2D Platformer, Arcade
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 97% positive over 34,515 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $120, median $360, 1 in 4 over $1.7k, 1 in 20 over $38k.

3 in 10 developers made under $120. Nearly all of the 125 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 252 games are announced against 121 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 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

SONIC X SHADOW GENERATIONS 2024 · $18M White Knuckle 2025 · EA · $6.8M ANTONBLAST 2024 · $2.4M Wuppo: Definitive Edition 2016 · $2.2M Denshattack! 2026 · $1.7M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
SONIC X SHADOW GENERATIONS $49.99 12,178 96% 365k $18M (exactly $18,263,347) Sonic Team
White Knuckle · EA $16.99 13,356 98% 401k $6.8M (exactly $6,807,553) Dark Machine Games
ANTONBLAST $19.99 3,943 95% 118k $2.4M (exactly $2,364,617) Summitsphere
Wuppo: Definitive Edition older $14.99 4,949 94% 148k $2.2M (exactly $2,225,565) snekflat
Denshattack! $19.99 2,910 98% 87k $1.7M (exactly $1,745,127) Undercoders
Electronic Super Joy older $7.99 2,471 89% 74k $592k (exactly $592,299) Michael Todd Games
Iron Meat $19.99 982 96% 29k $589k (exactly $588,905) Ivan Valeryevich Suvorov, Retroware
Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity older $14.99 1,219 91% 37k $548k (exactly $548,184) Ankake Spa
Asterix & Obelix XXL: Romastered older $19.99 708 78% 21k $425k (exactly $424,588) OSome Studio
Cursed to Golf older $19.99 693 70% 21k $416k (exactly $415,592) Chuhai Labs
Neon Inferno $19.99 378 92% 11k $227k (exactly $226,687) Zenovia Interactive
Blood Dungeon $9.99 453 89% 14k $136k (exactly $135,764) Messhof
SNOW BROS. 2 SPECIAL $34.99 80 70% 2.4k $84k (exactly $83,976) CRT GAMES
Myths are 100% True $14.99 184 100% 5.5k $83k (exactly $82,745) LeatherIceCream, ClayGod
Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 1+2 Dual Collection $29.99 51 74% 1.5k $46k (exactly $45,885) INTI CREATES CO., LTD.

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