Do I ship it?

GamesSouls-likeSouls-like + Score Attack

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Score Attack Souls-like?

Souls-like + Score Attack

Only 18 developers shipped a Score Attack Souls-like 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, Dead as Disco, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 21 more are announced.

Verdict: long shot, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $600, ×0.4 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, but 1 in 20 cleared $9.2M, ×6183 the market median. Revenue is up 300680% on the market; 21 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.4 times the market baseline, revenue up 300680% on the market, 21 announced, ×1.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Souls-like + Score Attack
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 18
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.4k → $628 → $599 → $1.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Souls-like + Score Attack: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 18
Bottom 30% $119 (exactly $119)
Median $599 (exactly $599)
Top 25% $5.4k (exactly $5,396)
Top 5% $9.3M (exactly $9,261,794)
Developers, 2 yr 18
Released games 49
Announced 21
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 too few recent games to read momentum, supply 160% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 14%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Souls-like
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Score 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
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Souls-like, Score Attack; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, PvE
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Cartoony, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 94% positive over 13,829 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $120, median $600, 1 in 4 over $5.3k, 1 in 20 over $9.2M.

3 in 10 developers made under $120. All of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 21 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Souls-like with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Dating SimStrong odds17 devs · median $34k · 8 announced
  2. + Visual NovelFair25 devs · median $27k · 17 announced
  3. + Artificial IntelligenceFair13 devs · median $22k · 17 announced
  4. + JRPGFair31 devs · median $8.6k · 35 announced
  5. + IncrementalFair9 devs · median $3.9k · 10 announced
  6. + PsychologicalFair17 devs · median $1.8k · 17 announced
  7. + Walking SimulatorFair17 devs · median $1.3k · 7 announced
  8. + Precision PlatformerLong shot49 devs · median $776 · 46 announced
  9. + WarPoor odds8 devs · median $451k · 22 announced
  10. + Turn-Based TacticsPoor odds12 devs · median $88k · 21 announced
  11. + RomancePoor odds10 devs · median $35k · 16 announced
  12. + RobotsPoor odds12 devs · median $32k · 19 announced

All 122 pairs on the Souls-like page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix+ older $39.39 19,507 94% 585k $23M (exactly $23,051,422) SEGA
Dead as Disco · EA $24.99 12,354 96% 371k $9.3M (exactly $9,261,794) Brain Jar Games, Inc.
Death in the Water 2 older $14.99 1,734 83% 52k $780k (exactly $779,780) Lighthouse Games Studio
Scarlet Skips $4.99 1,310 78% 39k $196k (exactly $196,107) Yerk Games
Savant - Ascent REMIX older $9.99 330 92% 9.9k $99k (exactly $98,901) D-Pad Studio
Ball-it Hell older $2.99 368 95% 11k $33k (exactly $33,010) Jamesika
Save the Reactor older $4.99 126 95% 3.8k $19k (exactly $18,862) Hypnohead
Touhou: Blossom Blade $5.99 47 91% 1.4k $8.4k (exactly $8,446) Ankake Spa
Koloboke: Sickness Simulator $4.99 56 91% 1.7k $8.4k (exactly $8,383) Megame LLC
Peppy's Adventure older $7.99 30 100% 900 $7.2k (exactly $7,191) Pepite Studios
Snack Invaders · EA $14.99 12 100% 360 $5.4k (exactly $5,396) Whippy Games
Vanquish The Eternal $5.99 14 100% 420 $2.5k (exactly $2,516) WilhelmGStudios
Inventory Quest: Hero's Hoard $3.99 16 81% 480 $1.9k (exactly $1,915) Antti Ruokonen
Dracs After Dusk $3.99 14 100% 420 $1.7k (exactly $1,676) OliveHillStudios
It's OK to Fail $4.99 4 100% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Monky
Call of Elmore $7.99 2 100% 60 $479 (exactly $479) Broadwood Studio

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