Games › 4X › 4X + Strategy RPG
Should I ship a Strategy RPG 4X?
4X + Strategy RPG
Only 15 developers shipped a Strategy RPG 4X in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Songs of Silence, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 33 more are announced, ×4.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $31k, ×21 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $5.4k; 1 in 20 cleared $2.1M, ×1422 the market median. Revenue is up 405% on the market; 33 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $5.4k (exactly $5,395) |
|---|---|
| Median | $31k (exactly $31,169) |
| Top 25% | $430k (exactly $430,057) |
| Top 5% | $2.1M (exactly $2,129,590) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 15 |
| Released games | 69 |
| Announced | 33 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $18.99 |
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 405% on the market, supply 15% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- 4X
- effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
- Strategy RPG
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- 4X, Strategy RPG
- Price point
- $18.99 typical
Why players buy here
The top 10 games average 73% positive over 8,160 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $5.4k. 6 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 33 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.7 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
4X with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + CombatFair
- + Colony SimPoor odds
- + Turn-BasedPoor odds
- + SandboxPoor odds
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
- + SurvivalPoor odds
- + HistoricalPoor odds
- + Alternate HistoryPoor odds
- + RPGPoor odds
- + BuildingPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + City BuilderPoor odds
Comparable games
Total War: WARHAMMER 2016 · $58M 
Age of Wonders 4 2023 · $25M 
Songs of Conquest 2024 · $11M 
Starpoint Gemini Warlords 2017 · $3.2M 
Hero's Hour 2022 · $2.5M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Total War: WARHAMMER | older | $59.99 | 32,105 79% | 963k | $58M (exactly $57,779,368) | CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (L… (CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (Linux), Feral Interactive (Mac)) |
| | Age of Wonders 4 | older | $49.99 | 16,899 82% | 507k | $25M (exactly $25,343,430) | Triumph Studios |
| | Songs of Conquest | older | $29.99 | 12,127 85% | 364k | $11M (exactly $10,910,662) | Lavapotion |
| | Starpoint Gemini Warlords | older | $34.99 | 3,076 72% | 92k | $3.2M (exactly $3,228,877) | Little Green Men Games |
| | Hero's Hour | older | $17.99 | 4,643 79% | 139k | $2.5M (exactly $2,505,827) | Benjamin "ThingOnItsOwn" Hauer |
 | Songs of Silence | $29.99 | 2,367 79% | 71k | $2.1M (exactly $2,129,590) | Chimera Entertainment | |
 | Ascension | · EA | $19.99 | 2,437 60% | 73k | $1.5M (exactly $1,461,469) | Element Game 微元游戏 |
 | Thea 2: The Shattering | older | $24.99 | 1,892 79% | 57k | $1.4M (exactly $1,418,432) | MuHa Games, Eerie Forest Studio |
 | Master of Magic | older | $39.99 | 1,023 71% | 31k | $1.2M (exactly $1,227,293) | MuHa Games, Eerie Forest Studio |
 | Mandate Order | · EA | $19.99 | 1,110 81% | 33k | $666k (exactly $665,667) | Digital Sky |
 | Elemental: Reforged | $29.99 | 478 73% | 14k | $430k (exactly $430,057) | Stardock Entertainment | |
 | Huaxia: Warring States | · EA | $19.99 | 701 61% | 21k | $420k (exactly $420,390) | 秦川汉渚 |
 | Pennon and Battle | $18.99 | 175 69% | 5.3k | $100k (exactly $99,697) | PB Studio | |
 | TOHOTOPIA | · EA | $3.99 | 732 97% | 22k | $88k (exactly $87,620) | Remilia Command |
 | Milord | · EA | $9.99 | 104 64% | 3.1k | $31k (exactly $31,169) | iBright Games |
 | Atre: Dominance Wars | · EA | $24.99 | 34 67% | 1.0k | $25k (exactly $25,490) | Ironward |
 | Master of Luna | · EA | $14.99 | 22 95% | 660 | $9.9k (exactly $9,893) | Aleksandr Tiupin |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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