Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Cute + Cozy: a typical launch earns $1,666 in its first year
That is the median of 201 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 38 of 395 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 17.5 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 89% on the year before: 411 against 218.
- Price
- $1,666 median of 201 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −38.9% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 411 218 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 775 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 1,623 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. | 0.54%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.37% to 0.83% | 71 ranked of 775 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #443 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 2.00xhits against expected | 1.58x to 2.52x | 395 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #157 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −33%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −44% to −23% | 104 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #2,200 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | −8%review growth against same-age games | −12% to −3% | 104 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,171 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
- 395
- Hit rate
- 9.6%6.8% to 12.7%
- Expected rate
- 4.4%
- Against expected
- 2.00x1.58x to 2.52x
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
395 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
- $1,535
- Top tenth
- $93,426
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
- +89%
- Against Steam
- +38%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.
- Hello Kitty Island Adventure (opens the Steam store)2025 · 9,691 reviews, 93% positiveest. $7.7M
- Tiny Glade (opens the Steam store)2024 · 22,804 reviews, 97% positiveest. $6.7M
- Little Kitty, Big City (opens the Steam store)2024 · 10,445 reviews, 96% positiveest. $5M
- Town to City (opens the Steam store)2025 · 6,214 reviews, 97% positiveest. $3.7M
- Tiny Bookshop (opens the Steam store)2025 · 7,018 reviews, 96% positiveest. $2.7M
- Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of The Rings™ Game (opens the Steam store)2025 · 3,251 reviews, 81% positiveest. $2.3M
- Cat Mail Co. (opens the Steam store)2026 · 6,609 reviews, 92% positiveest. $1.9M
- Is This Seat Taken? (opens the Steam store)2025 · 9,190 reviews, 97% positiveest. $1.8M
More with Cute
pairs with Cute- Open World + Cute$5,88634 launches priced, 33 releases in 12 months
- Cute + Romance$5,22277 launches priced, 90 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Cute$3,396163 launches priced, 188 releases in 12 months
- Cute + LGBTQ+$2,97434 launches priced, 56 releases in 12 months
- Psychological Horror + Cute$2,84651 launches priced, 66 releases in 12 months
- Visual Novel + Cute$2,798212 launches priced, 288 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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