Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Exploration / Multiple Endings
Exploration + Multiple Endings: a typical launch earns $802 in its first year
That is the median of 125 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 20 of 258 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 14.0 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 14% on the year before: 165 against 145.
- China market: over 35% of reviews are Chinese
- Price
- $802 median of 125 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −33.9% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 165 145 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 485 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 1,140 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. | 0.35%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.18% to 0.56% | 49 ranked of 485 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #658 of 7,193pairs on this board |
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.
| 1.36xhits against expected | 1.00x to 1.84x | 258 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #5,907 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | +22%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | +1% to +48% | 61 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #703 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | +2%review growth against same-age games | −6% to +9% | 61 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #714 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
- 258
- Hit rate
- 7.8%5.8% to 11.2%
- Expected rate
- 5.4%
- Against expected
- 1.36x1.00x to 1.84x
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
258 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
- $40
- Median
- $691
- Top tenth
- $58,831
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
- +14%
- Against Steam
- −16%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- ExplorationNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- Multiple EndingsNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside 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.
- Five Nights at Freddy's: Into the Pit (opens the Steam store)2024 · 10,180 reviews, 95% positiveest. $4.1M
- 下一站江湖Ⅱ (opens the Steam store)2024 · 8,529 reviews, 72% positiveest. $2.5M
- Keep Driving (opens the Steam store)2025 · 6,243 reviews, 93% positiveest. $2.1M
- OneShot: World Machine Edition (opens the Steam store)2024 · 5,398 reviews, 98% positiveest. $1.1M
- The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication (opens the Steam store)2024 · 2,522 reviews, 93% positiveest. $821k
- Matchmaking Inc. (opens the Steam store)2025 · 5,797 reviews, 87% positiveest. $596k
- The Scourge | Tai Ương (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,198 reviews, 93% positiveest. $485k
- Destiny of Immortal (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,814 reviews, 80% positiveest. $440k
More with Exploration
pairs with Exploration- Exploration + Cozy$24,01549 launches priced, 99 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Open World Survival Craft$13,97334 launches priced, 26 releases in 12 months
- Driving + Exploration$10,40830 launches priced, 42 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Multiplayer$8,00174 launches priced, 137 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Online Co-Op$7,08069 launches priced, 134 releases in 12 months
- Co-op + Exploration$5,14762 launches priced, 101 releases in 12 months
More with Multiple Endings
pairs with Multiple Endings- Multiple Endings + Dating Sim$6,57961 launches priced, 96 releases in 12 months
- Multiple Endings + LGBTQ+$5,85936 launches priced, 48 releases in 12 months
- Anime + Multiple Endings$4,54757 launches priced, 118 releases in 12 months
- RPG + Multiple Endings$3,943122 launches priced, 197 releases in 12 months
- Multiple Endings + Immersive Sim$3,52746 launches priced, 40 releases in 12 months
- Romance + Multiple Endings$3,17648 launches priced, 110 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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