Do I ship it?

Games › Mechanics › Card Battler

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Card Battler?

Card Battler

Of 1,140 developers who shipped a Card Battler in the last 2 years: 3 in 10 made under est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 4 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 20 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 1,988 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×2.5 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $310k, ×661 the market median. Revenue is down 40% on the market; 1,988 games are announced against 718 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.5 times the market baseline, revenue down 40% on the market, 1,988 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Card Battler
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 1,140
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.2k → $4.9k → $3.2k → $2.5k → $2.0k → $2.7k → $836 (still earning) → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Card Battler: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 1,140
Bottom 30% $239 (exactly $239)
Median $1.2k (exactly $1,199)
Top 25% $12k (exactly $12,225)
Top 5% $314k (exactly $313,891)
Developers, 2 yr 1,140
Released games 2,404
Announced 1,988
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 40% on the market, supply 65% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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.

Card Battler
effort 3 / 10 · high · card rules plus simple encounter logic

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Card Battler
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $16.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $16.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 71% positive over 282,961 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 $1.2k, 1 in 4 over $12k, 1 in 20 over $310k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 550 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 1,988 games are announced against 718 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Card Battler

35 pairs with a settingwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Card Battler + Zombies Fair $839 17 devs
  2. Card Battler + Lovecraftian Poor odds $17k 14 devs
  3. Card Battler + Noir Poor odds $12k 16 devs
  4. Card Battler + LGBTQ+ Poor odds $8.1k 18 devs
  5. Card Battler + Female Protagonist Poor odds $6.6k 88 devs
  6. Card Battler + Romance Poor odds $5.7k 21 devs
  7. Card Battler + Dystopian Poor odds $4.9k 16 devs
  8. Card Battler + Cats Poor odds $4.0k 22 devs
  9. Card Battler + Aliens Poor odds $2.7k 18 devs
  10. Card Battler + Psychological Horror Poor odds $2.7k 24 devs
  11. Card Battler + Historical Poor odds $2.4k 36 devs
  12. Card Battler + Sci-fi Poor odds $1.8k 94 devs
  13. Card Battler + Horror Poor odds $1.8k 43 devs
  14. Card Battler + Post-apocalyptic Poor odds $1.7k 31 devs
  15. Card Battler + Dragons Poor odds $1.7k 24 devs
  16. Card Battler + Psychological Poor odds $1.6k 18 devs
  17. Card Battler + Space Poor odds $1.4k 38 devs
  18. Card Battler + Fantasy Poor odds $1.2k 439 devs
  19. Card Battler + Mystery Poor odds $1.2k 30 devs
  20. Card Battler + Magic Poor odds $1.1k 175 devs
  21. Card Battler + War Poor odds $955 33 devs
  22. Card Battler + Medieval Poor odds $899 117 devs
  23. Card Battler + Mythology Poor odds $899 44 devs
  24. Card Battler + Modern Poor odds $897 16 devs
  25. Card Battler + Dark Fantasy Poor odds $836 139 devs
  26. Card Battler + Cyberpunk Poor odds $779 43 devs
  27. Card Battler + Demons Poor odds $776 32 devs
  28. Card Battler + Artificial Intelligence Poor odds $719 20 devs
  29. Card Battler + Martial Arts Poor odds $600 19 devs
  30. Card Battler + Nature Poor odds $599 29 devs
  31. Card Battler + Futuristic Poor odds $330 43 devs
  32. Card Battler + Supernatural Poor odds $300 16 devs
  33. Card Battler + Robots Poor odds $299 13 devs
  34. Card Battler + Alternate History Dead $9.4k 7 devs
  35. Card Battler + Military Dead $270 13 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

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