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Should I ship a Roguelike 2D Fighter?
2D Fighter + Roguelike
Of 52 developers who shipped a Roguelike 2D Fighter in the last 2 years: 3 in 10 made under est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 4 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method., 1 in 20 cleared est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 88 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $540, ×0.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $180k, ×291 the market median. Revenue is down 35% on the market; 88 games are announced against 39 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $150 (exactly $150) |
|---|---|
| Median | $539 (exactly $539) |
| Top 25% | $7.0k (exactly $7,015) |
| Top 5% | $183k (exactly $182,578) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 52 |
| Released games | 134 |
| Announced | 88 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $4.99 |
momentum: how a niche's revenue percentiles and developer count moved between two equal, adjacent periods, divided by the market's own move. See method., 12 months: revenue down 35% on the market, supply 200% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 14%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- 2D Fighter
- effort 5 / 10 · low · frame-precise animation and rollback netcode
- Roguelike
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- 2D Fighter, Roguelike; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Roguelite, Action
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 93% positive over 10,087 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $150. 7 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 88 games are announced against 39 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
2D Fighter with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomanceStrong odds
- + Visual NovelFair
- + Card BattlerFair
- + DeckbuildingFair
- + Auto BattlerFair
- + IdlerFair
- + RhythmFair
- + SimulationFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + ManagementFair
- + SuperheroLong shot
- + Resource ManagementLong shot
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Anomaly Agent | older | $11.99 | 9,463 94% | 284k | $3.4M (exactly $3,403,841) | Phew Phew Games |
| | Stick It to the Stickman | · EA | $11.99 | 7,918 96% | 238k | $2.8M (exactly $2,848,105) | Free Lives |
| | Spiritfall | older | $19.99 | 1,844 92% | 55k | $1.1M (exactly $1,105,847) | Gentle Giant |
| | Rune Coliseum | · EA | $18.99 | 886 79% | 27k | $505k (exactly $504,754) | Rafale Software |
| | Swords and Sandals Immortals | older | $11.99 | 1,056 84% | 32k | $380k (exactly $379,843) | Whiskeybarrel Studios |
| | Poetry of Blood: Eclipse | · EA | $14.99 | 406 91% | 12k | $183k (exactly $182,578) | ZeroGameStudio |
| | Duelists of Eden | older | $4.99 | 856 95% | 26k | $128k (exactly $128,143) | Thomas Moon Kang |
| | Swords and Sandals 3 Redux | $9.99 | 233 87% | 7.0k | $70k (exactly $69,830) | Whiskeybarrel Studios | |
| | Trials of Valor | $18.99 | 100 95% | 3.0k | $57k (exactly $56,970) | Armored Goblin | |
| | Shana - Priestess of Tona | $9.99 | 190 74% | 5.7k | $57k (exactly $56,943) | Lustration Team | |
| | PlatyGuard: Swarm Slayer | $14.99 | 117 74% | 3.5k | $53k (exactly $52,615) | ChillyRoom | |
| | 极乐不羡仙 | $5.99 | 164 65% | 4.9k | $29k (exactly $29,471) | 仙常居ソフト | |
| | Heritage | $9.99 | 44 72% | 1.3k | $13k (exactly $13,187) | Big Three Games | |
| | Type or Die | $13.99 | 29 31% | 870 | $12k (exactly $12,171) | Type or Die |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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