Do I ship it?

GamesPuzzle PlatformerPuzzle Platformer + Roguelite

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Puzzle Platformer Roguelite?

Puzzle Platformer + Roguelite

Of 32 developers who shipped a Puzzle Platformer Roguelite 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.. 41 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 $90 in the last 2 years and $180 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 20 developers shipped in the last year and 41 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 350% on the market, 41 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Puzzle Platformer + Roguelite
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 32
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $478 → $30 → $1.6k → $59 → $60 → $597 → $809 (still earning) → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Puzzle Platformer + Roguelite: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 32
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $90 (exactly $90)
Top 25% $809 (exactly $809)
Top 5% $4.2k (exactly $4,192)
Developers, 2 yr 32
Released games 83
Announced 41
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 350% on the market, supply 65% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 2%, 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.

Puzzle Platformer
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Roguelite
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
Puzzle Platformer, Roguelite; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Puzzle, Roguelike, Adventure
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $8.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D, Linear
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $8.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 131 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $90, 1 in 4 over $800, 1 in 20 over $4.1k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 41 games are announced against 20 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Puzzle Platformer with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RomanceFair41 devs · median $1.5k · 38 announced
  2. + Inventory ManagementFair20 devs · median $1.1k · 26 announced
  3. + Life SimFair20 devs · median $657 · 21 announced
  4. + SimulationFair216 devs · median $479 · 181 announced
  5. + Grid-Based MovementFair62 devs · median $449 · 56 announced
  6. + SokobanFair51 devs · median $358 · 49 announced
  7. + LovecraftianPoor odds11 devs · median $9.3k · 22 announced
  8. + Co-op CampaignPoor odds26 devs · median $9.0k · 53 announced
  9. + MetroidvaniaPoor odds91 devs · median $5.3k · 264 announced
  10. + SwordplayPoor odds8 devs · median $4.2k · 19 announced
  11. + Split ScreenPoor odds24 devs · median $3.6k · 35 announced
  12. + Hack and SlashPoor odds18 devs · median $3.0k · 80 announced

All 169 pairs on the Puzzle Platformer page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Ancient Abyss · EA older $14.99 163 64% 4.9k $73k (exactly $73,301) Screambox Studio
Transliminal: Beyond The Backrooms · EA older $12.49 153 90% 4.6k $57k (exactly $57,329) Corey Jeffries
Residual older $19.99 24 66% 720 $14k (exactly $14,393) Orangepixel
Atomic Owl $12.99 30 90% 900 $12k (exactly $11,691) Monster Theater
Ruggnar older $13.99 19 89% 570 $8.0k (exactly $7,974) Sword N' Wands
Bucket Knight older $4.99 47 82% 1.4k $7.0k (exactly $7,036) PigeonDev
AVA: Dark History older $4.99 42 78% 1.3k $6.3k (exactly $6,287) Dnovel
CRYEP older $12.99 15 100% 450 $5.8k (exactly $5,846) IMLBE, Dnovel
Kanji Industry · EA older $6.99 26 92% 780 $5.5k (exactly $5,452) Tsune Studio
Doughball Descent older $7.99 19 94% 570 $4.6k (exactly $4,554) Plubsoft
Mimir’s Roulette $4.99 28 96% 840 $4.2k (exactly $4,192) Momentum Games
Dialoop -Roguelite Puzzle- $7.99 16 81% 480 $3.8k (exactly $3,835) Byking Inc.
Happy Hotel $3.99 22 100% 660 $2.6k (exactly $2,633) Nyakuza Games
ODYSSEY: Starship Pinball · EA $4.99 11 100% 330 $1.6k (exactly $1,647) Clip Through Interactive
QPopGirl $4.99 8 100% 240 $1.2k (exactly $1,198) Emotion Dynamics
A Flame in the Dark $5.99 6 100% 180 $1.1k (exactly $1,078) tornadre
Last Shinobi $8.99 3 100% 90 $809 (exactly $809) Dark Tomato Studio
Creation of a god: The Eternal Village $7.99 3 100% 90 $719 (exactly $719) Lost Dreams Games
Anzu $4.99 4 25% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Was Running Studio

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