Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026

Platformer + Exploration: a typical launch earns $606 in its first year

That is the median of 240 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 42 of 441 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 31.7 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases held level on the year before: 292 against 293.

Price: $606
Price vs a year earlier: +19.9%
Releases, 12 months: 292
Upcoming games: 1,075
Games on the store: 2,605

Boards

as of 30 Sep 2026

Where this pair stands on each board of the front page. Every value carries its 90% interval and its sample.

Platformer + Exploration on each board
Board	Value	Interval	Sample	Standing
Most anticipatedShare of all upcoming wishlist heat on Steam, with the number of upcoming games beside it.	2.09%share of upcoming wishlist heat	0.78% to 4.02%	120 ranked of 1,075 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026	#106 of 7,193pairs on this board
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.	1.30xhits against expected	1.03x to 1.62x	441 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old)	#1,370 of 6,324pairs on this board
Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches.	+45%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam	+22% to +69%	105 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months	#240 of 2,361pairs on this board
Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal.	+6%review growth against same-age games	−1% to +14%	105 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025	#523 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 old

Matured indie paid launches that earned an estimated $100k or more, against the number expected for games at the same price tier and launch quarter.

Hits: 42
Expected: 31.7

Launches: 441
Hit rate: 9.3%6.4% to 13.5%
Expected rate: 7.2%
Against expected: 1.30x1.03x to 1.62x

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

440 launches

Estimated 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: $606
Top tenth: $69,382

Estimated from Steam review counts. Lifetime to date, so it differs from the first-year price above.

Supply

raw release counts

Games released with both tags, last 12 months against the 12 before.

Last 12 months: 292
Prior 12 months: 293

Change: 0%
Against Steam: −27%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases

Parent tags

PlatformerGenre pageRanked on every board, with its best pairs.
ExplorationNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.

Comparable games

8 indie titles

The 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.

More with Platformer

pairs with Platformer

Platformer + Co-op$4,47231 launches priced, 63 releases in 12 months
Platformer + Story Rich$3,03344 launches priced, 59 releases in 12 months
Platformer + Metroidvania$2,894105 launches priced, 124 releases in 12 months
Platformer + Hack and Slash$1,33433 launches priced, 54 releases in 12 months
Platformer + Female Protagonist$1,11270 launches priced, 94 releases in 12 months
Platformer + Horror$80736 launches priced, 49 releases in 12 months

Every pair with Platformer

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

Every pair with Exploration

Verdicts

in development

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