Do I ship it?

Games › Settings › Zombies

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Zombie game?

Zombies

Of 1,165 developers who shipped a Zombie 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.. 1,705 more are announced, ×2.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $990, ×1.6 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $340k, ×544 the market median. Revenue is up 65% on the market; 1,705 games are announced against 614 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 65% on the market, 1,705 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Zombies
Fig. 1 · this niche among 355
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 1,165
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.2k → $1.5k → $1.3k → $1.5k → $748 → $1.2k → $898 (still earning) → $899 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Zombies: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 1,165
Bottom 30% $239 (exactly $239)
Median $987 (exactly $987)
Top 25% $7.0k (exactly $7,015)
Top 5% $342k (exactly $341,726)
Developers, 2 yr 1,165
Released games 3,997
Announced 1,705
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $5.99

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 65% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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.

Zombies
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
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 82% positive over 396,188 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 $990, 1 in 4 over $7.0k, 1 in 20 over $340k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 9 in 10 of the 651 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 1,705 games are announced against 614 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 per shipper.

Plate 6 · every pair with this tag

All pairs with Zombies

129 pairs with a mechanicwith: mechanics · settings · any
  1. Card Game + Zombies Poor odds $299 19 devs
  2. Mystery Dungeon + Zombies Poor odds $239 13 devs
  3. Wargame + Zombies Poor odds $179 19 devs
  4. Automation + Zombies Poor odds $150 9 devs
  5. 6DOF + Zombies Dead $6.5k 11 devs
  6. On-Rails Shooter + Zombies Dead $2.7k 6 devs
  7. Sniper + Zombies Dead $1.5k 5 devs
  8. Board Game + Zombies Dead $1.4k 9 devs
  9. CRPG + Zombies Dead $1.2k 8 devs
  10. Parkour + Zombies Dead $718 8 devs
  11. Spectacle fighter + Zombies Dead $657 10 devs
  12. Puzzle Platformer + Zombies Dead $479 18 devs
  13. Hero Shooter + Zombies Dead $449 30 devs
  14. Bullet Time + Zombies Dead $449 21 devs
  15. Runner + Zombies Dead $449 14 devs
  16. Arena Shooter + Zombies Dead $446 70 devs
  17. Level Editor + Zombies Dead $359 10 devs
  18. Shoot 'Em Up + Zombies Dead $300 105 devs
  19. Arcade + Zombies Dead $299 160 devs
  20. Top-Down Shooter + Zombies Dead $299 121 devs
  21. Score Attack + Zombies Dead $298 44 devs
  22. 2D Platformer + Zombies Dead $270 68 devs
  23. 3D Platformer + Zombies Dead $240 81 devs
  24. Beat 'em up + Zombies Dead $240 32 devs
  25. Racing + Zombies Dead $210 10 devs
  26. 3D Fighter + Zombies Dead $150 26 devs
  27. 2D Fighter + Zombies Dead $150 11 devs
  28. Battle Royale + Zombies Dead $89 16 devs
  29. FMV + Zombies Dead $0 21 devs
Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

DayZ 2018 · $582M 7 Days to Die 2024 · $369M The Forest 2018 · $349M Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Reloaded Edition 2022 · $297M Call of Duty®: Black Ops III 2015 · $284M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
DayZ older $49.99 387,850 78% 12M $582M (exactly $581,658,645) Bohemia Interactive
7 Days to Die older $44.99 273,589 87% 8.2M $369M (exactly $369,263,073) The Fun Pimps
The Forest older $19.99 581,431 95% 17M $349M (exactly $348,684,171) Endnight Games Ltd
Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Reloaded Edition older $59.99 164,914 79% 4.9M $297M (exactly $296,795,726) Techland
Call of Duty®: Black Ops III older $59.99 157,694 88% 4.7M $284M (exactly $283,801,892) Treyarch, Aspyr (Mac)
Dying Light older $24.99 373,413 95% 11M $280M (exactly $279,947,726) Techland
Project Zomboid · EA older $24.99 364,830 94% 11M $274M (exactly $273,513,051) The Indie Stone
Left 4 Dead 2 older $9.99 816,316 97% 24M $245M (exactly $244,649,905) Valve
Resident Evil Requiem $69.99 106,931 95% 3.2M $225M (exactly $224,523,021) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
Resident Evil 4 older $39.99 186,701 97% 5.6M $224M (exactly $223,985,190) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
SCUM $44.99 98,554 74% 3.0M $133M (exactly $133,018,334) Gamepires
Dying Light: The Beast $59.99 59,318 87% 1.8M $107M (exactly $106,754,605) Techland
Red Dead Redemption $49.99 20,294 92% 609k $30M (exactly $30,434,912) Rockstar Games, Double Eleven
Call of Duty®: Black Ops 6 $69.99 14,063 44% 422k $30M (exactly $29,528,081) Treyarch, Raven Software, Beenox, High… (Treyarch, Raven Software, Beenox, High Moon Studios, Activision Shanghai, Sledgehammer Games, Infinity Ward, Demonware)
Pavlov $24.99 37,865 88% 1.1M $28M (exactly $28,387,390) Vankrupt Games
Killing Floor 3 $39.99 16,493 46% 495k $20M (exactly $19,786,652) Tripwire Interactive
No More Room in Hell 2 $29.99 16,725 62% 502k $15M (exactly $15,047,482) Torn Banner Studios
Deadzone: Rogue $24.99 15,041 82% 451k $11M (exactly $11,276,238) Prophecy Games
Diplomacy is Not an Option $29.99 10,904 85% 327k $9.8M (exactly $9,810,329) Door 407

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