Should I ship a 1980s game?
1980s
Of 1,225 developers who shipped a 1980s 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.. 1,330 more are announced.
Verdict: fair, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $600, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $120. Revenue is up 15% on the market; 1,330 games are announced against 715 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $120 (exactly $120) |
|---|---|
| Median | $599 (exactly $599) |
| Top 25% | $4.6k (exactly $4,641) |
| Top 5% | $118k (exactly $117,703) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 1,225 |
| Released games | 3,724 |
| Announced | 1,330 |
| 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 up 15% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 12%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is high: the lowest rating among its tags.
- 1980s
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $18.99 or above
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $18.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 83% positive over 55,634 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 678 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 1,330 games are announced against 715 developers who shipped in the last year.
All pairs with 1980s
No pair with 1980s has 25 games yet.
Comparable games
Arma Reforger 2023 · $62M 
Counter-Strike 2000 · $51M 
RoboCop: Rogue City 2023 · $34M 
Hotline Miami 2012 · $33M 
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number 2015 · $31M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Arma Reforger | older | $39.99 | 51,613 80% | 1.5M | $62M (exactly $61,920,116) | Bohemia Interactive |
| | Counter-Strike | older | $9.99 | 169,780 96% | 5.1M | $51M (exactly $50,883,066) | Valve |
| | RoboCop: Rogue City | older | $39.99 | 28,196 86% | 846k | $34M (exactly $33,826,741) | Teyon |
| | Hotline Miami | older | $9.99 | 109,610 96% | 3.3M | $33M (exactly $32,850,117) | Dennaton Games |
| | Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number | older | $14.99 | 69,423 94% | 2.1M | $31M (exactly $31,219,523) | Dennaton Games |
 | Contraband Police | older | $29.99 | 24,882 95% | 746k | $22M (exactly $22,386,335) | Crazy Rocks |
 | Generation Zero® | older | $24.99 | 29,115 75% | 873k | $22M (exactly $21,827,516) | Systemic Reaction™ |
 | WARNO | older | $39.99 | 14,502 80% | 435k | $17M (exactly $17,398,049) | Eugen Systems |
 | Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – The Definitive Edition | older | $59.99 | 9,037 82% | 271k | $16M (exactly $16,263,889) | Rockstar Games |
 | Automobilista 2 | older | $39.99 | 12,002 91% | 360k | $14M (exactly $14,398,799) | Reiza Studios |
 | John Carpenter's Toxic Commando | $39.99 | 6,274 72% | 188k | $7.5M (exactly $7,526,918) | Saber Interactive | |
 | DRAGON QUEST III HD-2D Remake | $59.99 | 4,010 75% | 120k | $7.2M (exactly $7,216,797) | Square Enix, ARTDINK | |
 | The Precinct | $29.99 | 7,837 87% | 235k | $7.1M (exactly $7,050,949) | Fallen Tree Games Ltd | |
 | REPLACED | $19.99 | 9,130 84% | 274k | $5.5M (exactly $5,475,261) | Sad Cat Studios | |
 | UFO 50 | $24.99 | 7,134 94% | 214k | $5.3M (exactly $5,348,360) | Mossmouth | |
 | Mixtape | $19.99 | 7,365 87% | 221k | $4.4M (exactly $4,416,790) | Beethoven and Dinosaur | |
 | Urban Myth Dissolution Center | $17.99 | 5,930 88% | 178k | $3.2M (exactly $3,200,421) | Hakababunko | |
 | DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake | $59.99 | 1,731 84% | 52k | $3.1M (exactly $3,115,281) | Square Enix, ARTDINK | |
 | The World of Kungfu: Dragon and Eagle | $17.99 | 4,595 67% | 138k | $2.5M (exactly $2,479,922) | ChillyRoom | |
 | Yakuza 0 Director's Cut | $49.99 | 1,628 80% | 49k | $2.4M (exactly $2,441,512) | RGG Studio |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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