Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Casual + Music: a typical launch earns $1,101 in its first year
That is the median of 35 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 11 of 70 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 5.6 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 63% on the year before: 70 against 43.
- Price
- $1,101 median of 35 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- +31.4% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 70 43 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 122 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 610 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. | 0.05%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.04% to 0.07% | 10 ranked of 122 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #2,458 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.62xhits against expected | 1.15x to 2.30x | 70 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #517 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −11%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −33% to +20% | 27 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,768 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 | −8% to +14% | 27 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #687 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
- 70
- Hit rate
- 15.7%6.3% to 22.1%
- Expected rate
- 8.1%
- Against expected
- 1.62x1.15x to 2.30x
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
70 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
- $38
- Median
- $1,034
- Top tenth
- $181,525
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
- +63%
- Against Steam
- +15%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.
- Spirit City: Lofi Sessions (opens the Steam store)2024 · 15,259 reviews, 97% positiveest. $3.4M
- Mixtape (opens the Steam store)2026 · 7,404 reviews, 87% positiveest. $2.8M
- Lumines Arise (opens the Steam store)2025 · 854 reviews, 94% positiveest. $692k
- Ithya: Magic Studies (opens the Steam store)2025 · 2,118 reviews, 97% positiveest. $441k
- Dancing Line (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,648 reviews, 92% positiveest. $333k
- Mini Cozy Room: Lo-Fi (opens the Steam store)2025 · 3,494 reviews, 96% positiveest. $315k
- Maestro (opens the Steam store)2024 · 555 reviews, 96% positiveest. $281k
- KALPA: Cosmic Symphony (opens the Steam store)2024 · 650 reviews, 84% positiveest. $263k
More with Casual
pairs with Casual- Casual + Job Simulator$8,44230 launches priced, 54 releases in 12 months
- Casual + LGBTQ+$4,15442 launches priced, 95 releases in 12 months
- Casual + Romance$2,61486 launches priced, 137 releases in 12 months
- Casual + Economy$2,204112 launches priced, 302 releases in 12 months
- Casual + Online Co-Op$1,970104 launches priced, 272 releases in 12 months
- Casual + Capitalism$1,92351 launches priced, 130 releases in 12 months
More with Music
pairs with Music- Music + Rhythm$1,31439 launches priced, 79 releases in 12 months
- Action + Musicno price40 releases in 12 months
- Music + 2Dno price33 releases in 12 months
- Music + Arcadeno price29 releases in 12 months
- Music + Relaxingno price29 releases in 12 months
- Music + Cuteno price25 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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