Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Choices Matter / Investigation
Choices Matter + Investigation: 45 releases in the last 12 months
There is no price yet: it needs 30 or more indie paid launches in the last four complete quarters. 6 of 56 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 5.1 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 55% on the year before: 45 against 29.
- Price
- n/a under 30 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- n/a no price
- Releases, 12 months
- 45 29 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 185 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 337 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 | 0.11% to 0.33% | 30 ranked of 185 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #4,990 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.12xhits against expected | 0.76x to 1.72x | 56 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #2,119 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | Below this board's minimum sample, so not ranked. Needs 15 or more tracked games and 20 or more releases in each 12-month period. | |||
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | Below this board's minimum sample, so not ranked. Needs 15 or more tracked games and 1,000 reviews in each window. | |||
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
- 56
- Hit rate
- 10.7%2.8% to 24.5%
- Expected rate
- 9.0%
- Against expected
- 1.12x0.76x to 1.72x
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
56 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
- $111
- Median
- $2,023
- Top tenth
- $97,777
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
- +55%
Parent tags
- Choices MatterNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- InvestigationGenre 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 Rise of the Golden Idol (opens the Steam store)2024 · 3,797 reviews, 92% positiveest. $1.5M
- Grunn (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,357 reviews, 95% positiveest. $357k
- lily's world XD (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,213 reviews, 97% positiveest. $295k
- Do No Harm (opens the Steam store)2025 · 900 reviews, 74% positiveest. $291k
- Best Served Cold (opens the Steam store)2025 · 678 reviews, 87% positiveest. $247k
- FAKEBOOK (opens the Steam store)2024 · 746 reviews, 89% positiveest. $226k
- Forensics: Crime Scene Detective (opens the Steam store)2026 · 298 reviews, 63% positiveest. $151k
- Heaven Does Not Respond (opens the Steam store)2026 · 540 reviews, 90% positiveest. $109k
More with Choices Matter
pairs with Choices Matter- Choices Matter + Management$6,87135 launches priced, 79 releases in 12 months
- Mystery + Choices Matter$6,00949 launches priced, 114 releases in 12 months
- Choices Matter + Dating Sim$4,06442 launches priced, 66 releases in 12 months
- RPG + Choices Matter$3,339128 launches priced, 212 releases in 12 months
- Character Customization + Choices Matter$3,15735 launches priced, 42 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Choices Matter$3,038225 launches priced, 352 releases in 12 months
More with Investigation
pairs with Investigation- Story Rich + Investigation$8,90370 launches priced, 96 releases in 12 months
- Visual Novel + Investigation$4,88542 launches priced, 55 releases in 12 months
- Point & Click + Investigation$4,85753 launches priced, 84 releases in 12 months
- Detective + Investigation$3,96395 launches priced, 150 releases in 12 months
- Mystery + Investigation$3,336112 launches priced, 171 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Investigation$2,89337 launches priced, 79 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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