Do I ship it?

Games › Mechanics › Dynamic Narration

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Dynamic Narration game?

Dynamic Narration

Of 308 developers who shipped a Dynamic Narration game 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.. 644 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.8 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $160k, ×347 the market median. Revenue is up 35% on the market; 644 games are announced against 189 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.8 times the market baseline, revenue up 35% on the market, 644 announced, ×3.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Dynamic Narration
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 308
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $5.0k → $1.2k → $3.2k → $1.2k → $2.0k → $719 → $1.5k (still earning) → $989 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Dynamic Narration: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 308
Bottom 30% $300 (exactly $300)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,347)
Top 25% $5.8k (exactly $5,838)
Top 5% $165k (exactly $164,918)
Developers, 2 yr 308
Released games 835
Announced 644
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $6.99

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 35% on the market, supply 55% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.

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Plate 2 · systems and tooling

Can AI deliver it?

AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Dynamic Narration
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
Dynamic Narration
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 29,489 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $5.8k, 1 in 20 over $160k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 157 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 644 games are announced against 189 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Dynamic Narration

56 pairs with a mechanicwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Turn-Based Strategy + Dynamic Narration Dead $359 10 devs
  2. Action-Adventure + Dynamic Narration Dead $300 48 devs
  3. Action RPG + Dynamic Narration Dead $300 22 devs
  4. 3D Platformer + Dynamic Narration Dead $300 18 devs
  5. Arcade + Dynamic Narration Dead $179 19 devs
  6. Shooter + Dynamic Narration Dead $150 17 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Detroit: Become Human 2020 · $272M The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series 2020 · $55M Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy 2019 · $32M Beyond: Two Souls 2020 · $22M The Stanley Parable 2013 · $18M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Detroit: Become Human older $39.99 226,411 96% 6.8M $272M (exactly $271,625,277) Quantic Dream
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series older $49.99 36,594 96% 1.1M $55M (exactly $54,880,022) Skybound Games
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy older $29.99 35,628 97% 1.1M $32M (exactly $32,054,512) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
Beyond: Two Souls older $19.99 37,154 87% 1.1M $22M (exactly $22,281,254) Quantic Dream
The Stanley Parable older $14.99 40,292 92% 1.2M $18M (exactly $18,119,312) Galactic Cafe
Heavy Rain older $19.99 26,503 85% 795k $16M (exactly $15,893,849) Quantic Dream
Road 96 🛣️ older $19.96 22,118 91% 664k $13M (exactly $13,244,258) Digixart
Bastion older $14.99 28,223 95% 847k $13M (exactly $12,691,883) Supergiant Games
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger older $14.99 20,869 94% 626k $9.4M (exactly $9,384,789) Techland
Drova - Forsaken Kin $24.99 9,455 93% 284k $7.1M (exactly $7,088,414) Just2D
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage $39.99 5,873 86% 176k $7.0M (exactly $7,045,838) DON'T NOD
Mandate Of Heaven $14.99 5,446 91% 163k $2.4M (exactly $2,449,066) 木焱工作室
Get To Work $12.99 3,456 88% 104k $1.3M (exactly $1,346,803) Isto Inc.
Citadelum $24.99 1,005 83% 30k $753k (exactly $753,448) Abylight Barcelona
Ludus Magnatus: Gladiator Manager Simulator · EA $24.99 612 81% 18k $459k (exactly $458,816) Contec Games
Corruption Town · EA $14.99 992 88% 30k $446k (exactly $446,102) BoredBasmati
The Message from Deep Space $9.99 1,453 96% 44k $435k (exactly $435,464) Applesinmypants
Witchy Business $14.99 865 86% 26k $389k (exactly $388,990) Rogue Duck Interactive
GEX Trilogy $29.99 332 71% 10k $299k (exactly $298,700) Limited Run Games, Crystal Dynamics

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