Do I ship it?

GamesActionAction + Superhero

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Superhero Action game?

Action + Superhero

Of 76 developers who shipped a Superhero 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.. 139 more are announced, ×3.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×0.9 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $4.5M, ×3034 the market median. Revenue is up 45% on the market; 139 games are announced against 42 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 45% on the market, 139 announced, ×3.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action + Superhero
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 76
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $599 → $1.8k → $898 → $450 → $3.7k → $3.2k → $1.1k (still earning) → $300 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action + Superhero: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 76
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,347)
Top 25% $16k (exactly $16,367)
Top 5% $4.5M (exactly $4,545,591)
Developers, 2 yr 76
Released games 343
Announced 139
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 45% on the market, supply 20% more developers than 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Superhero
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Action; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Action-Adventure, Combat
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $49.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Comic Book, 3D, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $49.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 94% positive over 225,337 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $16k, 1 in 20 over $4.5M.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 9 in 10 of the 43 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 139 games are announced against 42 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action with a different setting or mood, 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered older $59.99 101,879 96% 3.1M $183M (exactly $183,351,636) Insomniac Games, Nixxes Software
Dispatch $29.99 174,624 97% 5.2M $157M (exactly $157,109,213) AdHoc Studio
Batman™: Arkham Knight older $19.99 111,190 92% 3.3M $67M (exactly $66,680,643) Rocksteady Studios
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy older $59.99 35,397 93% 1.1M $64M (exactly $63,703,981) Eidos-Montréal
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 $59.99 33,433 83% 1.0M $60M (exactly $60,169,370) Insomniac Games, Nixxes Software
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales older $49.99 39,234 93% 1.2M $59M (exactly $58,839,230) Insomniac Games, Nixxes Software
Batman: Arkham Asylum Game of the Year Edition older $19.99 62,057 96% 1.9M $37M (exactly $37,215,583) Rocksteady Studios
Saints Row IV: Re-Elected older $19.99 57,525 87% 1.7M $34M (exactly $34,497,742) Deep Silver Volition
Batman: Arkham City - Game of the Year Edition older $19.99 55,935 95% 1.7M $34M (exactly $33,544,219) Rocksteady Studios
South Park™: The Fractured But Whole™ older $29.99 31,985 85% 960k $29M (exactly $28,776,904) Ubisoft San Francisco
LEGO® Batman™: Legacy of the Dark Knight $69.99 8,728 95% 262k $18M (exactly $18,326,182) TT Games
Invincible VS $49.99 3,031 76% 91k $4.5M (exactly $4,545,591) Quarter Up
Lost Soul Aside™ $59.99 1,307 59% 39k $2.4M (exactly $2,352,208) Ultizero Games
MARVEL Cosmic Invasion $29.99 2,298 88% 69k $2.1M (exactly $2,067,511) Tribute Games Inc.
MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice $59.99 765 63% 23k $1.4M (exactly $1,376,770) Byking Inc.
Superhero Simulator · EA $5.99 867 73% 26k $156k (exactly $155,800) mightyraccoon! Studios
MARVEL MaXimum Collection $24.99 111 76% 3.3k $83k (exactly $83,217) Limited Run Games
Origin Story - Season 1 $12.99 173 93% 5.2k $67k (exactly $67,418) JDOR

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