# Five Nights at Freddy's 4

> ResidualPlay case file: an overlooked Steam game still earning residual revenue. Estimates carry a ±30-50% error range per title.

- Steam appid: 388090
- Developer: Scott Cawthon
- Released: 2015 · Genre: Action · List price: $7.99
- Deal grade: A (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $4.4k to $6.6k per month (mid $5.5k)
- Opportunity score: $11.6k/month at x2.10 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 999.6k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $1.7M
- Review sentiment: 93% positive across 16874 reviews (15379 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 128.5 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 10.3 years
- Studio inactive: no public activity across 5 tracked titles
- Last build shipped 9.3 years ago
- Store page localized in only 1 language(s)

## Where a gross dollar goes (monthly, at current velocity)

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $10.0k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $8.7k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $7.9k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $5.5k |

## Monthly review counts, oldest to newest (24 months)

173, 103, 106, 90, 101, 120, 111, 95, 86, 106, 157, 162, 160, 109, 132, 156, 427, 385, 164, 122, 120, 124, 111, 130

## Estimated acquisition range

$132.4k to $264.8k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $66.2k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

A first-person survival horror game where you defend yourself from animatronic creatures by listening for audio cues and closing doors each night.

FNAF 4 remains the franchise's most acclaimed entry (92.9% positive) and carries $5.5k/mo in residual revenue on a $7.99 price point with minimal marketing spend. The title has been dormant since launch (developer inactive 123 months), making it a prime candidate for a publisher seeking to monetize existing IP catalog momentum without active development risk. The community is vocal and deeply engaged, with specific friction points (audio balance, bug fixes, missing features) that a focused maintenance patch could unlock. Any play here hinges on securing rights from Scott Cawthon, whose recent pivots away from game development and toward publishing may create unexpected availability.

- Most realistic play: licensing
- Risk (other): Developer has been publicly inactive for 10+ years and shifted business focus away from game development; IP ownership and willingness to license unclear.
- Risk (tech): Players consistently report bugs (review #11: 5+ game-breaking issues) and audio design flaws; underlying Clickteam engine may resist modern fixes without full rebuild.
- Risk (market): Genre saturation and franchise fatigue; FNAF 4 is 9+ years old and competes against newer entries, remakes, and spin-offs with stronger technical polish.

What players are asking for:
- Fix audio level normalization to prevent hearing damage from jumpscares
- Patch recurring gameplay bugs (glitches breaking progression)
- Port or restore FNAF World (mentioned in review #17 as 'the one actual good thing')
- Balance difficulty (Freddy mechanic too easy per review #18)

Suggested first moves:
1. Secure non-exclusive licensing conversation with Scott Cawthon; determine rights scope, royalty structure, and developer approval needed for patches or re-release on new platforms.
2. Commission technical audit of the Clickteam codebase to scope cost of audio normalization patch and bug fixes; prioritize the 3-4 most-reported crashes.
3. Pilot a modest bundle strategy (e.g., FNAF 4 + restored FNAF World) at $9.99 to test price elasticity and measure lift from community-requested feature restoration.

Generated 2026-08-20 from public signals and player reviews. Directional, not diligence.

## Methodology

Units are estimated from Steam-purchase reviews times a release-cohort multiplier (Boxleiter method, 20-75x by year). Revenue uses an effective price (lifetime discounts and regional pricing) and nets out VAT (~13%), refunds (~9.5%) and Steam's 30% cut: roughly 55% of gross reaches the developer.

Source: https://residualplay.com/game/388090
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.