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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton
@rossburton.bsky.social
260 followers 1.3K following 440 posts
Data Scientist 🤖 Aspiring Indie Game Dev 🎮 Full-time nerd 🤓 One half of the Game Oracle team - check out more: bit.ly/3UTKAQd
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · Aug 22
It was really fun visualising how #gamedev #indiegamedev trends on #steam have changed over time, including the rise & fall of #VR & the growth of certain NSFW games 🤭 I also cover some of the growing trends in 2025. Watch it here 👉 youtu.be/GR_HGqzYnXQ?...
The Evolution of Steam
YouTube video by Game Oracle
youtu.be
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 3h
We started Game Oracle with one central idea - how can we reduce anxiety around a game idea & give #indiegamedev a realistic view of the market b4 they commit to a project? On Monday we launch v3.4 w/ our new tool Concept Compass. This is a big milestone for us & I can't wait to share it.
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 8h
What excites me most about the Steam Map on Game Oracle are these dark regions between games. To me this represents potential. The frontiers of #gamedev creativity that have yet to be explored. #indiegames #indiegamedev #sologamedev
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 2d
Keep at it! It looks amazing 😍 marketing is always tough and subjective. Just speaking from my opinion I was really drawn by the ghosts and steampunk elements. You've nailed the visuals IMO.
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 3d
If you love discovering indie outliers or are looking for inspiration for your next #gamedev #sologamedev #indiegamedev project checkout our #outliersgames leaderboard & other tools over at Game Oracle www.game-oracle.com/leaderboards...
The Outlier List | Game Oracle
Celebrate the most unique games on Steam with The Outlier List where indie game developers ditch trends & let their imaginations lead the way.
www.game-oracle.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 3d
The gameplay looks intense. Players engage in "ship-vs-ship" combat against ethereal adversaries, demanding quick tactical thinking and communication amidst chaotic interference like locked doors or player swaps. I think this would be a blast with friends.
#gamedev #indiegames
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 3d
Rhyolite is super unique scoring a 1/10 on our market Saturation Score. Currently we estimate it has ~1.2K wishlists but IMO it deserves a lot more attention. I simply love the stylized comic art style & #steampunk themes
#gamedev #indiegames
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 3d
Week 4/10 of my #outliergames series for #wishlistwednesday - let's talk about Rhyolite by @longloststudio.bsky.social grab your friends and go ghost hunting on a train in this action #indie #roguelite 👻🚂 store.steampowered.com/app/3195990/...
Rhyolite on Steam
Rhyolite throws your crew of up to 4 players into a pressure cooker of broken train mechanisms, complex enemy attacks, and an ever-shifting puzzle of resource and attention management as you capture g...
store.steampowered.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 4d
Just finished our last two product ideas which makes us feature complete - v3.4 coming soon 🚀 w/ new toys:
- Concept Compass 🧭 all-in-one tool for evaluating a game concept using market data from our Steam map
- Bundle Builder 🧺 find similar games & collect socials to help organise bundles
#gamedev
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 5d
PEAK is being called "friendslop". I used Data Explorer to study 1000 most similar games & to no surprise, in terms of sales the market here performs incredibly well. But on average these games are poorly rated (we use medians btw). I dunno, seems like a gamble making games like this. #gamedev
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 8d
There is a big red blob on our Saturation Map which is #horror games but I was curious about this cluster to the left of it (red circle) - turns out its psychological horrors revolving around anomaly detection & looping reality. Example game being I'm on Observation Duty #gamedev #indiegames
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 8d
OOP Patterns 😍 #gamedev #godot
youtu.be/h21Lmg4o1Ks?...
Godot has Abstract Classes now!! (here's how to use them)
YouTube video by Queble
youtu.be
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 8d
Thank you! We hope it will help guide some of our own games soon. Best of luck with Age of the Deep. Letting players navigate on land & swim under the sea must be tricky but it looks like you're nailing it. I've wishlist it 👍 looking forward to it's release
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 9d
😂😂😂😂 OMG I should of clarified! 0.7 is amazing! Our Saturation Score is inverted because it measures how saturated the market is around a game. So your game has been scored as super unique! Low score = fewer competitors. Didn't mean for it to sound bad 😅
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 10d
You can find more outliers using your Outlier leaderboard, check it our here 👉 www.game-oracle.com/leaderboards...

