Do I ship it?

Games › Runner › Runner + Time Management

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Runner Time Management game?

Runner + Time Management

Of 28 developers who shipped a Runner Time Management 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.. 19 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $90 in the last 2 years and $60 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 14 developers shipped in the last year and 19 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 35% on the market, 19 announced, ×1.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Runner + Time Management
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 28
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $0 → $210 → $60 → $150 → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Runner + Time Management: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 28
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $90 (exactly $90)
Top 25% $240 (exactly $240)
Top 5% $4.5k (exactly $4,497)
Developers, 2 yr 28
Released games 55
Announced 19
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 35% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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 Management
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 Management; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Action-Adventure, Adventure
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, First-Person, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 75% positive over 90 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 $240, 1 in 20 over $4.4k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 9 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 19 games are announced against 14 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. + Time AttackFair15 devs · median $599 · 10 announced
  7. + FPSLong shot39 devs · median $958 · 43 announced
  8. + 4 Player LocalPoor odds12 devs · median $2.4k · 16 announced
  9. + MusicPoor odds16 devs · median $1.2k · 20 announced
  10. + Co-opPoor odds38 devs · median $1.0k · 64 announced
  11. + Online Co-OpPoor odds40 devs · median $898 · 64 announced
  12. + Interactive FictionPoor odds10 devs · median $839 · 16 announced

All 123 pairs on the Runner page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

[Chilla's Art] The Caregiver | 終焉介護 2021 · $65k Kitchen Simulator 2 2017 · $12k Bober Constructions 2025 · $9.0k BeachRun 2022 · $8.2k Riding Seas 2022 · $5.2k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
[Chilla's Art] The Caregiver | 終焉介護 older $4.99 431 80% 13k $65k (exactly $64,521) Chilla's Art
Kitchen Simulator 2 older $4.99 80 48% 2.4k $12k (exactly $11,976) WhackAKey Games
Bober Constructions $9.99 30 70% 900 $9.0k (exactly $8,991) Simplicity Games
BeachRun older $24.99 11 100% 330 $8.2k (exactly $8,247) Gamesforgames
Riding Seas older $4.99 35 80% 1.1k $5.2k (exactly $5,240) CatOnTree Studio
Saints and Sinners · EA older $6.99 22 63% 660 $4.6k (exactly $4,613) threeW
Hell Runner $14.99 10 100% 300 $4.5k (exactly $4,497) Moonlight Studio
Rage Quit · EA older $1.99 36 69% 1.1k $2.1k (exactly $2,149) Ionborn Entertainment
Death: The Ascension older $4.99 9 66% 270 $1.3k (exactly $1,347) Dystopian Ruler
UNDERGROUND $1.99 17 58% 510 $1.0k (exactly $1,015) UncleScrooge
Mr HappyFunFace $2.99 10 90% 300 $897 (exactly $897) Big Red Eight
Lawnmower Game Racing 2: Drunken $1.99 15 73% 450 $896 (exactly $896) Tero Lunkka, Valkeala Software
The Cursed Ward $13.99 2 100% 60 $839 (exactly $839) Psychoception Productions
Delivery Service : Courier $7.99 1 0% 30 $240 (exactly $240) DW
Maze Racer Balls $6.99 1 100% 30 $210 (exactly $210) Imperiarte Games
Speedrun Simulator $2.99 2 100% 60 $179 (exactly $179) Garry Gatling
Nestling Rush $2.99 2 100% 60 $179 (exactly $179) OrcaBird Studio

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