Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Point & Click / Interactive Fiction
Point & Click + Interactive Fiction: a typical launch earns $1,010 in its first year
That is the median of 87 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 10 of 187 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 8.9 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 30% on the year before: 143 against 110.
- Price
- $1,010 median of 87 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −13.1% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 143 110 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 361 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 993 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.
| 0.22%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.09% to 0.41% | 30 ranked of 361 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #4,969 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.09xhits against expected | 0.76x to 1.63x | 187 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #2,241 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | +7%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −15% to +28% | 41 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,210 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | +2%review growth against same-age games | −6% to +12% | 41 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #734 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
- 187
- Hit rate
- 5.3%2.3% to 9.3%
- Expected rate
- 4.8%
- Against expected
- 1.09x0.76x to 1.63x
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
187 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
- $43
- Median
- $908
- Top tenth
- $26,438
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
- +30%
- Against Steam
- −5%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- Point & ClickGenre pageRanked on every board, with its best pairs.
- Interactive FictionGenre 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.
- No Case Should Remain Unsolved (opens the Steam store)2024 · 10,382 reviews, 96% positiveest. $1.3M
- The Mermaid Mask (opens the Steam store)2026 · 2,880 reviews, 99% positiveest. $1.2M
- Home Safety Hotline (opens the Steam store)2024 · 2,767 reviews, 90% positiveest. $840k
- Desktop Explorer (opens the Steam store)2026 · 2,222 reviews, 95% positiveest. $749k
- Goodnight Universe (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,362 reviews, 96% positiveest. $551k
- Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,253 reviews, 96% positiveest. $507k
- Amerzone - The Explorer's Legacy (opens the Steam store)2025 · 526 reviews, 90% positiveest. $426k
- Old Skies (opens the Steam store)2025 · 972 reviews, 92% positiveest. $393k
Related niches
pairs with Point & Click- Point & Click + Investigation$4,85753 launches priced, 84 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Female Protagonist$3,03141 launches priced, 68 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Story Rich$2,569170 launches priced, 208 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Mystery$2,426120 launches priced, 145 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Psychological Horror$2,30264 launches priced, 114 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Detective$2,10470 launches priced, 109 releases in 12 months
More with Interactive Fiction
pairs with Interactive Fiction- Interactive Fiction + FMV$39,86745 launches priced, 64 releases in 12 months
- Cinematic + Interactive Fiction$4,18748 launches priced, 48 releases in 12 months
- Interactive Fiction + LGBTQ+$4,04637 launches priced, 62 releases in 12 months
- Dating Sim + Interactive Fiction$3,15892 launches priced, 128 releases in 12 months
- Romance + Interactive Fiction$3,13063 launches priced, 96 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Interactive Fiction$2,268207 launches priced, 343 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
in developmentGMD Verdicts will be a written read on a niche, built from the same data and the published method on this site. Join the early list and we will email you when the first ones are ready. Nothing on this page is held back while you wait.