Do I ship it?

GamesRunnerRunner + Time Attack

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Time Attack Runner?

Runner + Time Attack

Only 15 developers shipped a Time Attack Runner 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, Abyss Runner, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 10 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $600, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $50. Revenue is up 322225% on the market; 10 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 322225% on the market, 10 announced, ×1.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Runner + Time Attack
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 15
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $6.2k → $419 → $1.8k (still earning) → $599 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Runner + Time Attack: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $599 (exactly $599)
Top 25% $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 5% $22k (exactly $22,018)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 41
Announced 10
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $6.99

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 too few recent games to read momentum, supply 100% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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.

Runner
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Time Attack
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
Runner, Time Attack; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, Platformer
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 9 games average 86% positive over 161 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 $600, 1 in 4 over $1.7k, 1 in 20 over $22k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 10 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + LootFair8 devs · median $1.6k · 10 announced
  2. + Local MultiplayerFair23 devs · median $1.3k · 30 announced
  3. + PsychologicalFair14 devs · median $839 · 12 announced
  4. + IdlerFair16 devs · median $838 · 8 announced
  5. + Visual NovelFair12 devs · median $750 · 11 announced
  6. + FPSLong shot39 devs · median $958 · 43 announced
  7. + 4 Player LocalPoor odds12 devs · median $2.4k · 16 announced
  8. + MusicPoor odds16 devs · median $1.2k · 20 announced
  9. + Co-opPoor odds38 devs · median $1.0k · 64 announced
  10. + Online Co-OpPoor odds40 devs · median $898 · 64 announced
  11. + Interactive FictionPoor odds10 devs · median $839 · 16 announced
  12. + ManagementPoor odds9 devs · median $802 · 9 announced

All 123 pairs on the Runner page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Action Henk older $14.99 295 92% 8.9k $133k (exactly $132,662) RageSquid
Celaria older $7.99 131 88% 3.9k $31k (exactly $31,401) Lewa
Skybolt Zack older $13.99 57 89% 1.7k $24k (exactly $23,923) ISART, DEVS MUST DIE
Abyss Runner $6.99 105 86% 3.2k $22k (exactly $22,018) Asuwawagami
Commando Hero older $2.99 146 85% 4.4k $13k (exactly $13,096) Montee Games
Speedonauts older $7.99 26 96% 780 $6.2k (exactly $6,232) World Away Games
MineRalph older $9.99 17 100% 510 $5.1k (exactly $5,095) Chop Chop Games
Top Run older $4.99 24 95% 720 $3.6k (exactly $3,593) Katata Games
The Confinement $9.99 10 100% 300 $3.0k (exactly $2,997) Mr. Dev Studio
Save The Octo older $4.99 19 78% 570 $2.8k (exactly $2,844) RexTo Studios
Linerunner $6.99 12 100% 360 $2.5k (exactly $2,516) Fungal Studios
Animal Run Relay $9.99 6 100% 180 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) youdoyou.motto
Gripless: Drift Valley $4.99 12 91% 360 $1.8k (exactly $1,796) RenderForce3D
Retro Drive: Revamped $11.99 3 100% 90 $1.1k (exactly $1,079) Retro Drive Studio
Run Pro $2.99 7 71% 210 $628 (exactly $628) Begma
Frog & Roll $4.99 4 50% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Drunk Frog Studio
AudioRace $6.99 2 0% 60 $419 (exactly $419) Associazione Audiogames
Freerunners $8.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) CBgameDev

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