Do I ship it?

Games › 2D Fighter › 2D Fighter + Strategy

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a 2D Fighter Strategy game?

2D Fighter + Strategy

Of 103 developers who shipped a 2D Fighter Strategy game 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.. 150 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $150 in the last 2 years and $180 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 58 developers shipped in the last year and 150 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 495% on the market, 150 announced, ×2.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
2D Fighter + Strategy
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 103
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $300 → $119 → $150 → $150 → $60 → $90 → $449 (still earning) → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for 2D Fighter + Strategy: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 103
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $150 (exactly $150)
Top 25% $959 (exactly $959)
Top 5% $29k (exactly $29,471)
Developers, 2 yr 103
Released games 305
Announced 150
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 up 495% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.

See every window in the explorer →

Plate 2 · systems and tooling

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
Strategy
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
2D Fighter, Strategy; 3 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Simulation, 2D Platformer
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $13.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $13.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 79% positive over 2,524 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $150, 1 in 4 over $950, 1 in 20 over $29k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. Nearly all of the 63 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 150 games are announced against 58 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

2D Fighter with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RomanceStrong odds8 devs · median $4.0k · 6 announced
  2. + Visual NovelFair11 devs · median $4.0k · 12 announced
  3. + Card BattlerFair10 devs · median $1.0k · 11 announced
  4. + DeckbuildingFair17 devs · median $959 · 12 announced
  5. + Auto BattlerFair16 devs · median $719 · 19 announced
  6. + IdlerFair9 devs · median $599 · 18 announced
  7. + RhythmFair10 devs · median $599 · 12 announced
  8. + SimulationFair51 devs · median $598 · 55 announced
  9. + IncrementalFair16 devs · median $538 · 13 announced
  10. + ManagementFair10 devs · median $449 · 14 announced
  11. + SuperheroLong shot11 devs · median $959 · 12 announced
  12. + Resource ManagementLong shot13 devs · median $390 · 14 announced

All 129 pairs on the 2D Fighter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Stick Fight: The Game 2017 · $15M Bopl Battle 2023 · $6.5M Kingdom Rush Vengeance - Tower Defense 2020 · $5.9M Your Only Move Is HUSTLE 2023 · $5.8M DNF Duel 2022 · $5.5M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Stick Fight: The Game older $4.99 99,952 93% 3.0M $15M (exactly $14,962,814) Landfall West
Bopl Battle older $9.99 21,530 97% 646k $6.5M (exactly $6,452,541) Johan Grönvall
Kingdom Rush Vengeance - Tower Defense older $19.99 9,906 93% 297k $5.9M (exactly $5,940,628) Ironhide Game Studio
Your Only Move Is HUSTLE older $4.99 38,703 96% 1.2M $5.8M (exactly $5,793,839) Ivy Sly
DNF Duel older $49.99 3,693 64% 111k $5.5M (exactly $5,538,392) NEOPLE Inc., Arc System Works, EIGHTING… (NEOPLE Inc., Arc System Works, EIGHTING Co., Ltd.)
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
Stickman Trenches older $5.99 1,922 81% 58k $345k (exactly $345,383) Big Play Games
Backpack Jianghu $13.99 565 80% 17k $237k (exactly $237,130) 背包工作室
SHIPS AT WAR · EA older $14.99 369 76% 11k $166k (exactly $165,939) Golddorf Spieleentwicklung
Swords and Sandals 3 Redux $9.99 233 87% 7.0k $70k (exactly $69,830) Whiskeybarrel Studios
IGNOBLE $6.99 331 82% 9.9k $69k (exactly $69,411) Retromagine
Shana - Priestess of Tona $9.99 190 74% 5.7k $57k (exactly $56,943) Lustration Team
极乐不羡仙 $5.99 164 65% 4.9k $29k (exactly $29,471) 仙常居ソフト
face the immortal · EA $17.99 41 92% 1.2k $22k (exactly $22,128) DY
Boxing School 2 $14.99 41 80% 1.2k $18k (exactly $18,438) Raptor Claw Games
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.