Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Anime / Interactive Fiction
Anime + Interactive Fiction: a typical launch earns $1,513 in its first year
That is the median of 99 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 11 of 177 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 14.2 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 12% on the year before: 136 against 121.
- China market: over 35% of reviews are Chinese
- One game dominates the figure
- Price
- $1,513 median of 99 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- +31.6% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 136 121 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 305 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 824 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. | 0.08%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.06% to 0.11% | 26 ranked of 305 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #1,952 of 7,193pairs on this board |
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.
| 0.82xhits against expected | 0.57x to 1.20x | 177 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #6,194 of 6,324pairs on this board |
Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches.
| +10%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −15% to +36% | 42 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,102 of 2,361pairs on this board |
Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal.
| −9%review growth against same-age games | −16% to −2% | 42 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,261 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
- 177
- Hit rate
- 6.2%3.3% to 13.1%
- Expected rate
- 8.0%
- Against expected
- 0.82x0.57x to 1.20x
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
177 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
- $1,212
- Top tenth
- $59,064
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
- +12%
- Against Steam
- −17%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- AnimeNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside 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.
- The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty (opens the Steam store)2024 · 49,862 reviews, 94% positiveest. $5.8M
- The Weeping Swan: Ten Days of the City's Fall (opens the Steam store)2026 · 8,291 reviews, 58% positiveest. $1.2M
- Noctuary (opens the Steam store)2023 · 2,376 reviews, 94% positiveest. $875k
- The NOexistenceN of you AND me (opens the Steam store)2024 · 20,249 reviews, 93% positiveest. $693k
- No Sleep For Kaname Date - From AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES (opens the Steam store)2025 · 841 reviews, 79% positiveest. $681k
- Refind Self: The Personality Test Game (opens the Steam store)2023 · 3,604 reviews, 87% positiveest. $549k
- Trials of Innocence (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,311 reviews, 91% positiveest. $248k
- Tsuki ni Yorisou Otome no Sahou 2 (opens the Steam store)2025 · 291 reviews, 96% positiveest. $236k
More with Anime
pairs with Anime- Anime + Mystery$5,55743 launches priced, 65 releases in 12 months
- Anime + Romance$4,97896 launches priced, 120 releases in 12 months
- Anime + LGBTQ+$4,70538 launches priced, 49 releases in 12 months
- Anime + Multiple Endings$4,54757 launches priced, 118 releases in 12 months
- Roguelike + Anime$4,38831 launches priced, 48 releases in 12 months
- Roguelite + Anime$4,27333 launches priced, 53 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
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