Appears in preset: Business lens
- Videoball
Videoball needed either a couch group or online matchmaking liquidity. The online market did not appear liquid enough: few players and third-party coordination were reported soon after launch, undermining esport ambitions.
Source: gameinformer.com.
- Rocket League
Network effects/liquidity: extremely strong: matchmaking liquidity, ranked identity, teams, trading/cosmetics culture, esports, and crossplay all compound value. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; gamedeveloper.com.
- Killer Queen Arcade
Killer Queen solved liquidity by anchoring play around a physical cabinet and scheduled league nights. Scarcity became part of the ritual: players had to go to a place, meet people, and return.
Sources: gamedeveloper.com; killerqueenarcade.com; bumblebeargames.com.
- Nidhogg
Network effects/liquidity: primarily local-player network effects; online population was less central than same-room rivalry and event play. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- FTL: Faster Than Light
FTL has no multiplayer liquidity or marketplace network effect; the durable loop is single-player replayability plus external community knowledge sharing. The network effect is cultural rather than mechanical: run stories, ship unlock discussions, mods, strategy guides, and roguelite canon status continue to surface the game.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; gamedeveloper.com.
- ROUNDS
Network effects/liquidity: friend-pair liquidity matters more than mass matchmaking; the game can survive as a two-person ritual. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Into the Breach
Into the Breach has no multiplayer network effect; its network value comes from shared strategies, squad rankings, challenge talk, and replay stories. Its single-player design makes liquidity irrelevant, which protects the game from population decay.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; subsetgames.com.
- TowerFall Ascension
Network effects/liquidity: local-room network effects dominate: one owner can create a four-player adoption moment if controllers are present. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Duck Game
Network effects/liquidity: friend-group and lobby liquidity matter, but the game also works locally with a single purchaser and controllers. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- LIMBO
LIMBO has no gameplay network effect; no multiplayer population is needed. Its network effect is interpretive culture: players debate the ending, recommend it as an art-game milestone, and use its silhouette aesthetic as a reference point for later indie visual design.
Sources: gamedeveloper.com; store.steampowered.com.
- INSIDE
INSIDE has no gameplay network effect; the product is a self-contained single-player experience. Its cultural network effect comes from spoilers, ending interpretation, video essays, art/technical talks, and the studio's continued prestige.
Sources: blog.playdead.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Ultimate Chicken Horse
Network effects/liquidity: friend-group network effects are strong; the game is more valuable with people who can laugh at sabotage together. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Lethal League Blaze
Network effects/liquidity: versus liquidity and local rivals matter, but the game has enough style/single-player content to avoid being pure matchmaking dependency. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; team-reptile.com.
- Planet of Lana
Planet of Lana has no gameplay liquidity requirement; it is a single-player cinematic adventure. Its network effect is aesthetic and emotional: screenshots, companion affection, recommendations, and Game Pass discovery helped spread awareness without needing a multiplayer population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; planetoflana.com; vgchartz.com.
- Killer Queen Black
Network effects/liquidity: very high liquidity need: an 8-player team game is vulnerable if concurrent population falls. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; delistedgames.com.
- Brawlhalla
Network effects/liquidity: extremely strong: crossplay matchmaking, ranked ladders, esports, friend groups, and cosmetic identity compound with population. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; news.ubisoft.com.
- Among Us
Network effects/liquidity: extremely high: the product becomes better with friends, voice, memes, lobbies, and creators. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; shacknews.com.
- R.E.P.O.
Network effects/liquidity: very strong friend-group network effects: the game is more valuable when played and watched socially. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; newzoo.com.
- PEAK
Network effects/liquidity: strong friend-group network effects; each purchaser can recruit a climbing party. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; gamedeveloper.com.
- MECCHA CHAMELEON
Network effects/liquidity: high network effects through public lobbies, social deception, streamer spectators, and friend recruitment. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Balatro
Network effects/liquidity: single-player, so it does not need matchmaking liquidity; social compounding happens through screenshots, builds, mods, and recommendations. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; playstack.com.
- Vampire Survivors
Network effects/liquidity: mostly single-player, so no liquidity need; social spread is via recommendations, screenshots, and genre imitation. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; theguardian.com.
- Slay the Spire
Network effects/liquidity: single-player, but social metagame, streamability, tier lists, seeds, and strategy discussion create indirect network effects. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; gamedeveloper.com.
- Hades
Network effects/liquidity: single-player, but fandom, builds, speedrunning, art, music, characters, and discourse create powerful indirect networks. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; gamedeveloper.com.
- Noita
Network effects/liquidity: mostly single-player; indirect network comes from secrets, wikis, mods, clips, and “look what happened” stories. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; store.steampowered.com.
- Laser League / Laser League: World Arena
Network effects/liquidity: very high dependence on competitive player liquidity; once the pool thins, the value proposition collapses. This field separates games that can compound alone from games that require a live pool of friends, rivals, spectators, or matchmaking population.
Sources: store.steampowered.com; steamcommunity.com.