Should I ship a PvP Stealth game?
PvP + Stealth
Of 109 developers who shipped a PvP Stealth game 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.. 289 more are announced, ×3.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $750, ×0.5 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240. 289 games are announced against 74 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper, while revenue is up 25% on the market.
| Bottom 30% | $239 (exactly $239) |
|---|---|
| Median | $748 (exactly $748) |
| Top 25% | $6.3k (exactly $6,291) |
| Top 5% | $498k (exactly $497,802) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 109 |
| Released games | 309 |
| Announced | 289 |
| Effort | 8 / 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 25% on the market, supply 90% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 20%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 8 / 10 · online systems, open world
- Systems
- PvP, Stealth; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Co-op, Online Co-Op
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, First-Person, Comedy
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 73% positive over 24,237 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 46 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 289 games are announced against 74 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
PvP with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + BaseballFair
- + TransportationFair
- + BasketballFair
- + Football (American)Fair
- + BikesFair
- + GolfFair
- + World War IFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + BilliardsFair
- + TennisLong shot
- + TypingLong shot
- + SpellingLong shot
Comparable games
Dying Light 2015 · $280M 
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Wildlands 2017 · $149M 
DEATHLOOP 2021 · $36M 
Halloween: The Game 2026 · $14M 
Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2019 · $9.9M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Dying Light | older | $24.99 | 373,413 95% | 11M | $280M (exactly $279,947,726) | Techland |
| | Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Wildlands | older | $49.99 | 99,590 78% | 3.0M | $149M (exactly $149,355,123) | Ubisoft Paris, Ubisoft Annecy, Ubisoft… (Ubisoft Paris, Ubisoft Annecy, Ubisoft Bucharest, Ubisoft Montpellier, Ubisoft Milan, Reflections, Ubisoft Belgrade) |
| | DEATHLOOP | older | $59.99 | 19,910 76% | 597k | $36M (exactly $35,832,027) | Arkane Studios |
| | Halloween: The Game | $39.99 | 11,868 68% | 356k | $14M (exactly $14,238,040) | IllFonic | |
| | Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts | older | $29.99 | 10,966 73% | 329k | $9.9M (exactly $9,866,110) | CI Games |
 | Secret Neighbor: Hello Neighbor Multiplayer | older | $19.99 | 14,865 86% | 446k | $8.9M (exactly $8,914,540) | Hologryph, Eerie Guest Studios |
 | The Texas Chain Saw Massacre | older | $14.99 | 19,731 68% | 592k | $8.9M (exactly $8,873,031) | Sumo Digital |
 | Witch It | older | $19.99 | 14,540 89% | 436k | $8.7M (exactly $8,719,638) | Barrel Roll Games |
 | Zero Hour | older | $9.99 | 28,570 78% | 857k | $8.6M (exactly $8,562,429) | AttritoM7 Productions |
 | Nuclear Option | · EA older | $19.99 | 10,275 95% | 308k | $6.2M (exactly $6,161,917) | Shockfront Studios |
 | ERA ONE | · EA | $29.99 | 1,575 86% | 47k | $1.4M (exactly $1,417,028) | Team Complex LTD |
 | Carnival Hunt | · EA | $19.99 | 2,092 63% | 63k | $1.3M (exactly $1,254,572) | Crytivo, Beer Night Studio |
 | The Greatest Penguin Heist of All Time | $14.99 | 2,361 90% | 71k | $1.1M (exactly $1,061,742) | That Fish, That Other Fish | |
 | METAL GEAR SOLID: Peace Walker - Master Collection Version | $19.99 | 925 79% | 28k | $555k (exactly $554,722) | KONAMI | |
 | Granny: Escape Together | $9.99 | 1,661 79% | 50k | $498k (exactly $497,802) | CreepyToad | |
 | KILLER INN | · EA | $9.99 | 670 44% | 20k | $201k (exactly $200,799) | Square Enix, Tactic Studios |
 | It Has My Face | $9.99 | 608 88% | 18k | $182k (exactly $182,218) | NightByte Games | |
 | Thick As Thieves | $4.99 | 1,106 65% | 33k | $166k (exactly $165,568) | OtherSide Entertainment | |
 | BACKROOMS: APPREHENSION | $2.99 | 1,371 83% | 41k | $123k (exactly $122,979) | DMNT Interactive |
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.