Games › Survival › Survival + Rhythm
Should I ship a Rhythm Survival game?
Survival + Rhythm
Of 22 developers who shipped a Rhythm Survival 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.. 14 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $360, ×0.6 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $3.2k, ×5.3 the market median. Revenue is up 290% on the market; 14 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $120 (exactly $120) |
|---|---|
| Median | $356 (exactly $356) |
| Top 25% | $809 (exactly $809) |
| Top 5% | $3.3k (exactly $3,297) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 22 |
| Released games | 69 |
| Announced | 14 |
| Effort | 6 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $3.99 |
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 290% on the market, supply 75% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
- Systems
- Survival, Rhythm; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, Action-Adventure
- Price point
- $3.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Colorful, Cute
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.
The top 10 games average 96% positive over 160 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 14 games are announced against 14 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Survival with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Social DeductionFair
- + Word GameFair
- + CatsFair
- + CollectathonFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + DogsFair
- + Martial ArtsLong shot
- + Boomer ShooterLong shot
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
Comparable games
64.0 2017 · $119k 
Rap Pop Jump Core 2024 · $82k 
Zombodesert 2024 · $18k 
Spaceship Driver License 2024 · $16k 
Flying Tobacco Eggs 2024 · $16k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 64.0 | older | $2.99 | 1,329 90% | 40k | $119k (exactly $119,211) | rebel rabbit |
| | Rap Pop Jump Core | older | $29.99 | 91 89% | 2.7k | $82k (exactly $81,873) | Galactic Geckon |
| | Zombodesert | older | $49.99 | 12 91% | 360 | $18k (exactly $17,996) | Gamesforgames |
| | Spaceship Driver License | older | $49.99 | 11 100% | 330 | $16k (exactly $16,497) | Gamesforgames |
| | Flying Tobacco Eggs | older | $39.99 | 13 84% | 390 | $16k (exactly $15,596) | Gamesforgames |
 | ReMix | older | $5.99 | 82 81% | 2.5k | $15k (exactly $14,735) | GameSmith |
 | Skullbreaker | $29.99 | 13 92% | 390 | $12k (exactly $11,696) | Sharkgame | |
 | life is not auto | older | $3.99 | 87 94% | 2.6k | $10k (exactly $10,414) | Bold Fish |
 | 4X4 | older | $4.99 | 60 91% | 1.8k | $9.0k (exactly $8,982) | Marimori |
 | Murtop | older | $4.99 | 59 98% | 1.8k | $8.8k (exactly $8,832) | hiulit |
 | VILOVEJETS | $9.99 | 11 100% | 330 | $3.3k (exactly $3,297) | Polka Studio | |
 | Tied to the Beat | · EA | $4.99 | 21 100% | 630 | $3.1k (exactly $3,144) | Javier Lianes García |
 | Wiseman: No More Breakups | $1.99 | 48 97% | 1.4k | $2.9k (exactly $2,866) | Gilang Gumelar Studios | |
 | Dino running from a FURRY: GAMESFORFARM | $2.99 | 21 100% | 630 | $1.9k (exactly $1,884) | Piece Of Voxel, Gamesforfarm | |
 | Outer Space Bar | $8.99 | 3 66% | 90 | $809 (exactly $809) | OZNA STUDIO | |
 | Synthularity | $4.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $748 (exactly $748) | Inc Inc | |
 | Is this a Game yet? | · EA | $1.99 | 12 91% | 360 | $716 (exactly $716) | Onizumi Kohari |
 | Escape the House | $0.99 | 22 95% | 660 | $653 (exactly $653) | REVO Team's | |
 | Zombiemachia | $4.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $599 (exactly $599) | Kornux 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.