Do I ship it?

GamesPlatformerPlatformer + Space

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Space Platformer?

Platformer + Space

Of 179 developers who shipped a Space 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.. 263 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $450 in the last 2 years and $420 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 94 developers shipped in the last year and 263 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.7 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 263 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Platformer + Space
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 179
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $599 → $180 → $270 → $599 → $300 → $742 → $299 (still earning) → $90 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Platformer + Space: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 179
Bottom 30% $90 (exactly $90)
Median $449 (exactly $449)
Top 25% $2.2k (exactly $2,158)
Top 5% $81k (exactly $81,495)
Developers, 2 yr 179
Released games 679
Announced 263
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 down 10% on the market, supply 10% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 17%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Space
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Platformer; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, 2D Platformer
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 5,631 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $90, median $450, 1 in 4 over $2.1k, 1 in 20 over $81k.

3 in 10 developers made under $90. 9 in 10 of the 107 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 263 games are announced against 94 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Platformer with a different setting or mood, 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
STAR WARS Jedi: Fallen Order™ older $39.99 153,782 88% 4.6M $184M (exactly $184,492,265) Respawn Entertainment
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart older $59.99 11,529 90% 346k $21M (exactly $20,748,741) Insomniac Games, Nixxes Software
Awesomenauts older $19.99 11,822 84% 355k $7.1M (exactly $7,089,653) Ronimo Games
STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition older $19.99 8,732 77% 262k $5.2M (exactly $5,236,580) LucasArts
Revenge of the Savage Planet $29.99 2,845 86% 85k $2.6M (exactly $2,559,646) Raccoon Logic Studios Inc.
The Swapper older $14.99 5,065 93% 152k $2.3M (exactly $2,277,730) Olli Harjola, Otto Hantula, Tom Jubert,… (Olli Harjola, Otto Hantula, Tom Jubert, Carlo Castellano)
Deliver Us Mars older $29.99 2,271 74% 68k $2.0M (exactly $2,043,219) KeokeN Interactive
The Entropy Centre older $19.99 3,359 89% 101k $2.0M (exactly $2,014,392) Stubby Games
Out There Somewhere older $9.99 6,160 92% 185k $1.8M (exactly $1,846,152) MiniBoss
Solar Ash older $39.99 1,354 90% 41k $1.6M (exactly $1,624,394) Heart Machine
Bubsy 4D $19.99 777 92% 23k $466k (exactly $465,967) Fabraz
Bionic Bay $19.99 750 84% 23k $450k (exactly $449,775) Psychoflow Studio, Mureena Oy
Aphelion $29.99 303 63% 9.1k $273k (exactly $272,609) DON'T NOD
Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection $19.99 216 84% 6.5k $130k (exactly $129,535) Limited Run Games
Somber Echoes $14.99 271 81% 8.1k $122k (exactly $121,869) Rock Pocket Games, Lav Games
Space Adventure Cobra - The Awakening $24.99 119 77% 3.6k $89k (exactly $89,214) Magic Pockets
Goodboy Galaxy $24.99 110 95% 3.3k $82k (exactly $82,467) Goodboy Galaxy Ltd.
The Art of Reflection $17.99 151 97% 4.5k $81k (exactly $81,495) Hydrozoa
SNAKE GAME ULTRA CORE $29.99 89 88% 2.7k $80k (exactly $80,073) Galactic Geckon

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