Do I ship it?

Games › Action › Action + FMV

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an FMV Action game?

Action + FMV

Of 48 developers who shipped an FMV Action 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.. 62 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $10k, ×17 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $870; 1 in 20 cleared $310k, ×495 the market median. Revenue is up 130% on the market; 62 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 16.7 times the market baseline, revenue up 130% on the market, 62 announced, ×2.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action + FMV
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 48
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $16k → $1.7k → $7.6k → $3.6k → $16k → $2.1k → $30k (still earning) → $179 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action + FMV: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 48
Bottom 30% $861 (exactly $861)
Median $10k (exactly $10,498)
Top 25% $73k (exactly $73,163)
Top 5% $311k (exactly $310,645)
Developers, 2 yr 48
Released games 206
Announced 62
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $9.99

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 130% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
FMV
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 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
Action, FMV; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Choices Matter, Dating Sim
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Story Rich, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 14,914 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $870, median $10k, 1 in 4 over $73k, 1 in 20 over $310k.

3 in 10 developers made under $870. 7 in 10 of the 32 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 62 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Real-Time with PauseFair16 devs · median $103k · 18 announced
  2. + Job SimulatorFair25 devs · median $14k · 30 announced
  3. + PinballFair42 devs · median $2.6k · 48 announced
  4. + Escape RoomFair43 devs · median $1.8k · 40 announced
  5. + Football (American)Fair16 devs · median $1.3k · 6 announced
  6. + BaseballFair16 devs · median $1.2k · 12 announced
  7. + BilliardsFair19 devs · median $958 · 25 announced
  8. + IdlerFair225 devs · median $898 · 292 announced
  9. + TennisFair23 devs · median $628 · 12 announced
  10. + Time AttackFair90 devs · median $599 · 110 announced
  11. + TabletopFair71 devs · median $505 · 86 announced
  12. + WuxiaPoor odds9 devs · median $189k · 36 announced

All 288 pairs on the Action page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Quantum Break 2016 · $28M Need for Speed™ 2020 · $23M Tempest Rising 2025 · $12M Late Shift 2017 · $3.5M Command & Conquer™ Red Alert™ 3 2009 · $3.0M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Quantum Break older $39.99 23,141 86% 694k $28M (exactly $27,762,258) Remedy Entertainment
Need for Speed™ older $29.99 25,443 69% 763k $23M (exactly $22,891,067) Ghost Games
Tempest Rising $39.99 9,811 87% 294k $12M (exactly $11,770,257) Slipgate Ironworks™
Late Shift older $14.99 7,762 86% 233k $3.5M (exactly $3,490,571) CtrlMovie
Command & Conquer™ Red Alert™ 3 older $6.96 14,605 85% 438k $3.0M (exactly $3,049,524) EA Los Angeles
Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars™ older $6.96 8,777 89% 263k $1.8M (exactly $1,832,638) EA Los Angeles
Command & Conquer™ Generals Zero Hour older $6.96 6,131 91% 184k $1.3M (exactly $1,280,153) EA Pacific
Command & Conquer™ 3: Kane’s Wrath older $6.96 5,499 93% 165k $1.1M (exactly $1,148,191) EA Los Angeles
Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! $24.99 1,352 92% 41k $1.0M (exactly $1,013,594) Auroch Digital
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Uprising older $6.96 4,572 84% 137k $955k (exactly $954,634) EA Los Angeles
Don't Stop, Girlypop! $19.99 518 83% 16k $311k (exactly $310,645) Funny Fintan Softworks
Undercover $14.99 667 77% 20k $300k (exactly $299,950) intiny
Refate: Echoes of Desire $14.99 558 87% 17k $251k (exactly $250,933) Terraflame Entertainment
Killing Time: Resurrected $24.99 320 92% 9.6k $240k (exactly $239,904) Nightdive Studios, 3DO
Sex & Blood: Vampires $9.99 759 71% 23k $227k (exactly $227,472) Taboo Tales 💘
Latex & Tentacles $10.99 343 67% 10k $113k (exactly $113,087) ZXC, GODNASK
Sex Desert: Mad Lust $9.99 323 61% 9.7k $97k (exactly $96,803) Carnality INC
Between Her Toes $9.99 263 71% 7.9k $79k (exactly $78,821) Tian3D, NimosGames

Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.