Do I ship it?

Games › Mechanics › Split Screen

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Split Screen game?

Split Screen

Of 302 developers who shipped a Split Screen 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.. 441 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.2k, ×1.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $360k, ×582 the market median. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 441 games are announced against 169 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 441 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Split Screen
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 302
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.6k → $3.1k → $1.4k → $3.6k → $1.2k → $1.8k → $599 (still earning) → $897 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Split Screen: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 302
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $1.2k (exactly $1,198)
Top 25% $8.5k (exactly $8,544)
Top 5% $366k (exactly $365,606)
Developers, 2 yr 302
Released games 1,103
Announced 441
Effort 5 / 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 10% on the market, supply 25% 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Split Screen
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Split Screen
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 92% positive over 184,276 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $1.2k, 1 in 4 over $8.5k, 1 in 20 over $360k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 159 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 441 games are announced against 169 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Split Screen

71 pairs with a mechanicwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Combat + Split Screen Poor odds $359 43 devs
  2. Split Screen + Roguelike Poor odds $300 11 devs
  3. Offroad + Split Screen Dead $165k 6 devs
  4. Building + Split Screen Dead $30k 10 devs
  5. Destruction + Split Screen Dead $10k 9 devs
  6. Survival Horror + Split Screen Dead $6.0k 7 devs
  7. Split Screen + Time Attack Dead $4.0k 6 devs
  8. Flight + Split Screen Dead $4.0k 3 devs
  9. Split Screen + Hidden Object Dead $3.6k 9 devs
  10. Split Screen + Runner Dead $2.4k 9 devs
  11. Third-Person Shooter + Split Screen Dead $1.2k 7 devs
  12. Split Screen + Twin Stick Shooter Dead $748 13 devs
  13. Fighting + Split Screen Dead $479 7 devs
  14. Crafting + Split Screen Dead $450 7 devs
  15. Split Screen + Shoot 'Em Up Dead $449 12 devs
  16. FPS + Split Screen Dead $360 15 devs
  17. Split Screen + Logic Dead $359 17 devs
  18. Split Screen + Action Roguelike Dead $300 25 devs
  19. Split Screen + Beat 'em up Dead $300 13 devs
  20. Split Screen + Strategy Dead $299 37 devs
  21. 3D Fighter + Split Screen Dead $120 8 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Call of Duty®: Black Ops III 2015 · $284M Need for Speed™ Heat 2020 · $271M It Takes Two 2021 · $262M Split Fiction 2025 · $118M Human Fall Flat 2016 · $105M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Call of Duty®: Black Ops III older $59.99 157,694 88% 4.7M $284M (exactly $283,801,892) Treyarch, Aspyr (Mac)
Need for Speed™ Heat older $69.99 128,933 84% 3.9M $271M (exactly $270,720,620) Ghost Games
It Takes Two older $39.99 218,492 95% 6.6M $262M (exactly $262,124,852) Hazelight Studios
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
Need for Speed™ Unbound older $69.99 49,862 61% 1.5M $105M (exactly $104,695,241) Criterion Games
A Way Out older $29.99 78,174 87% 2.3M $70M (exactly $70,333,148) Hazelight Studios
F1® 25 $49.99 25,395 87% 762k $38M (exactly $38,084,882) Codemasters
Divinity: Original Sin - Enhanced Edition older $39.99 27,485 88% 825k $33M (exactly $32,973,754) Larian Studios
Resident Evil 6 older $19.99 51,420 77% 1.5M $31M (exactly $30,836,574) Capcom
Wobbly Life $24.99 33,034 97% 991k $25M (exactly $24,765,590) RubberBandGames
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds $69.99 11,479 93% 344k $24M (exactly $24,102,456) Sonic Team
Little Nightmares III $39.99 10,165 46% 305k $12M (exactly $12,194,950) Supermassive Games
PowerWash Simulator 2 $24.99 10,939 91% 328k $8.2M (exactly $8,200,968) FuturLab
Easy Delivery Co. $12.99 9,538 95% 286k $3.7M (exactly $3,716,959) Sam C
Revenge of the Savage Planet $29.99 2,845 86% 85k $2.6M (exactly $2,559,646) Raccoon Logic Studios Inc.
Screamer $59.99 1,039 80% 31k $1.9M (exactly $1,869,888) Milestone S.r.l.
LEGO® Harry Potter™ Collection $39.99 1,464 82% 44k $1.8M (exactly $1,756,361) TT Games, Double Eleven

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