# Emily is Away <3

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

- Steam appid: 978460
- Developer: Kyle Seeley
- Released: 2021 · Genre: Adventure · List price: $9.99
- Deal grade: A (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $2.7k to $4.0k per month (mid $3.4k)
- Opportunity score: $7.0k/month at x2.10 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 192.4k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $479.1k
- Review sentiment: 91% positive across 6767 reviews (6011 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 53.8 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 5.3 years
- Studio inactive: no public activity across 2 tracked titles
- Last build shipped 5.4 years ago
- Store page localized in only 1 language(s)
- Last discounted 1 months ago, 7 sales in the last 12 months
- Proven demand elasticity: x2.0 review velocity during past deep sales

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $6.1k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $5.3k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $4.8k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $3.4k |

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

35, 24, 20, 28, 84, 85, 44, 137, 67, 38, 80, 93, 53, 39, 53, 28, 34, 50, 55, 66, 42, 58, 40, 62

## Estimated acquisition range

$80.5k to $160.9k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $40.2k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

A narrative adventure set in early-2000s internet culture where player choices shape a coming-of-age romance across multiple playthroughs.

Emily is Away <3 maintains steady residual revenue of $3,352/mo on a $9.99 price point with 91% positive sentiment and 54 reviews/mo despite zero developer communication for 64 months. The franchise has proven commercial legs across three titles and deep player attachment to its nostalgic, choice-driven storytelling. A dormant catalog asset with low churn and high replay value; acquisition or publishing partnership could unlock dormant sales through modest marketing or pricing experimentation, though the single-developer model and soft studio status create execution risk.

- Most realistic play: acquisition
- Risk (other): Developer has posted no updates in 64 months; unclear whether source code, assets, or full IP transfer are obtainable or whether creator retains it.
- Risk (market): Niche nostalgia-driven narrative genre with limited mainstream appeal; elasticity of 1.97 suggests price sensitivity but also thin margin for growth.
- Risk (other): Player sentiment shows emotional investment but also fatigue: repeated playthroughs feel like 'a slog' due to dialogue reuse, and narratives deliberately deliver heartbreak, limiting word-of-mouth.

What players are asking for:
- Additional dialogue variation and unique paths to reduce repetition across multiple playthroughs
- More relationship options, including single-character endings and male-character romance routes
- Developer communication and post-launch support signals

Suggested first moves:
1. Conduct IP due diligence: confirm source code access, asset ownership, and any franchise rights complications before engaging Kyle Seeley on acquisition terms.
2. Analyze pricing elasticity via A/B testing: current $9.99 price may be suppressing volume; test $4.99-$7.99 tiers to validate whether residual_mid_usd can move to $5k+/mo without cannibalizing full-price sales.
3. Develop lightweight post-launch roadmap (dialogue variant pass, one new romance branch, social media integration) to test whether community appetite justifies revival investment and to signal publisher commitment.

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/978460
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.