Games › Runner › Runner + Visual Novel
Should I ship a Visual Novel Runner?
Runner + Visual Novel
Only 12 developers shipped a Visual Novel 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, Fiendish Quest, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 11 more are announced.
Verdict: fair, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $750, ×1.6 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $90. Revenue is up 130% on the market; 11 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.
not enough cohorts to draw
| Bottom 30% | $90 (exactly $90) |
|---|---|
| Median | $750 (exactly $750) |
| Top 25% | $2.5k (exactly $2,516) |
| Top 5% | $6.9k (exactly $6,893) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 12 |
| Released games | 25 |
| Announced | 11 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| 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 130% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 20%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Visual Novel
- effort 2 / 10 · high · script, choices and static art
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Systems
- Runner, Visual Novel
- Price point
- $5.99 typical
Why players buy here
The top 9 games average 73% positive over 73 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $90. All of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 11 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Runner with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + LootFair
- + Local MultiplayerFair
- + PsychologicalFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Time AttackFair
- + FPSLong shot
- + 4 Player LocalPoor odds
- + MusicPoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + Online Co-OpPoor odds
- + Interactive FictionPoor odds
- + ManagementPoor odds
Comparable games
SQUID GIRLS 18+ 2022 · $42k 
Fiendish Quest 2025 · $6.9k 
Leaper 2020 · $5.1k 
Sky To Fly: Faster Than Wind 2016 · $4.9k 
PIXEL DASH: Toast of Destiny 2025 · $2.6k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | SQUID GIRLS 18+ | older | $6.99 | 198 60% | 5.9k | $42k (exactly $41,521) | Squid Developer |
| | Fiendish Quest | $9.99 | 23 73% | 690 | $6.9k (exactly $6,893) | オニチク屋！ | |
| | Leaper | older | $4.99 | 34 73% | 1.0k | $5.1k (exactly $5,090) | PixelLeap Games |
| | Sky To Fly: Faster Than Wind | older | $3.99 | 41 60% | 1.2k | $4.9k (exactly $4,908) | AIVIK LLC |
| | PIXEL DASH: Toast of Destiny | $7.99 | 11 81% | 330 | $2.6k (exactly $2,637) | Clover Lab.,inc. | |
 | Nullwake | $5.99 | 14 78% | 420 | $2.5k (exactly $2,516) | DIG Games | |
 | Mr.Bottle and his dream | older | $2.99 | 26 76% | 780 | $2.3k (exactly $2,332) | BeyondTheWind |
 | Good Mourning | older | $2.99 | 21 90% | 630 | $1.9k (exactly $1,884) | Platonic Partnership |
 | Carpe Dino: Seize the Date | $4.99 | 11 100% | 330 | $1.6k (exactly $1,647) | Black Squirrels Studio Inc. | |
 | Beauty Girl Chronicles: Island Obstacle Challenge | older | $5.99 | 7 57% | 210 | $1.3k (exactly $1,258) | Moon Game Studio |
 | Fear Simulator VR | $3.99 | 8 25% | 240 | $958 (exactly $958) | Overbuilt S.A. | |
 | The Pilgrim's Progress | $24.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $750 (exactly $750) | Elvio Lujan | |
 | FORGIVE FOR EVER | $5.99 | 3 66% | 90 | $539 (exactly $539) | GENS-HEART STUDIO | |
 | Human Strange Dream | $16.00 | 1 0% | 30 | $480 (exactly $480) | ALK | |
 | FastFly | $2.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $90 (exactly $90) | NanoFastFly | |
 | Batya in the Building: 10 Years Later | $1.99 | 0 0% | 0 | $0 (exactly $0) | DillyFrame |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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