Should I ship a 1990s game?
1990's
Of 1,927 developers who shipped a 1990s 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.. 2,781 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.0k, ×2.2 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $250k, ×526 the market median. Revenue is up 55% on the market; 2,781 games are announced against 1,134 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $239 (exactly $239) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.0k (exactly $1,048) |
| Top 25% | $8.4k (exactly $8,390) |
| Top 5% | $250k (exactly $250,075) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 1,927 |
| Released games | 5,337 |
| Announced | 2,781 |
| Effort | 3 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | High |
| 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 55% 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.
- 1990's
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 95,777 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 1,027 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 2,781 games are announced against 1,134 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.
All pairs with 1990's
No pair with 1990's has 25 games yet.
Comparable games
Counter-Strike 2000 · $51M 
Pizza Tower 2023 · $40M 
Half-Life 1998 · $35M 
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number 2015 · $31M 
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – The Definitive Edition 2023 · $28M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Counter-Strike | older | $9.99 | 169,780 96% | 5.1M | $51M (exactly $50,883,066) | Valve |
| | Pizza Tower | older | $19.99 | 66,350 98% | 2.0M | $40M (exactly $39,790,095) | Tour De Pizza |
| | Half-Life | older | $9.99 | 117,320 96% | 3.5M | $35M (exactly $35,160,804) | Valve |
| | Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number | older | $14.99 | 69,423 94% | 2.1M | $31M (exactly $31,219,523) | Dennaton Games |
| | Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – The Definitive Edition | older | $59.99 | 15,628 80% | 469k | $28M (exactly $28,125,712) | Rockstar Games |
 | Wandering Sword | older | $24.99 | 37,034 94% | 1.1M | $28M (exactly $27,764,390) | The Swordman Studio |
 | Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds | $69.99 | 11,479 93% | 344k | $24M (exactly $24,102,456) | Sonic Team | |
 | Crash Bandicoot™ N. Sane Trilogy | older | $39.99 | 16,613 92% | 498k | $20M (exactly $19,930,616) | Vicarious Visions, Iron Galaxy Studios |
 | Command & Conquer™ Remastered Collection | older | $19.99 | 31,503 90% | 945k | $19M (exactly $18,892,349) | Petroglyph, Lemon Sky Studios |
 | Automobilista 2 | older | $39.99 | 12,002 91% | 360k | $14M (exactly $14,398,799) | Reiza Studios |
 | My Winter Car | · EA | $14.99 | 18,614 94% | 558k | $8.4M (exactly $8,370,716) | Amistech Games |
 | Lost Records: Bloom & Rage | $39.99 | 5,873 86% | 176k | $7.0M (exactly $7,045,838) | DON'T NOD | |
 | Retro Rewind - Video Store Simulator | $19.90 | 10,118 95% | 304k | $6.0M (exactly $6,040,446) | Blood Pact Studios | |
 | Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven | $49.99 | 3,921 93% | 118k | $5.9M (exactly $5,880,324) | Square Enix, xeen Inc. | |
 | The Roottrees are Dead | $19.99 | 9,700 96% | 291k | $5.8M (exactly $5,817,090) | Evil Trout Inc. | |
 | ATLYSS | · EA | $9.99 | 19,244 96% | 577k | $5.8M (exactly $5,767,427) | Kiseff |
 | UNBEATABLE | $27.99 | 6,552 92% | 197k | $5.5M (exactly $5,501,714) | D-CELL GAMES | |
 | Mixtape | $19.99 | 7,365 87% | 221k | $4.4M (exactly $4,416,790) | Beethoven and Dinosaur | |
 | ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies | $39.99 | 2,911 83% | 87k | $3.5M (exactly $3,492,327) | ZA/UM |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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