Do I ship it?

GamesTrading Card GameTrading Card Game + Visual Novel

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Visual Novel Trading Card Game?

Trading Card Game + Visual Novel

Only 9 developers shipped a Visual Novel Trading Card 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, Cardfight!! Vanguard Dear Days 2, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 23 more are announced, ×5.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 6 / 10 build.

Only 4 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $3.7k against a market of $630. 23 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 6.0 times the market baseline, revenue down 95% on the market, 23 announced, ×5.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Trading Card Game + Visual Novel
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 9
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $298 → $269 → $179 → $240 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Trading Card Game + Visual Novel: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 9
Bottom 30% $240 (exactly $240)
Median $3.7k (exactly $3,742)
Top 25% $46k (exactly $46,022)
Top 5% $1.3M (exactly $1,324,911)
Developers, 2 yr 9
Released games 32
Announced 23
Effort 6 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $7.99

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 95% on the market, supply 20% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 6%, 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.

Trading Card Game
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
Visual Novel
effort 2 / 10 · high · script, choices and static art

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Trading Card Game, Visual Novel
Price point
$7.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 9 games average 71% positive over 1,132 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $240, median $3.7k, 1 in 4 over $46k, 1 in 20 over $1.3M.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 3 in 10 of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 23 games are announced against 4 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Trading Card Game with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Immersive SimStrong odds18 devs · median $30k · 13 announced
  2. + SandboxFair17 devs · median $1.8k · 17 announced
  3. + Inventory ManagementFair21 devs · median $1.5k · 28 announced
  4. + Procedural GenerationPoor odds10 devs · median $10k · 26 announced
  5. + TradingPoor odds16 devs · median $10k · 36 announced
  6. + Life SimPoor odds18 devs · median $10k · 21 announced
  7. + CollectathonPoor odds26 devs · median $6.3k · 41 announced
  8. + HistoricalPoor odds15 devs · median $6.1k · 25 announced
  9. + Co-opPoor odds11 devs · median $4.9k · 25 announced
  10. + Auto BattlerPoor odds22 devs · median $3.4k · 27 announced
  11. + Roguelike DeckbuilderPoor odds24 devs · median $3.4k · 38 announced
  12. + Online Co-OpPoor odds13 devs · median $3.1k · 36 announced

All 69 pairs on the Trading Card Game page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist : Link Evolution older $39.99 3,905 82% 117k $4.7M (exactly $4,684,828) Other Ocean Emeryville
Cardfight!! Vanguard Dear Days 2 $69.99 631 67% 19k $1.3M (exactly $1,324,911) FURYU Corporation, LANCARSE Ltd.
Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp older $19.99 761 62% 23k $456k (exactly $456,372) Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
Helmetman · EA older $19.99 136 79% 4.1k $82k (exactly $81,559) GoniNmimi Games
Fuckstone $11.99 217 88% 6.5k $78k (exactly $78,055) Anime Mania
修仙•母珠传 Pig Training Legend $7.99 192 72% 5.8k $46k (exactly $46,022) MouseKKK
Final Stardust: Cosmic Nexus older $14.99 72 75% 2.2k $32k (exactly $32,378) NourSaiFR
Schoolgirl Card Pull Simulator $6.99 34 61% 1.0k $7.1k (exactly $7,130) Violet Soft
Isekai Mage Girl Gacha Pull Simulator: Elemental Card Collection $6.99 27 74% 810 $5.7k (exactly $5,662) Violet Soft
PERSEVERANCE: Chapter 1 $4.99 25 44% 750 $3.7k (exactly $3,742) XPECTED
Chalk & Blood · EA $8.99 4 50% 120 $1.1k (exactly $1,079) BoiraTech
Fated All-In: Casino 5 Queens $7.99 1 100% 30 $240 (exactly $240) TEAM OLDBOY_Levi
Waifu Dominion: Lustful Reign $3.99 1 0% 30 $120 (exactly $120) A.I.Flo
Chosen Card Chronicles $7.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) Funnyface

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