It is possible to make some money on there. If you own a Chromebook with Chrome OS, it's the only place to get software. There is a torrent app for sale on the Chrome store for £1.89 and has over 50k installs: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/jstorrent/anhdpjpo...
do 50k installs of this app equal 50k sales?
I don't know but there is no free version at the moment. Looking at the updates in the description it mentions that they will refund any unsatisfied customers, that was in 2013 so it was for sale back then too.
Though I didn't build a game, I have made money (see above) around $1k/year.
Hm that's not bad at all! Have you considered trying to port the app to iOS though? It seems like you would have a much bigger audience there.
Thanks! I thought about porting, but honestly this was a "big fish in a little pond" scenario. With fewer apps (and also fewer users) you don't have to do a lot to stand out. I'd have to weigh cost/benefits of doing an iOS port.