Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Old School / 3D
Old School + 3D: a typical launch earns $839 in its first year
That is the median of 42 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 6 of 84 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 5.8 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases fell 12% on the year before: 45 against 51.
- Price
- $839 median of 42 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −45.8% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 45 51 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 163 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 403 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. | 0.07%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.05% to 0.10% | 15 ranked of 163 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #2,208 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.02xhits against expected | 0.70x to 1.60x | 84 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #2,668 of 6,324pairs on this board |
Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches.
| +47%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | +12% to +94% | 16 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #222 of 2,361pairs on this board |
Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal.
| −3%review growth against same-age games | −12% to +7% | 16 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #2,210 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
- 84
- Hit rate
- 7.1%2.5% to 11.7%
- Expected rate
- 6.9%
- Against expected
- 1.02x0.70x to 1.60x
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
84 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
- $809
- Top tenth
- $32,663
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
- −34%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- Old SchoolNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- 3DNot 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.
- STAR WARS™: Battlefront Classic Collection (opens the Steam store)2024 · 7,125 reviews, 23% positiveest. $5.1M
- Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft (opens the Steam store)2024 · 6,903 reviews, 85% positiveest. $4.2M
- Erenshor (opens the Steam store)2025 · 2,161 reviews, 94% positiveest. $875k
- Old School Rally (opens the Steam store)2024 · 2,144 reviews, 89% positiveest. $564k
- Parking Garage Rally Circuit (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,625 reviews, 96% positiveest. $329k
- THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake (opens the Steam store)2025 · 610 reviews, 44% positiveest. $309k
- Captain Blood (opens the Steam store)2025 · 268 reviews, 77% positiveest. $136k
- ToHeart (opens the Steam store)2025 · 314 reviews, 87% positiveest. $127k
More with Old School
pairs with Old School- First-Person + Old School$2,12537 launches priced, 39 releases in 12 months
- Old School + 1990's$1,80034 launches priced, 68 releases in 12 months
- Shooter + Old School$1,55845 launches priced, 53 releases in 12 months
- RPG + Old School$62748 launches priced, 68 releases in 12 months
- Adventure + Old School$60767 launches priced, 82 releases in 12 months
- Old School + Retro$38494 launches priced, 139 releases in 12 months
More with 3D
pairs with 3D- 3D + Dark Humor$3,90132 launches priced, 46 releases in 12 months
- 3D + Cozy$3,23738 launches priced, 91 releases in 12 months
- 3D + Economy$3,15761 launches priced, 109 releases in 12 months
- 3D + Management$2,196130 launches priced, 192 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + 3D$2,162144 launches priced, 256 releases in 12 months
- 3D + Resource Management$2,02434 launches priced, 66 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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