2D (any)
An average niche: demand and competition are roughly balanced — the idea and execution decide. Average across 5 platforms: niche 51/100, demand 92/100, competition 56/100, development cost 32/100. On Steam: 27,694 games and 513,846 players online; 12% of games reach 500+ reviews, average spend per player is $8.78.
Niche
51/100
Demand (0–100)
92/100
Competition
56/100
Dev cost
32/100
Spend per player
$8.78
Hit rate (500+ reviews)
12%
Key findings
- Ranked #8 of 24 in the overall niche ranking.
- The niche looks best on App Store (97/100) and weakest on itch.io (0/100).
- Competition is at a typical level: 56/100 vs a median of 60/100.
- Development cost is typical: index 32/100 vs a median of 36/100.
- On Steam, 12% of games reached 500+ reviews — about usual (median 12%).
- Small-studio games make up 63% of all Steam games with this tag.
By platform
| Platform | Popularity | Games / leaders’ share | Competition | Niche | Dev cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steam | 99/100 | 27,694 | 100/100 | 14/100 | 31/100 |
| itch.io | 97/100 | 387,410 | 100/100 | 0/100 | 30/100 |
| Yandex Games | 65/100 | 1,343 | 61/100 | 51/100 | 25/100 |
| Google Play | 99/100 | 53% | 17/100 | 91/100 | 39/100 |
| App Store | 98/100 | 30% | 4/100 | 97/100 | 36/100 |
Example games — Steam
AAA / big hits
MultiVersusPlayer First Games · free
Prison ArchitectIntroversion Software, Double Eleven · $29.99
Plants vs. Zombies GOTY EditionPopCap Games, Inc. · $4.99
Indie
TerrariaRe-Logic · $9.99
Among UsInnersloth · $4.99
Geometry DashRobTop Games · $4.99
Other art styles
Data updated October 12, 2026 Methodology