Do I ship it?

Games › Mechanics › Local Co-Op

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Local Co-Op game?

Local Co-Op

Of 925 developers who shipped a Local Co-Op 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.. 1,448 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.5k, ×3.2 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $500k, ×1070 the market median. Revenue is down 35% on the market; 1,448 games are announced against 533 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 35% on the market, 1,448 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Local Co-Op
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 925
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.8k → $4.8k → $2.4k → $2.1k → $2.1k → $3.6k → $899 (still earning) → $359 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Local Co-Op: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 925
Bottom 30% $240 (exactly $240)
Median $1.5k (exactly $1,525)
Top 25% $14k (exactly $14,390)
Top 5% $508k (exactly $508,297)
Developers, 2 yr 925
Released games 3,671
Announced 1,448
Effort 4 / 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 35% on the market, supply 30% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.

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Plate 2 · systems and tooling

Can AI deliver it?

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

Local Co-Op
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Local Co-Op
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 76% positive over 299,328 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 $1.5k, 1 in 4 over $14k, 1 in 20 over $500k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 9 in 10 of the 486 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 1,448 games are announced against 533 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Local Co-Op

115 pairs with a mechanicwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Life Sim + Local Co-Op Dead $11k 11 devs
  2. Wargame + Local Co-Op Dead $4.5k 6 devs
  3. Spectacle fighter + Local Co-Op Dead $4.0k 5 devs
  4. Survival Horror + Local Co-Op Dead $2.7k 15 devs
  5. Base Building + Local Co-Op Dead $2.6k 14 devs
  6. Tennis + Local Co-Op Dead $2.3k 10 devs
  7. RTS + Local Co-Op Dead $1.8k 10 devs
  8. Turn-Based + Local Co-Op Dead $1.8k 3 devs
  9. Battle Royale + Local Co-Op Dead $958 10 devs
  10. Tanks + Local Co-Op Dead $861 8 devs
  11. Local Co-Op + Choose Your Own Adventure Dead $449 9 devs
  12. Local Co-Op + Incremental Dead $270 8 devs
  13. Flight + Local Co-Op Dead $238 17 devs
  14. Automobile Sim + Local Co-Op Dead $150 11 devs
  15. Hero Shooter + Local Co-Op Dead $150 7 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

It Takes Two 2021 · $262M Left 4 Dead 2 2009 · $245M Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition 2017 · $244M EA SPORTS FC™ 26 2025 · $209M The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth 2014 · $187M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
It Takes Two older $39.99 218,492 95% 6.6M $262M (exactly $262,124,852) Hazelight Studios
Left 4 Dead 2 older $9.99 816,316 97% 24M $245M (exactly $244,649,905) Valve
Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition older $44.99 180,782 95% 5.4M $244M (exactly $244,001,465) Larian Studios
EA SPORTS FC™ 26 $69.99 99,773 50% 3.0M $209M (exactly $209,493,368) EA Canada, EA Romania
The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth older $14.99 415,060 96% 12M $187M (exactly $186,652,482) Nicalis, Inc., Edmund McMillen
Cuphead older $19.99 198,790 96% 6.0M $119M (exactly $119,214,363) Studio MDHR Entertainment Inc.
Split Fiction $49.99 78,378 97% 2.4M $118M (exactly $117,543,487) Hazelight Studios
Human Fall Flat older $19.99 174,835 94% 5.2M $105M (exactly $104,848,549) No Brakes Games
A Way Out older $29.99 78,174 87% 2.3M $70M (exactly $70,333,148) Hazelight Studios
NBA 2K25 older $69.99 30,969 60% 929k $65M (exactly $65,025,609) Visual Concepts
NBA 2K26 $69.99 25,651 66% 770k $54M (exactly $53,859,405) Visual Concepts
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds $69.99 11,479 93% 344k $24M (exactly $24,102,456) Sonic Team
Grounded 2 · EA $29.99 21,442 82% 643k $19M (exactly $19,291,367) Obsidian Entertainment, Eidos-Montréal
LEGO® Batman™: Legacy of the Dark Knight $69.99 8,728 95% 262k $18M (exactly $18,326,182) TT Games
REANIMAL $39.99 13,809 78% 414k $17M (exactly $16,566,657) Tarsier Studios
Rhythm Doctor $19.99 25,021 98% 751k $15M (exactly $15,005,094) 7th Beat Games
PowerWash Simulator 2 $24.99 10,939 91% 328k $8.2M (exactly $8,200,968) FuturLab
WWE 2K25 $59.99 4,108 73% 123k $7.4M (exactly $7,393,168) Visual Concepts

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