Do I ship it?

Games › Shoot 'Em Up › Shoot 'Em Up + Time Management

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Time Management Shoot 'Em Up?

Shoot 'Em Up + Time Management

Only 10 developers shipped a Time Management Shoot 'Em Up 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, GunX - Lock and Load, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 7 more are announced.

Verdict: dead, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $90 in the last 2 years and $420 over 4, against a market of $480 for a 3 / 10 build. 5 developers shipped in the last year and 7 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 80% on the market, 7 announced, ×1.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Shoot 'Em Up + Time Management
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 10

not enough cohorts to draw

Outcomes for Shoot 'Em Up + Time Management: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 10
Bottom 30% $30 (exactly $30)
Median $90 (exactly $90)
Top 25% $1.3k (exactly $1,319)
Top 5% $3.1k (exactly $3,148)
Developers, 2 yr 10
Released games 33
Announced 7
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 80% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 18%, 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.

Shoot 'Em Up
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
Shoot 'Em Up, Time Management
Price point
$5.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 7 games average 83% positive over 29 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 $1.3k, 1 in 20 over $3.1k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. All of the 5 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 7 games are announced against 5 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Shoot 'Em Up with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + FaithFair13 devs · median $17k · 13 announced
  2. + RomanceFair10 devs · median $1.5k · 7 announced
  3. + VampiresFair15 devs · median $1.3k · 7 announced
  4. + Quick-Time EventsFair8 devs · median $1.2k · 12 announced
  5. + IncrementalFair39 devs · median $628 · 36 announced
  6. + IdlerFair36 devs · median $628 · 14 announced
  7. + Tower DefenseFair70 devs · median $599 · 54 announced
  8. + Resource ManagementFair26 devs · median $599 · 34 announced
  9. + ArcadeFair749 devs · median $419 · 783 announced
  10. + SwordplayLong shot13 devs · median $300 · 5 announced
  11. + MusicPoor odds12 devs · median $9.0k · 12 announced
  12. + LovecraftianPoor odds8 devs · median $8.1k · 20 announced

All 169 pairs on the Shoot 'Em Up page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

WAVECADE 2022 · $8.1k GunX - Lock and Load 2026 · $3.1k Beers and Boomerangs 2022 · $3.1k Tilebreaker Next Level 2024 · $2.0k Beasts Shall Rise 2022 · EA · $1.8k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
WAVECADE older $9.99 27 92% 810 $8.1k (exactly $8,092) Andrew Spalato, Lewis Spalato
GunX - Lock and Load $14.99 7 57% 210 $3.1k (exactly $3,148) Irusu Studios, Irusu Studios
Beers and Boomerangs older $4.99 21 100% 630 $3.1k (exactly $3,144) Witty Platypus
Tilebreaker Next Level $5.99 11 100% 330 $2.0k (exactly $1,977) Square Wheel
Beasts Shall Rise · EA older $11.99 5 80% 150 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) Goblin Games Ltd
DA PAPER BOY $10.99 4 75% 120 $1.3k (exactly $1,319) 3D Dojo Studios
ReUse $9.99 4 100% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) BakeONsoft
Bring The Chickens Home older $5.99 6 83% 180 $1.1k (exactly $1,078) Clyde Smets
Meekanoid older $1.99 13 84% 390 $776 (exactly $776) Gamesforgames
The Hero with a Thousand Arms / 千手英雄 older $4.99 4 75% 120 $599 (exactly $599) Bitca
BallMan $2.99 1 100% 30 $90 (exactly $90) CAESARGAMES91
DeadZone Outpost $2.99 1 0% 30 $90 (exactly $90) Uberbax Gaming
Abrez $0.99 1 100% 30 $30 (exactly $30) Haruka Nitaka, S.Daas, Tony Tutty, Suss… (Haruka Nitaka, S.Daas, Tony Tutty, Sussanne Beaujeu, T.Beaujeu)
The Key $3.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) Hetosoft Sistemas
Tomorrow is beautiful $6.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) DorpBear
Ashes of the Belt $2.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) Xell

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