Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
2D + Stylized: a typical launch earns $221 in its first year
That is the median of 167 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 5 of 334 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 8.4 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 73% on the year before: 337 against 195.
- One game dominates the figure
- Price
- $221 median of 167 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −30.5% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 337 195 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 631 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 1,789 carrying both tags
Boards
as of 30 Sep 2026Where this pair stands on each board of the front page. Every value carries its 90% interval and its sample.
| Board | Value | Interval | Sample | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most anticipatedShare of all upcoming wishlist heat on Steam, with the number of upcoming games beside it. | 0.09%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.06% to 0.14% | 21 ranked of 631 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #1,806 of 7,193pairs on this board |
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.
| 0.70xhits against expected | 0.48x to 1.16x | 334 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #4,722 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −18%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −29% to −5% | 34 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,950 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | +3%review growth against same-age games | −7% to +13% | 34 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #662 of 2,461pairs on this board |
Pairs are noisier than genres: the demand boards at pair level are indicative only.
Launch success
launches 6 to 30 months oldMatured indie paid launches that earned an estimated $100k or more, against the number expected for games at the same price tier and launch quarter.
- Launches
- 334
- Hit rate
- 1.5%0.5% to 3.0%
- Expected rate
- 2.5%
- Against expected
- 0.70x0.48x to 1.16x
Launch window: indie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old). Hit odds are shrunk toward the Steam-wide rate by 3 expected hits.
Revenue spread
334 launchesEstimated lifetime gross of the same matured launches. Half earned less than the median; one in ten earned more than the top figure.
- Bottom tenth
- $0
- Median
- $202
- Top tenth
- $6,785
Estimated from Steam review counts. Lifetime to date, so it differs from the first-year price above.
Supply
raw release countsGames released with both tags, last 12 months against the 12 before.
- Change
- +73%
- Against Steam
- +26%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
Comparable games
8 indie titlesThe biggest indie games in this pair by estimated lifetime gross. Revenue is shown as a number at 50 or more reviews, as a range at 10 to 49, and not at all below 10.
- Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley (opens the Steam store)2024 · 3,391 reviews, 97% positiveest. $2.3M
- Nubby's Number Factory (opens the Steam store)2025 · 18,212 reviews, 97% positiveest. $1.8M
- Worldless (opens the Steam store)2023 · 1,564 reviews, 94% positiveest. $633k
- Paper Trail (opens the Steam store)2024 · 736 reviews, 94% positiveest. $298k
- Dark Hunting Ground (opens the Steam store)2024 · 774 reviews, 92% positiveest. $204k
- Platypus Reclayed (opens the Steam store)2025 · 644 reviews, 99% positiveest. $195k
- Život Není Krásný: Poslední Exekuce (opens the Steam store)2026 · 548 reviews, 97% positiveest. $166k
- HER TREES : PUZZLE DREAM (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,960 reviews, 97% positiveest. $158k
More with 2D
pairs with 2D- 2D + Roguelike Deckbuilder$6,77234 launches priced, 64 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Romance$3,28176 launches priced, 110 releases in 12 months
- War + 2D$3,16035 launches priced, 55 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Dating Sim$2,55991 launches priced, 116 releases in 12 months
- 2D + LGBTQ+$2,46550 launches priced, 85 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Historical$2,32474 launches priced, 130 releases in 12 months
More with Stylized
pairs with Stylized- Roguelite + Stylized$2,12543 launches priced, 71 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Stylized$1,48650 launches priced, 95 releases in 12 months
- Surreal + Stylized$1,26334 launches priced, 44 releases in 12 months
- FPS + Stylized$1,01141 launches priced, 79 releases in 12 months
- Stylized + Linear$75830 launches priced, 53 releases in 12 months
- Stylized + 2D Platformer$70731 launches priced, 50 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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