Do I ship it?

GamesSouls-likeSouls-like + Psychological

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Psychological Souls-like?

Souls-like + Psychological

Only 17 developers shipped a Psychological Souls-like 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, SILENT HILL f, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 17 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×1.2 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $450. Revenue is up 945% on the market; 17 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 945% on the market, 17 announced, ×1.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Souls-like + Psychological
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 17
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $117k → $26k → $6.5k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Souls-like + Psychological: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 17
Bottom 30% $450 (exactly $450)
Median $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 25% $51k (exactly $50,980)
Top 5% $40M (exactly $40,022,382)
Developers, 2 yr 17
Released games 36
Announced 17
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 945% on the market, supply 225% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 3%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Souls-like
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Psychological
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Souls-like; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Action, Action-Adventure
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $69.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, Dark, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $69.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 81% positive over 25,114 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $450, median $1.8k, 1 in 4 over $50k, 1 in 20 over $40M.

3 in 10 developers made under $450. 17 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Souls-like with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Dating SimStrong odds17 devs · median $34k · 8 announced
  2. + Visual NovelFair25 devs · median $27k · 17 announced
  3. + Artificial IntelligenceFair13 devs · median $22k · 17 announced
  4. + JRPGFair31 devs · median $8.6k · 35 announced
  5. + IncrementalFair9 devs · median $3.9k · 10 announced
  6. + Walking SimulatorFair17 devs · median $1.3k · 7 announced
  7. + Precision PlatformerLong shot49 devs · median $776 · 46 announced
  8. + Score AttackLong shot18 devs · median $599 · 21 announced
  9. + WarPoor odds8 devs · median $451k · 22 announced
  10. + Turn-Based TacticsPoor odds12 devs · median $88k · 21 announced
  11. + RomancePoor odds10 devs · median $35k · 16 announced
  12. + RobotsPoor odds12 devs · median $32k · 19 announced

All 122 pairs on the Souls-like page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
SILENT HILL f $69.99 19,061 80% 572k $40M (exactly $40,022,382) NeoBards Entertainment Ltd.
YOU and ME and HER: A Love Story older $29.99 6,033 95% 181k $5.4M (exactly $5,427,890) Nitroplus
Death Howl $19.99 1,301 92% 39k $780k (exactly $780,210) The Outer Zone
The Dark Queen of Mortholme $4.99 4,075 83% 122k $610k (exactly $610,028) Mosu
The Last Case of Benedict Fox Definitive Edition older $24.99 786 71% 24k $589k (exactly $589,264) Plot Twist
ENTITY: THE BLACK DAY $17.99 494 79% 15k $267k (exactly $266,612) ASD Games Studio
INFERNIUM older $29.99 167 64% 5.0k $150k (exactly $150,250) Carlos Coronado
Strayed Lights older $12.99 301 80% 9.0k $117k (exactly $117,300) Embers
qop older $1.99 1,088 91% 33k $65k (exactly $64,954) Quiet River
Zapling Bygone older $15.99 110 82% 3.3k $53k (exactly $52,767) 9FingerGames
The Perfect Pencil $24.99 68 70% 2.0k $51k (exactly $50,980) Studio Cima
Death Frame $14.99 57 98% 1.7k $26k (exactly $25,633) EpiXR Games UG
Journey of the Garden Rose $11.99 18 77% 540 $6.5k (exactly $6,475) Renegade Sector Games
Tsugunohi -Supernatural Supermarket- $4.99 28 85% 840 $4.2k (exactly $4,192) ImCyan
Demon Street $9.99 6 66% 180 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) Manycats Games
Vision Quest: A New Ascent $4.99 6 100% 180 $898 (exactly $898) intheclouds studio

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