The Game Census
Game Dev Tycoon cover art

Game Dev Tycoon

Greenheart Games 💚 · 2013-08-29

SteamMicrosoft Store

CasualIndieSimulationStrategy

Modes: Single player

Releases: Nov 28, 2017 (iOS), Aug 29, 2013 (Linux), Aug 29, 2013 (Mac), Oct 08, 2020 (Nintendo Switch), Aug 29, 2013 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), Jan 31, 2018 (Android)

In Game Dev Tycoon you replay the history of the gaming industry by starting your own video game development company in the 80s. Create best selling games. Research new technologies and invent new game types. Become the leader of the market and gain worldwide fans.

199
playing now
95%
positive of 45k reviews
Overwhelmingly Positive
steam rating
1,000,000–2,000,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
3,996
twitch viewers (latest)
80/100
critic score (1 outlets, IGDB)
75/100
IGDB user rating (338 ratings)
11h
to beat · completionist 34h
gold
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$9.99
steam price (US)

199 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 01:00 UTC (census sample)

Game Dev Tycoon is a 2012 business simulation video game developed by Greenheart Games released on 10 December 2012. The player creates and develops video games. Game Dev Tycoon was inspired by the iOS and Android game Game Dev Story, and many critics find substantial similarities between the two games. Game Dev Tycoon was created by Greenheart Games, a company founded in July 2012 by brothers Patrick and Daniel Klug.

Health check

Healthy
  • · 199 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 988 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~124/week).
  • · Review velocity down 20% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 1% of 9,503 Casual games in the census by review count.

Health tier since 2026-08-29

Estimated sales: 1.8M–3.6M copies

Review-multiple estimate from 45,070 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

Microsoft Store$9.99

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $1.99 at Steam (2023-08-24)via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $9.99 · on sale 14 of 30 observed days · $8.00 above the all-time low (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
57257220182026Week of 2018-01-01: 217 positiveWeek of 2018-01-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2018-02-01: 119 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2018-03-01: 258 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 120 positiveWeek of 2018-04-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2018-05-01: 134 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2018-06-01: 209 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 23 negativeWeek of 2018-07-01: 186 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 27 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 214 positiveWeek of 2018-08-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2018-09-01: 335 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 31 negativeWeek of 2018-10-01: 93 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 376 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 128 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 210 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 25 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 128 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 137 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 111 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 106 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 470 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 572 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 95 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 61 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 95 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 440 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 468 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 21 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 348 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 311 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 318 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 459 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 308 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 363 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 383 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 277 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 190 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 307 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 335 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 359 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 21 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 312 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 240 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 230 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 225 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 223 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 563 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 29 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 364 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 22 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 220 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 156 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 155 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 213 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 210 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 274 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 203 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 212 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 256 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 168 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 190 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 249 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 212 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 145 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 126 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 142 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 162 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 189 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 163 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 178 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 140 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 101 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 123 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 246 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 316 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 177 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 140 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 161 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 144 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 249 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 99 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 155 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 100 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 105 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 158 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 185 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 18 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 109 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 113 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 84 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 286 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 23 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 153 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 145 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 147 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 156 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 123 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 91 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 150 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 132 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 90 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 96 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 94 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 365 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 36 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 150 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 128 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 100 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 101 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 86 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 122 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 97 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 124 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 81 positiveWeek of 2026-08-01: 8 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

