Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Open World / Multiplayer
Open World + Multiplayer: a typical launch earns $15,602 in its first year
That is the median of 36 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 26 of 82 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 10.9 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 44% on the year before: 75 against 52.
- Price
- $15,602 median of 36 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −78.7% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 75 52 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 334 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 1,048 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. | 5.04%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 2.52% to 7.44% | 82 ranked of 334 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #29 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 2.09xhits against expected | 1.63x to 2.62x | 82 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #119 of 6,324pairs on this board |
Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches.
| 0%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −25% to +35% | 102 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,447 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 | −4% to +13% | 102 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,797 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
- 82
- Hit rate
- 31.7%24.0% to 48.9%
- Expected rate
- 13.2%
- Against expected
- 2.09x1.63x to 2.62x
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
82 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
- $164
- Median
- $22,763
- Top tenth
- $2,376,759
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
- +44%
- Against Steam
- +4%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- Open WorldNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- MultiplayerNot 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.
- Palworld (opens the Steam store)2024 · 413,726 reviews, 94% positiveest. $223M
- Schedule I (opens the Steam store)2025 · 290,347 reviews, 97% positiveest. $117M
- Enshrouded (opens the Steam store)2024 · 93,740 reviews, 85% positiveest. $73M
- Subnautica 2 (opens the Steam store)2026 · 117,367 reviews, 91% positiveest. $69M
- RuneScape: Dragonwilds (opens the Steam store)2026 · 30,187 reviews, 80% positiveest. $18M
- Big Walk (opens the Steam store)2026 · 35,314 reviews, 96% positiveest. $14M
- Bellwright (opens the Steam store)2024 · 20,215 reviews, 80% positiveest. $12M
- Drive Beyond Horizons (opens the Steam store)2025 · 17,980 reviews, 77% positiveest. $9M
More with Open World
pairs with Open World- Open World + Open World Survival Craft$14,79431 launches priced, 35 releases in 12 months
- Open World + Life Sim$13,38736 launches priced, 39 releases in 12 months
- Open World + Crafting$7,48760 launches priced, 105 releases in 12 months
- Driving + Open World$6,51131 launches priced, 50 releases in 12 months
- Building + Open World$5,98741 launches priced, 61 releases in 12 months
- Open World + Cute$5,88634 launches priced, 33 releases in 12 months
More with Multiplayer
pairs with Multiplayer- Sandbox + Multiplayer$32,53338 launches priced, 71 releases in 12 months
- Multiplayer + Management$19,88833 launches priced, 51 releases in 12 months
- Multiplayer + Realistic$17,04044 launches priced, 62 releases in 12 months
- Multiplayer + Immersive Sim$15,00039 launches priced, 38 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Multiplayer$8,980122 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Multiplayer$8,00174 launches priced, 137 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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