Do I ship it?

GamesTime AttackTime Attack + Sci-fi

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Sci-fi Time Attack game?

Time Attack + Sci-fi

Only 16 developers shipped a Sci-fi Time Attack game 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, Caromble!, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 30 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $540, ×1.1 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $50; 1 in 20 cleared $13k, ×28 the market median. Revenue is down 70% on the market; 30 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 70% on the market, 30 announced, ×2.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Time Attack + Sci-fi
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 16
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.5k → $418 (still earning) → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Time Attack + Sci-fi: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 16
Bottom 30% $30 (exactly $30)
Median $539 (exactly $539)
Top 25% $5.5k (exactly $5,539)
Top 5% $13k (exactly $13,250)
Developers, 2 yr 16
Released games 47
Announced 30
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 down 70% on the market, supply 200% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 17%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Time Attack
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Sci-fi
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Time Attack
Price point
$6.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 160 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 $540, 1 in 4 over $5.5k, 1 in 20 over $13k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 5 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 30 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Time Attack with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + CatsFair5 devs · median $2.7k · 9 announced
  2. + SportsFair12 devs · median $1.8k · 12 announced
  3. + CollectathonFair10 devs · median $1.1k · 16 announced
  4. + FuturisticFair16 devs · median $898 · 17 announced
  5. + RacingFair44 devs · median $748 · 42 announced
  6. + Level EditorFair12 devs · median $748 · 14 announced
  7. + Point & ClickFair7 devs · median $718 · 12 announced
  8. + Score AttackFair50 devs · median $657 · 54 announced
  9. + SpaceFair11 devs · median $657 · 9 announced
  10. + ActionFair90 devs · median $599 · 110 announced
  11. + AdventureFair33 devs · median $599 · 33 announced
  12. + RunnerFair15 devs · median $599 · 10 announced

All 35 pairs on the Time Attack page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Mirror's Edge™ older $19.99 31,195 87% 936k $19M (exactly $18,707,642) DICE
ESCHATOS older $14.99 287 95% 8.6k $129k (exactly $129,064) Qute
Savant - Ascent REMIX older $9.99 330 92% 9.9k $99k (exactly $98,901) D-Pad Studio
iZBOT older $11.99 226 80% 6.8k $81k (exactly $81,292) Ruxar
Super Pilot · EA older $12.99 136 91% 4.1k $53k (exactly $52,999) dopagames
Time Recoil older $13.99 65 76% 2.0k $27k (exactly $27,280) 10tons Ltd
Security Hole older $9.99 55 85% 1.7k $16k (exactly $16,484) AnRaEl
Caromble! $12.99 34 73% 1.0k $13k (exactly $13,250) Crimson Owl Studios
22 Racing Series | RTS-Racing · EA older $24.99 17 64% 510 $13k (exactly $12,745) GOATi Entertainment
Orbox C older $4.99 76 93% 2.3k $11k (exactly $11,377) wins_84, gamebalance
HyperCore : Rhythm Bullet Hell $19.99 17 100% 510 $10k (exactly $10,195) Gameinaframe
Gravity Storm: First Mission $9.99 27 100% 810 $8.1k (exactly $8,092) Jampley Games
Ticking Together $4.99 37 97% 1.1k $5.5k (exactly $5,539) Furkan Baytak, Furkan Özkaya
Tokyo Waning Moon $3.99 25 92% 750 $3.0k (exactly $2,992) Midnight Cupcakes
Space Tournament $9.99 5 100% 150 $1.5k (exactly $1,498) Trash Titans
RollBot $7.99 3 100% 90 $719 (exactly $719) Tsukoni
Tired $8.99 2 100% 60 $539 (exactly $539) EXHAUST3D
Geometry Skies $1.99 7 100% 210 $418 (exactly $418) Menta's Box
FIREBALL $1.99 3 100% 90 $179 (exactly $179) TONGARI GAMES

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