Do I ship it?

Games › Platformer › Platformer + Tower Defense

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Tower Defense Platformer?

Platformer + Tower Defense

Only 15 developers shipped a Tower Defense Platformer in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Tempest Tower, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 23 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 $600, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $210; 1 in 20 cleared $10k, ×23 the market median. Revenue is down 25% on the market; 23 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue down 25% on the market, 23 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Platformer + Tower Defense
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 15
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $7.6k → $718 → $599 → $1.4k → $716 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Platformer + Tower Defense: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $210 (exactly $210)
Median $599 (exactly $599)
Top 25% $1.6k (exactly $1,556)
Top 5% $11k (exactly $10,793)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 59
Announced 23
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 down 25% on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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
Tower Defense
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, Tower Defense; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Point & Click, Simulation
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Colorful, Cute, 2.5D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 184 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $210, median $600, 1 in 4 over $1.5k, 1 in 20 over $10k.

3 in 10 developers made under $210. All of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 23 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 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

HYPERCHARGE: Unboxed 2020 · $2.8M PixelJunk™ Nom Nom Galaxy 2015 · $242k Deadly 30 2014 · $173k No Heroes Here 2017 · $169k Smelter 2021 · $99k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
HYPERCHARGE: Unboxed older $24.99 3,798 90% 114k $2.8M (exactly $2,847,361) Digital Cybercherries
PixelJunk™ Nom Nom Galaxy older $9.99 808 77% 24k $242k (exactly $242,158) Q-Games Ltd.
Deadly 30 older $4.99 1,155 80% 35k $173k (exactly $172,904) Ignatus Zuk and Gonzalo Villagomez
No Heroes Here older $14.99 375 88% 11k $169k (exactly $168,638) Mad Mimic
Smelter older $19.99 165 64% 5.0k $99k (exactly $98,950) X PLUS Co., Ltd.
Aegis Defenders older $19.99 157 77% 4.7k $94k (exactly $94,153) GUTS Department
Pixel Gladiator older $4.99 359 81% 11k $54k (exactly $53,742) Flying Islands Team
Mind Spheres older $4.99 309 83% 9.3k $46k (exactly $46,257) Microblast Games
SolSeraph older $14.99 89 50% 2.7k $40k (exactly $40,023) ACE Team
JARS older $11.99 104 71% 3.1k $37k (exactly $37,409) Mousetrap Games
Tempest Tower $14.99 24 83% 720 $11k (exactly $10,793) Half Past Yellow
宗门最后的长老 $2.99 99 96% 3.0k $8.9k (exactly $8,880) KUMA studio
Zombies and Orcs $9.99 16 62% 480 $4.8k (exactly $4,795) Gamesforgames
Shapes of Memory: Jigsaw Puzzle $3.99 13 100% 390 $1.6k (exactly $1,556) Creative Hand, Abyssal Studios
Xeno Rangers $11.99 4 100% 120 $1.4k (exactly $1,439) 9000 Legends
Rushfall $2.99 8 62% 240 $718 (exactly $718) kazakovstudios, Sharkgame
XO-Planets $1.99 12 66% 360 $716 (exactly $716) myradann
99 Games: Puzzle, Action, Strategy, Simulation, Casual, Roguelike, Shooter, RPG & More $9.99 2 50% 60 $599 (exactly $599) Chongqing Xishou Technology Co., Ltd
Isekai Mining Defense · EA $7.99 2 100% 60 $479 (exactly $479) DevNeo
Project XZ $2.99 4 100% 120 $359 (exactly $359) Foxy H.

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