Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Puzzle + Cozy: a typical launch earns $1,117 in its first year
That is the median of 134 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 17 of 275 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 7.6 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 91% on the year before: 290 against 152.
- Price
- $1,117 median of 134 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −34.5% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 290 152 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 416 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 1,046 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.
| 0.31%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.13% to 0.53% | 34 ranked of 416 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #4,758 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.89xhits against expected | 1.38x to 2.63x | 275 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #225 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −31%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −41% to −19% | 85 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #2,177 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | −5%review growth against same-age games | −10% to +2% | 85 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,022 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
- 275
- Hit rate
- 6.2%4.2% to 9.3%
- Expected rate
- 2.8%
- Against expected
- 1.89x1.38x to 2.63x
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
275 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
- $242
- Median
- $1,213
- Top tenth
- $43,372
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
- +91%
- Against Steam
- +39%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.
- Is This Seat Taken? (opens the Steam store)2025 · 9,190 reviews, 97% positiveest. $1.8M
- Creature Kitchen (opens the Steam store)2026 · 9,172 reviews, 99% positiveest. $1.5M
- Whisper of the House (opens the Steam store)2025 · 5,391 reviews, 96% positiveest. $1.4M
- Hozy (opens the Steam store)2026 · 4,256 reviews, 80% positiveest. $1.2M
- Strange Antiquities (opens the Steam store)2025 · 3,308 reviews, 95% positiveest. $1.2M
- Phonopolis (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,570 reviews, 92% positiveest. $794k
- The Artisan of Glimmith (opens the Steam store)2026 · 2,584 reviews, 97% positiveest. $615k
- Squeakross: Home Squeak Home (opens the Steam store)2025 · 2,050 reviews, 98% positiveest. $584k
More with Puzzle
pairs with Puzzle- Puzzle + Open World$3,68033 launches priced, 31 releases in 12 months
- Metroidvania + Puzzle$2,32437 launches priced, 46 releases in 12 months
- Puzzle + Visual Novel$2,10397 launches priced, 167 releases in 12 months
- Puzzle + Story Rich$2,000292 launches priced, 408 releases in 12 months
- Puzzle + Co-op$1,92037 launches priced, 77 releases in 12 months
- Puzzle + Dark Humor$1,87830 launches priced, 50 releases in 12 months
More with Cozy
pairs with Cozy- Life Sim + Cozy$34,02737 launches priced, 66 releases in 12 months
- Adventure + Cozy$32,10838 launches priced, 93 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Cozy$24,01549 launches priced, 99 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Cozy$15,70676 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Building + Cozy$14,48232 launches priced, 66 releases in 12 months
- Management + Cozy$9,50833 launches priced, 77 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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