Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Exploration / Colony Sim
Exploration + Colony Sim: 53 releases in the last 12 months
There is no price yet: it needs 30 or more indie paid launches in the last four complete quarters. 7 of 45 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 4.9 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 179% on the year before: 53 against 19.
- Price
- n/a under 30 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- n/a no price
- Releases, 12 months
- 53 19 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 220 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 385 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. | 0.14%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.10% to 0.18% | 31 ranked of 220 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #1,429 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.26xhits against expected | 0.87x to 1.88x | 45 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #1,490 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | Below this board's minimum sample, so not ranked. Needs 15 or more tracked games and 20 or more releases in each 12-month period. | |||
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | Below this board's minimum sample, so not ranked. Needs 15 or more tracked games and 1,000 reviews in each window. | |||
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
- 45
- Hit rate
- 15.6%5.8% to 23.7%
- Expected rate
- 10.9%
- Against expected
- 1.26x0.87x to 1.88x
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
45 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
- $32
- Median
- $1,821
- Top tenth
- $177,455
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
- +179%
Parent tags
- ExplorationNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- Colony SimGenre pageRanked on every board, with its best pairs.
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.
- MEMORIAPOLIS (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,755 reviews, 75% positiveest. $1.1M
- Drill Core (opens the Steam store)2024 · 2,136 reviews, 84% positiveest. $795k
- Airborne Empire (opens the Steam store)2025 · 867 reviews, 86% positiveest. $527k
- Noble Legacy (opens the Steam store)2025 · 747 reviews, 70% positiveest. $378k
- Ark of Charon (opens the Steam store)2024 · 389 reviews, 75% positiveest. $197k
- All Hail the Orb (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,319 reviews, 93% positiveest. $187k
- Asbury Pines (opens the Steam store)2025 · 564 reviews, 90% positiveest. $148k
- Summa Expeditionis (opens the Steam store)2024 · 308 reviews, 68% positiveest. $125k
More with Exploration
pairs with Exploration- Exploration + Cozy$24,01549 launches priced, 99 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Open World Survival Craft$13,97334 launches priced, 26 releases in 12 months
- Driving + Exploration$10,40830 launches priced, 42 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Multiplayer$8,00174 launches priced, 137 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Online Co-Op$7,08069 launches priced, 134 releases in 12 months
- Co-op + Exploration$5,14762 launches priced, 101 releases in 12 months
More with Colony Sim
pairs with Colony Sim- Base Building + Colony Sim$22,86553 launches priced, 64 releases in 12 months
- Management + Colony Sim$15,78739 launches priced, 61 releases in 12 months
- Building + Colony Sim$11,53947 launches priced, 44 releases in 12 months
- Sandbox + Colony Sim$10,01834 launches priced, 53 releases in 12 months
- Survival + Colony Sim$9,88130 launches priced, 35 releases in 12 months
- City Builder + Colony Sim$5,26265 launches priced, 78 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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