# Thimbleweed Park™

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

- Steam appid: 569860
- Developer: Terrible Toybox
- Released: 2017 · Genre: Adventure · List price: $19.99
- Deal grade: B (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $1.3k to $2.0k per month (mid $1.6k)
- Opportunity score: $3.4k/month at x2.10 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 198.2k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $851.7k
- Review sentiment: 93% positive across 4208 reviews (3604 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 15.2 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 8.6 years
- Studio quiet across its whole catalog
- Last build shipped 8.6 years ago
- Last discounted 0 months ago, 7 sales in the last 12 months

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $3.0k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $2.6k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $2.3k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $1.6k |

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

13, 8, 7, 15, 24, 25, 9, 10, 14, 9, 12, 25, 21, 12, 11, 34, 23, 27, 23, 12, 8, 25, 8, 15

## Estimated acquisition range

$39.1k to $78.2k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $19.6k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

A 2017 point-and-click adventure by Ron Gilbert's Terrible Toybox that lovingly recreates 1990s LucasArts design with original IP, pixel art, and Twin Peaks/X-Files–inflected storytelling.

Thimbleweed Park generates steady residual revenue ($1.6k/mo mid-range) on a $20 price point with 93% positive reviews and 198k lifetime sales, but has been dormant for over 8.5 years post-launch with minimal developer engagement. The title functions as a proven catalog asset with loyal replay value and strong word-of-mouth appeal among adventure-game enthusiasts; it is a candidate for light publishing support (marketing refresh, platform port, bundle inclusion) rather than acquisition, since Terrible Toybox retains full creative control and the IP is entirely original.

- Most realistic play: publishing
- Risk (tech): Built on aging in-house engine; no recent developer updates in 8.5 years suggests limited capacity or interest in platform support, bug fixes, or accessibility improvements.
- Risk (market): Point-and-click adventure market is niche and cyclical; 7 sales in the past 12 months and only 15 reviews/mo suggest the title has reached equilibrium and lacks organic discovery momentum.
- Risk (other): Studio status listed as 'fading' with only 2 titles total; unclear whether Terrible Toybox would accept publishing partnership or prefer to remain independent.

What players are asking for:
- Thimbleweed Park 2 release (mentioned by multiple players; 2028 date appears to be a community joke given no official announcement)
- Additional hint system or accessibility options for harder puzzle sections
- Port to Nintendo Switch and other consoles (implied by nostalgic retro-game audience)

Suggested first moves:
1. Contact Terrible Toybox directly to explore non-exclusive publishing partnership: modest marketing spend, console port co-funding, or bundle syndication could lift the $1.6k/mo baseline without requiring acquisition.
2. Audit console port feasibility and cost; Switch release would target the overlapping retro-game and cozy-game audiences, likely with 20-30% uplift in monthly revenue given strong review sentiment and UI portability.
3. Test bundle inclusion (e.g., 'Adventure Game Essentials,' 'Pixel Art Classics') on Epic or itch.io to measure demand elasticity and refresh discovery; current 14% key-share suggests room to migrate sales back to first-party platforms.

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/569860
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.