Do I ship it?

Games › Mechanics › Shoot 'Em Up

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Shoot 'Em Up?

Shoot 'Em Up

Of 1,288 developers who shipped a Shoot 'Em Up 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.. 1,565 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $420, ×0.9 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $78k, ×166 the market median. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 1,565 games are announced against 707 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.9 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 1,565 announced, ×2.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Shoot 'Em Up
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 1,288
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $899 → $1.5k → $599 → $599 → $598 → $449 → $300 (still earning) → $179 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Shoot 'Em Up: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 1,288
Bottom 30% $119 (exactly $119)
Median $418 (exactly $418)
Top 25% $3.3k (exactly $3,297)
Top 5% $79k (exactly $78,821)
Developers, 2 yr 1,288
Released games 5,127
Announced 1,565
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
Typical price $4.99

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 10% on the market, supply 15% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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.

Shoot 'Em Up
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
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 57,499 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $120, median $420, 1 in 4 over $3.2k, 1 in 20 over $78k.

3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 698 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 1,565 games are announced against 707 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Shoot 'Em Up

170 pairs · ranked by verdict, then medianwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Shoot 'Em Up + Faith Fair $17k 13 devs
  2. Shoot 'Em Up + Romance Fair $1.5k 10 devs
  3. Shoot 'Em Up + Vampires Fair $1.3k 15 devs
  4. Quick-Time Events + Shoot 'Em Up Fair $1.2k 8 devs
  5. Shoot 'Em Up + Incremental Fair $628 39 devs
  6. Shoot 'Em Up + Idler Fair $628 36 devs
  7. Shoot 'Em Up + Tower Defense Fair $599 70 devs
  8. Resource Management + Shoot 'Em Up Fair $599 26 devs
  9. Arcade + Shoot 'Em Up Fair $419 749 devs
  10. Swordplay + Shoot 'Em Up Long shot $300 13 devs
  11. Shoot 'Em Up + Music Poor odds $9.0k 12 devs
  12. Shoot 'Em Up + Lovecraftian Poor odds $8.1k 8 devs
  13. Shoot 'Em Up + Visual Novel Poor odds $5.8k 11 devs
  14. Shoot 'Em Up + Mechs Poor odds $4.6k 37 devs
  15. Loot + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $3.6k 40 devs
  16. Shoot 'Em Up + Cats Poor odds $3.6k 18 devs
  17. Souls-like + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $3.1k 14 devs
  18. Shoot 'Em Up + Historical Poor odds $3.0k 13 devs
  19. Bullet Heaven + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $2.3k 81 devs
  20. Shoot 'Em Up + LGBTQ+ Poor odds $2.2k 15 devs
  21. Shoot 'Em Up + Female Protagonist Poor odds $1.8k 139 devs
  22. Shoot 'Em Up + Capitalism Poor odds $1.6k 13 devs
  23. Co-op + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.5k 98 devs
  24. Deckbuilding + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.4k 17 devs
  25. Shoot 'Em Up + Modern Poor odds $1.3k 18 devs
  26. Roguelite + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.3k 299 devs
  27. Gun Customization + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.3k 58 devs
  28. Shoot 'Em Up + Twin Stick Shooter Poor odds $1.2k 168 devs
  29. Inventory Management + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.2k 14 devs
  30. Roguelike + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.2k 307 devs
  31. Local Co-Op + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.2k 90 devs
  32. Multiple Endings + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.1k 51 devs
  33. Character Customization + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.0k 90 devs
  34. RPG + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.0k 133 devs
  35. Real Time Tactics + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $1.0k 17 devs
  36. Action Roguelike + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $959 364 devs
  37. Base Building + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $959 24 devs
  38. Shoot 'Em Up + Robots Poor odds $898 93 devs
  39. Local Multiplayer + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $898 63 devs
  40. Co-op Campaign + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $898 22 devs
  41. Shoot 'Em Up + Fantasy Poor odds $839 167 devs
  42. Sports + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $809 15 devs
  43. Perma Death + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $748 86 devs
  44. Bullet Hell + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $719 639 devs
  45. Class-Based + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $719 23 devs
  46. On-Rails Shooter + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $716 40 devs
  47. Rhythm + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $716 22 devs
  48. Action RPG + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $629 86 devs
  49. Procedural Generation + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $599 101 devs
  50. Auto Battler + Shoot 'Em Up Poor odds $599 15 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Cuphead 2017 · $119M PAYDAY 3 2023 · $44M Subverse 2024 · $17M BALL x PIT 2025 · $11M Crysis 2 Remastered 2022 · $8.1M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Cuphead older $19.99 198,790 96% 6.0M $119M (exactly $119,214,363) Studio MDHR Entertainment Inc.
PAYDAY 3 older $29.99 49,305 45% 1.5M $44M (exactly $44,359,708) Starbreeze Studios
Subverse $39.99 13,781 66% 413k $17M (exactly $16,533,066) Studio FOW Interactive
BALL x PIT $14.99 24,714 95% 741k $11M (exactly $11,113,886) Kenny Sun and Friends
Crysis 2 Remastered older $29.99 9,034 89% 271k $8.1M (exactly $8,127,890) Crytek, Saber Interactive
Nova Drift older $17.99 12,975 95% 389k $7.0M (exactly $7,002,607) Chimeric
Crysis 3 Remastered older $29.99 7,731 88% 232k $7.0M (exactly $6,955,581) Crytek, Saber Interactive
Furi older $19.99 11,246 90% 337k $6.7M (exactly $6,744,226) The Game Bakers
POSTAL 4: No Regerts older $19.99 10,855 67% 326k $6.5M (exactly $6,509,743) Running With Scissors
POSTAL: Brain Damaged older $19.99 9,565 95% 287k $5.7M (exactly $5,736,130) Hyperstrange, CreativeForge Games
Metro Awakening $29.99 3,013 73% 90k $2.7M (exactly $2,710,796) Vertigo Games
Touhou Koumakyou: New Classic - the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil $17.99 3,740 98% 112k $2.0M (exactly $2,018,478) 上海アリス幻樂団, 上海アリスReprise
R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program $14.99 2,727 76% 82k $1.2M (exactly $1,226,332) WarmCore Studio
Greedland $12.99 2,919 83% 88k $1.1M (exactly $1,137,534) VaMP He
Beyond Sandbox · EA $19.99 1,223 39% 37k $733k (exactly $733,433) Atlas XR
Bloodshed $12.99 1,824 84% 55k $711k (exactly $710,813) com8com1 Software
I Am Legion: Stand Survivors $8.99 2,432 82% 73k $656k (exactly $655,910) JA Game Studio
Badlands Crew - Drive, Command, Conquer $18.99 1,126 78% 34k $641k (exactly $641,482) Runner Duck

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