#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
The Outlier List | Game Oracle
Celebrate the most unique games on Steam with The Outlier List where indie game developers ditch trends & let their imaginations lead the way.
www.game-oracle.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 10d
Age of the Deep scores 0.7/10 on our Saturation Score & currently has ~1K wishlists according to our estimates. I think it is simply the setting that makes this one unique, there are not many #RPG that let you explore the deep blue as a mermaid, the only other one on our radar is Sirens #gamedev
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 10d
Week 3/10 of my #outliergames series for #wishlistwednesday - let's talk about Age of the Deep by @willdavis.bsky.social & co. A looter RPG where you play as a mermaid 🧜‍♀️what more is there to say! store.steampowered.com/app/2997030/...
Age of the Deep on Steam
Age of the Deep is a mermaid fashion looter rpg. Explore the beautiful, and terrifying, mysteries of the ocean surrounding the islands, fight off pirates that threaten the inhabitants, dive deep to un...
store.steampowered.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 10d
Bit of shameless self promotion here, but we're doing data analysis for indie game devs, our latest video: youtu.be/BA-roTecK3Q?...
You Might Not Need Thousands of Steam Wishlists
YouTube video by Game Oracle
youtu.be
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 11d
We made a Game Engine leaderboard (www.game-oracle.com/leaderboards...) - thanks @igdb.com for the data ❤️ - and ranking by SteamDB score is fascinating. Top 5: Telltale Tool, SCUMM, Visionaire, KiriKiri, KEX (caveat: not all games disclose their engine, so bare that in mind) #gamedev
Game Engine Leaderboard | Game Oracle
Compare the best and most popular game engines with our leaderboards to find the right game engine for your project.
www.game-oracle.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 15d
Have you heard of the DreadOut series? 3rd person #horror game set in an Asian - Indonesian setting. Thing is, none of its direct competitors have managed to hit the same mark. Missed opportunity? 👀 #gamedev #sologamedev #indiegamedev
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 17d
And stay up-to-date all things Game Oracle by subscribing to our free monthly newsletter
#gamedev #sologamedev #indiegamedev

www.game-oracle.com/newsletter
Monthly Newsletter | Game Oracle
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for exclusive Steam insights, upcoming games forecasts, Steamworks news and Game Oracle updates.
www.game-oracle.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 17d
Trading Card Inspector currently has ~1K wishlists (we estimate) so head over to Steam and show it some love! store.steampowered.com/app/3723750/...
Trading Card Inspector on Steam
Inspect your way through dozens of unique, hilarious cards in this chilled-out papers-please-em-up! Identify and appraise cards from The World's Most Coolest TCG! Start your new job as an official Hab...
store.steampowered.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 17d
Trading Card Inspector features a deep narrative, intertwining quality control duties with a comedic yet dark narrative of corporate espionage, friendship, and murder, where players make choices and uncover secrets within the "Habubis Corporation." #gamedev #indiegames
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 17d
This is my #outliergames series where I highlight unique and quirky games coming soon. How do we know they're unique? Well with our Saturation Score ofc! Wtf is a Saturation Score? Well we have done some fun maths to measure market saturation, check it our here: www.game-oracle.com/research-too...
Saturation Map | Game Oracle
Visualise & explore the saturation of Steam on our interactive Saturation Map. Find quieter corners or discover opportunities to break through the noise.
www.game-oracle.com
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 17d
It's #wishlistwednesday & week 2 of my #outliergames series. Today we're talking about Trading Card Inspector by @daydreamgallerydev.bsky.social - in this unique twist on trading card games, you play as a quality control inspector, blending office sim, mystery, & dark humour
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rossburton.bsky.social
Ross Burton @rossburton.bsky.social · 18d
Interesting #gamedev market gap: shipping logistics simulator. Best performing game in this segment is probably TransOcean – The Shipping Company but there are not many other highlight rated titles despite reasonably player demand. #indiegamedev #sologamedev
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