Games › Puzzle Platformer › Puzzle Platformer + Time Travel
Should I ship a Time-Travel Puzzle Platformer?
Puzzle Platformer + Time Travel
Only 17 developers shipped a Time-Travel Puzzle 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, LIFTED, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 38 more are announced, ×5.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $900, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $89; 1 in 20 cleared $41k, ×88 the market median. Revenue is up 425% on the market; 38 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $89 (exactly $89) |
|---|---|
| Median | $899 (exactly $899) |
| Top 25% | $3.0k (exactly $2,997) |
| Top 5% | $42k (exactly $41,979) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 17 |
| Released games | 62 |
| Announced | 38 |
| Effort | 4 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $9.99 |
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 425% on the market, supply 30% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Puzzle Platformer
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
- Time Travel
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Puzzle Platformer; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Action, Puzzle
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, 3D, Atmospheric
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 81% positive over 306 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $89. All of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 38 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.4 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Puzzle Platformer with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomanceFair
- + Inventory ManagementFair
- + Life SimFair
- + SimulationFair
- + Grid-Based MovementFair
- + SokobanFair
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + Co-op CampaignPoor odds
- + MetroidvaniaPoor odds
- + SwordplayPoor odds
- + Split ScreenPoor odds
- + Hack and SlashPoor odds
Comparable games
Braid 2009 · $3.1M 
Prince of Persia®: The Sands of Time 2008 · $1.5M 
The Gardens Between 2018 · $1.4M 
Braid, Anniversary Edition 2024 · $1.1M 
What Lies in the Multiverse 2022 · $233k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Braid | older | $14.99 | 6,941 93% | 208k | $3.1M (exactly $3,121,368) | Number None |
| | Prince of Persia®: The Sands of Time | older | $9.99 | 5,045 85% | 151k | $1.5M (exactly $1,511,986) | Kudosoft |
| | The Gardens Between | older | $19.99 | 2,362 93% | 71k | $1.4M (exactly $1,416,491) | The Voxel Agents |
| | Braid, Anniversary Edition | older | $19.99 | 1,761 92% | 53k | $1.1M (exactly $1,056,072) | Thekla, Inc. |
| | What Lies in the Multiverse | older | $14.99 | 519 91% | 16k | $233k (exactly $233,394) | Studio Voyager, IguanaBee |
 | Hourglass | older | $19.99 | 331 88% | 9.9k | $199k (exactly $198,501) | Cyberwave |
 | Chronology | older | $4.99 | 536 89% | 16k | $80k (exactly $80,239) | Bedtime Digital Games |
 | LIFTED | $19.99 | 70 92% | 2.1k | $42k (exactly $41,979) | Adventure Works L.L.C. | |
 | Clocker | older | $4.99 | 190 79% | 5.7k | $28k (exactly $28,443) | Wild Kid Games |
 | YesterMorrow | older | $19.99 | 45 57% | 1.4k | $27k (exactly $26,986) | Bitmap Galaxy |
 | 火起雪中寺 | $10.99 | 59 77% | 1.8k | $19k (exactly $19,452) | 江湖奇事录 | |
 | Mai: Child of Ages | $14.99 | 34 88% | 1.0k | $15k (exactly $15,290) | Chubby Pixel | |
 | TEAM PANIC | $3.99 | 83 62% | 2.5k | $9.9k (exactly $9,935) | Furko | |
 | Beta MAX | $9.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $3.0k (exactly $2,997) | Nexcide | |
 | CYCLIA JOURNEY | $7.99 | 11 81% | 330 | $2.6k (exactly $2,637) | Wonderfy Inc. | |
 | Chrono | $2.99 | 29 100% | 870 | $2.6k (exactly $2,601) | David Simoes | |
 | Denbora | $19.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $2.4k (exactly $2,399) | Bionic Ape | |
 | Time Flipper | $9.99 | 3 100% | 90 | $899 (exactly $899) | Lusho | |
 | Nia: Jewel Hunter | $6.99 | 3 66% | 90 | $629 (exactly $629) | ByPuziki Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.