232622026-08-06 21:00 — 162 players2026-08-07 05:00 — 80 players2026-08-07 13:00 — 131 players2026-08-07 21:00 — 181 players2026-08-08 05:00 — 84 players2026-08-08 13:00 — 135 players2026-08-08 21:00 — 176 players2026-08-09 05:00 — 96 players2026-08-09 13:00 — 138 players2026-08-09 21:00 — 232 players2026-08-10 05:00 — 69 players2026-08-10 13:00 — 142 players2026-08-10 21:00 — 158 players2026-08-11 05:00 — 76 players2026-08-11 13:00 — 130 players2026-08-12 21:00 — 155 players2026-08-14 05:00 — 100 players2026-08-15 12:00 — 119 players2026-08-16 20:00 — 213 players2026-08-18 04:00 — 97 players2026-08-19 11:00 — 104 players2026-08-20 19:00 — 166 players2026-08-22 02:00 — 111 players2026-08-23 10:00 — 125 players2026-08-24 18:00 — 183 players2026-08-26 02:00 — 138 players2026-08-27 10:00 — 87 players2026-08-28 17:00 — 150 players2026-08-30 01:00 — 199 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$9.99$1.992015-01-012026-08-292015-01-01 — best price $7.992015-05-22 — best price $4.992015-07-07 — best price $4.992015-09-11 — best price $6.692015-11-30 — best price $9.992016-03-12 — best price $4.992016-11-23 — best price $6.992017-04-17 — best price $5.992017-07-24 — best price $3.992017-11-22 — best price $5.992018-03-26 — best price $6.992018-07-30 — best price $4.992018-11-27 — best price $9.992019-02-11 — best price $9.992019-11-01 — best price $9.992019-12-19 — best price $4.992020-03-30 — best price $4.992020-12-01 — best price $9.992021-02-15 — best price $9.992021-07-09 — best price $9.992022-01-05 — best price $9.992022-06-24 — best price $4.992023-02-13 — best price $4.992023-06-29 — best price $3.492023-10-05 — best price $3.992024-03-14 — best price $3.492024-06-14 — best price $9.992024-07-18 — best price $3.492024-09-02 — best price $9.992024-11-05 — best price $2.492024-12-19 — best price $3.492025-03-13 — best price $3.492025-05-09 — best price $3.492025-07-24 — best price $9.992025-09-22 — best price $9.992025-12-04 — best price $9.992026-02-19 — best price $9.992026-05-07 — best price $3.992026-07-15 — best price $3.992026-08-29 — best price $9.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Attention

75192026-05-31 — 28 pageviews2026-06-03 — 27 pageviews2026-06-06 — 27 pageviews2026-06-09 — 75 pageviews2026-06-12 — 34 pageviews2026-06-15 — 39 pageviews2026-06-18 — 41 pageviews2026-06-21 — 52 pageviews2026-06-24 — 32 pageviews2026-06-27 — 49 pageviews2026-06-30 — 60 pageviews2026-07-03 — 59 pageviews2026-07-06 — 37 pageviews2026-07-09 — 55 pageviews2026-07-12 — 40 pageviews2026-07-15 — 40 pageviews2026-07-18 — 37 pageviews2026-07-21 — 41 pageviews2026-07-24 — 37 pageviews2026-07-27 — 44 pageviews2026-07-30 — 33 pageviews2026-08-02 — 38 pageviews2026-08-05 — 32 pageviews2026-08-08 — 28 pageviews2026-08-11 — 26 pageviews2026-08-14 — 19 pageviews2026-08-17 — 39 pageviews2026-08-20 — 29 pageviews2026-08-23 — 29 pageviews2026-08-26 — 47 pageviews2026-08-28 — 28 pageviews
Daily Wikipedia pageviews (attention proxy, census-recorded).

Completion

35
achievements tracked
97.9%
earned "Supporter"
27.8%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsmacOSLinuxSingle-playerSteam AchievementsSteam Trading CardsSteam WorkshopSteam CloudRemote Play on TabletFamily Sharing

17 supported languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Arabic, Czech, Dutch, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Portuguese - Brazil…

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)70,5643%35
Switch (Nintendo)610%0

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Where its players are

Share of Steam reviews by language (top languages measured) — a proxy for where the player base lives.

Player tags

2DFunnyIndieCasualEconomySandboxModdableStrategyAddictiveDifficult

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Players also track

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Similarity via IGDB.

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