Do I ship it?

GamesWalking SimulatorWalking Simulator + Science

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Science Walking Simulator?

Walking Simulator + Science

Only 16 developers shipped a Science Walking Simulator 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, Ambrosia Sky, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 27 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.0k, ×2.2 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $270; 1 in 20 cleared $200k, ×421 the market median. Revenue is down 70% on the market; 27 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 70% on the market, 27 announced, ×3.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Walking Simulator + Science
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: $9.0M → $5.6k → $1.0k → $3.0k → $1.4k → $180 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Walking Simulator + Science: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 16
Bottom 30% $269 (exactly $269)
Median $1.0k (exactly $1,048)
Top 25% $3.2k (exactly $3,224)
Top 5% $200k (exactly $200,170)
Developers, 2 yr 16
Released games 49
Announced 27
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 down 70% on the market, supply 30% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 16%, 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.

Walking Simulator
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Science
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Walking Simulator
Price point
$5.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 613 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $270, median $1.0k, 1 in 4 over $3.2k, 1 in 20 over $200k.

3 in 10 developers made under $270. 9 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 27 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Walking Simulator with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + FMVStrong odds13 devs · median $5.8k · 9 announced
  2. + WarFair10 devs · median $5.1k · 12 announced
  3. + RomanceFair36 devs · median $3.5k · 38 announced
  4. + Escape RoomFair38 devs · median $2.7k · 25 announced
  5. + ThrillerFair449 devs · median $2.7k · 499 announced
  6. + MusicFair16 devs · median $2.1k · 20 announced
  7. + SupernaturalFair297 devs · median $1.8k · 354 announced
  8. + Psychological HorrorFair1,043 devs · median $1.7k · 1,251 announced
  9. + PsychologicalFair442 devs · median $1.7k · 552 announced
  10. + IdlerFair38 devs · median $1.7k · 41 announced
  11. + Mystery DungeonFair34 devs · median $1.6k · 35 announced
  12. + NoirFair44 devs · median $1.5k · 52 announced

All 145 pairs on the Walking Simulator page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
The Talos Principle 2 older $29.99 12,478 94% 374k $11M (exactly $11,226,457) Croteam
The Invincible older $29.99 10,055 87% 302k $9.0M (exactly $9,046,484) Starward Industries
Moons of Madness older $24.99 2,189 77% 66k $1.6M (exactly $1,641,093) Rock Pocket Games
Botany Manor older $24.99 1,028 94% 31k $771k (exactly $770,692) Balloon Studios
Beyond Blue older $19.99 1,055 88% 32k $633k (exactly $632,684) E-Line Media
Nucleares older $14.99 1,121 84% 34k $504k (exactly $504,114) Iván Marcelo Pretti
Haven Moon older $11.99 646 77% 19k $232k (exactly $232,366) Francois Roussel
The Light Remake older $4.99 1,462 87% 44k $219k (exactly $218,861) Носков Сергей
Ambrosia Sky $24.99 267 89% 8.0k $200k (exactly $200,170) Soft Rains, Blackbird Interactive
Tested on Humans: Escape Room older $9.99 434 87% 13k $130k (exactly $130,070) mc2games
Newton's Fourth Law · EA $11.99 224 93% 6.7k $81k (exactly $80,573) Newtonian Studios
Scientific project: Optic $19.99 12 91% 360 $7.2k (exactly $7,196) KHVOYA Games
Hypotheses on the Symmetry between Vision and Hands $1.99 54 96% 1.6k $3.2k (exactly $3,224) Finger tip
Star Mission: Remote Sectors $9.99 10 80% 300 $3.0k (exactly $2,997) Ralph Schaedler
SCP: Control Error $2.99 25 52% 750 $2.2k (exactly $2,242) Chieftain Artworks
Seven Days Until Morning $5.99 8 100% 240 $1.4k (exactly $1,438) Foamy
Kozyrev Horrors $4.99 7 85% 210 $1.0k (exactly $1,048) Catsprout
RE-ANIMATED $5.99 3 66% 90 $539 (exactly $539) Erratic Animist
Deeds were Done 2: Project Ascend · EA $5.99 3 66% 90 $539 (exactly $539) Abdulhadi J Alshehri

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