Games › Platformer › Platformer + Shoot 'Em Up
Should I ship a Shoot 'Em Up Platformer?
Platformer + Shoot 'Em Up
Of 107 developers who shipped a Shoot 'Em Up 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.. 150 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $540, ×1.1 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $88k, ×185 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 150 games are announced against 57 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $179 (exactly $179) |
|---|---|
| Median | $539 (exactly $539) |
| Top 25% | $6.0k (exactly $5,997) |
| Top 5% | $88k (exactly $88,112) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 107 |
| Released games | 472 |
| Announced | 150 |
| 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 flat on the market, supply 15% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Shoot 'Em Up
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Platformer, Shoot 'Em Up; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, 2D Platformer, Shooter
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Side Scroller, 2D, Retro
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 92% positive over 3,865 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 58 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 150 games are announced against 57 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Platformer with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Dating SimStrong odds
- + PinballStrong odds
- + Combat RacingFair
- + FMVFair
- + SimulationFair
- + Grid-Based MovementFair
- + AutomationFair
- + Turn-Based TacticsLong shot
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
- + Co-op CampaignPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + SkateboardingPoor odds
Comparable games
Cuphead 2017 · $119M 
HUNTDOWN 2021 · $2.4M 
Squirrel with a Gun 2024 · $1.9M 
Guns, Gore and Cannoli 2 2018 · $1.8M 
Out There Somewhere 2016 · $1.8M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Cuphead | older | $19.99 | 198,790 96% | 6.0M | $119M (exactly $119,214,363) | Studio MDHR Entertainment Inc. |
| | HUNTDOWN | older | $19.99 | 4,059 94% | 122k | $2.4M (exactly $2,434,182) | Easy Trigger Games |
| | Squirrel with a Gun | older | $19.99 | 3,112 86% | 93k | $1.9M (exactly $1,866,266) | Dee Dee Creations LLC |
| | Guns, Gore and Cannoli 2 | older | $12.99 | 4,742 94% | 142k | $1.8M (exactly $1,847,957) | Rogueside, Claeysbrothers |
| | Out There Somewhere | older | $9.99 | 6,160 92% | 185k | $1.8M (exactly $1,846,152) | MiniBoss |
 | METAL SLUG 3 | older | $7.99 | 6,976 90% | 209k | $1.7M (exactly $1,672,147) | SNK CORPORATION, Dotemu |
 | Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef | older | $19.99 | 2,586 87% | 78k | $1.6M (exactly $1,550,824) | Rogueside |
 | Zombotron | older | $14.99 | 2,974 89% | 89k | $1.3M (exactly $1,337,408) | Ant.Karlov Games |
 | Valfaris | older | $24.99 | 1,782 86% | 53k | $1.3M (exactly $1,335,965) | Steel Mantis |
 | Guns, Gore & Cannoli | older | $9.99 | 3,681 91% | 110k | $1.1M (exactly $1,103,196) | Rogueside, Claeysbrothers |
 | Iron Meat | $19.99 | 982 96% | 29k | $589k (exactly $588,905) | Ivan Valeryevich Suvorov, Retroware | |
 | Guns of Fury | $14.99 | 950 88% | 29k | $427k (exactly $427,215) | Gelato Games Ltd | |
 | Neon Inferno | $19.99 | 378 92% | 11k | $227k (exactly $226,687) | Zenovia Interactive | |
 | FISH | · EA | $9.99 | 583 94% | 17k | $175k (exactly $174,725) | dmcaguy |
 | Contract Rush DX | $19.99 | 246 99% | 7.4k | $148k (exactly $147,526) | Figburn, Melon | |
 | Missing Banban | $9.99 | 294 92% | 8.8k | $88k (exactly $88,112) | Simon Carny | |
 | MARVEL MaXimum Collection | $24.99 | 111 76% | 3.3k | $83k (exactly $83,217) | Limited Run Games | |
 | SNAKE GAME ULTRA CORE | $29.99 | 89 88% | 2.7k | $80k (exactly $80,073) | Galactic Geckon | |
 | PROJECT TACHYON | $17.99 | 117 83% | 3.5k | $63k (exactly $63,145) | STUDIO N9 | |
 | Future Knight | $14.99 | 115 98% | 3.5k | $52k (exactly $51,716) | Studio Koba, Aeternum Game Studios |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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