Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Simulation / Nature
Simulation + Nature: a typical launch earns $1,132 in its first year
That is the median of 83 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 14 of 174 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 10.5 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 66% on the year before: 159 against 96.
- Price
- $1,132 median of 83 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- −12.6% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 159 96 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 380 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 935 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 | 0.16% to 0.30% | 40 ranked of 380 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #995 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.26xhits against expected | 0.90x to 1.79x | 174 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #1,487 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −26%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −42% to −9% | 45 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #2,103 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | −11%review growth against same-age games | −22% to +1% | 45 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #1,333 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
- 174
- Hit rate
- 8.0%5.4% to 14.7%
- Expected rate
- 6.0%
- Against expected
- 1.26x0.90x to 1.79x
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
174 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
- $1,284
- Top tenth
- $76,377
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
- +66%
- Against Steam
- +20%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- SimulationGenre pageRanked on every board, with its best pairs.
- NatureNot 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.
- OUTBRK (opens the Steam store)2024 · 3,235 reviews, 82% positiveest. $2.3M
- Rusty's Retirement (opens the Steam store)2024 · 13,915 reviews, 96% positiveest. $1.7M
- The Legend of Khiimori (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,954 reviews, 81% positiveest. $1.2M
- Bootstrap Island (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,377 reviews, 81% positiveest. $697k
- Leafy Corner (opens the Steam store)2026 · 2,526 reviews, 96% positiveest. $511k
- Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town (opens the Steam store)2024 · 840 reviews, 95% positiveest. $510k
- Station to Station (opens the Steam store)2023 · 1,240 reviews, 89% positiveest. $452k
- Primordialis (opens the Steam store)2025 · 985 reviews, 93% positiveest. $399k
More with Simulation
pairs with Simulation- Simulation + Shop Keeper$32,26936 launches priced, 330 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Cozy$15,70676 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Online Co-Op$11,02868 launches priced, 133 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Multiplayer$8,980122 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Base Building$7,38289 launches priced, 173 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Economy$6,979210 launches priced, 540 releases in 12 months
More with Nature
pairs with Nature- Nature + Cozy$4,65132 launches priced, 73 releases in 12 months
- Nature + Idler$1,66633 launches priced, 83 releases in 12 months
- Exploration + Nature$1,61878 launches priced, 129 releases in 12 months
- Cute + Nature$99986 launches priced, 120 releases in 12 months
- Nature + Incremental$99930 launches priced, 50 releases in 12 months
- Relaxing + Nature$818120 launches priced, 173 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
in developmentGMD Verdicts will be a written read on a niche, built from the same data and the published method on this site. Join the early list and we will email you when the first ones are ready. Nothing on this page is held back while you wait.