Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / 2D / Immersive Sim
2D + Immersive Sim: a typical launch earns $606 in its first year
That is the median of 77 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 5 of 155 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 8.7 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 59% on the year before: 146 against 92.
- Price
- $606 median of 77 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- +99.6% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 146 92 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 329 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 780 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. | 0.10%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.06% to 0.17% | 18 ranked of 329 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #1,691 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 0.68xhits against expected | 0.47x to 1.12x | 155 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #4,825 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −25%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −39% to −9% | 31 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #2,102 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | −14%review growth against same-age games | −21% to −7% | 31 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,448 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
- 155
- Hit rate
- 3.2%0.8% to 9.3%
- Expected rate
- 5.6%
- Against expected
- 0.68x0.47x to 1.12x
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
155 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
- $0
- Median
- $404
- Top tenth
- $32,159
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
- +59%
- Against Steam
- +15%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- 2DNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- Immersive 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.
- KinitoPET (opens the Steam store)2024 · 13,472 reviews, 92% positiveest. $1.6M
- Subway Builder (opens the Steam store)2026 · 413 reviews, 60% positiveest. $334k
- Mini Airways - ATC simulator (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,351 reviews, 92% positiveest. $273k
- Tsuki ni Yorisou Otome no Sahou 2 (opens the Steam store)2025 · 291 reviews, 96% positiveest. $236k
- Undercover (opens the Steam store)2026 · 669 reviews, 77% positiveest. $203k
- I Hate My Waifu Streamer (opens the Steam store)2025 · 901 reviews, 92% positiveest. $182k
- Mudborne: Frog Management Sim (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,001 reviews, 96% positiveest. $162k
- Dyping Escape (opens the Steam store)2026 · 550 reviews, 92% positiveest. $111k
More with 2D
pairs with 2D- 2D + Roguelike Deckbuilder$6,77234 launches priced, 64 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Romance$3,28176 launches priced, 110 releases in 12 months
- War + 2D$3,16035 launches priced, 55 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Dating Sim$2,55991 launches priced, 116 releases in 12 months
- 2D + LGBTQ+$2,46550 launches priced, 85 releases in 12 months
- 2D + Historical$2,32474 launches priced, 130 releases in 12 months
More with Immersive Sim
pairs with Immersive Sim- Cinematic + Immersive Sim$24,23132 launches priced, 35 releases in 12 months
- Capitalism + Immersive Sim$16,42037 launches priced, 52 releases in 12 months
- Multiplayer + Immersive Sim$15,00039 launches priced, 38 releases in 12 months
- Economy + Immersive Sim$14,95288 launches priced, 116 releases in 12 months
- Immersive Sim + Management$8,720136 launches priced, 195 releases in 12 months
- Building + Immersive Sim$7,64451 launches priced, 53 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.