Do I ship it?

Games › Action Roguelike › Action Roguelike + Beat 'em up

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Beat 'em up Action Roguelike?

Action Roguelike + Beat 'em up

Of 115 developers who shipped a Beat 'em up Action Roguelike 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.. 183 more are announced, ×2.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $840, ×1.8 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $270; 1 in 20 cleared $910k, ×1927 the market median. Revenue is up 30% on the market; 183 games are announced against 72 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.8 times the market baseline, revenue up 30% on the market, 183 announced, ×2.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action Roguelike + Beat 'em up
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 115
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.1k → $1.8k → $748 → $599 → $2.4k → $748 → $719 (still earning) → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action Roguelike + Beat 'em up: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 115
Bottom 30% $269 (exactly $269)
Median $836 (exactly $836)
Top 25% $6.9k (exactly $6,920)
Top 5% $915k (exactly $915,384)
Developers, 2 yr 115
Released games 318
Announced 183
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $5.99

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 30% on the market, supply 65% 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action Roguelike
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Beat 'em up
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Action Roguelike, Beat 'em up; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelite, Roguelike
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 81% positive over 39,704 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $270, median $840, 1 in 4 over $6.9k, 1 in 20 over $910k.

3 in 10 developers made under $270. 9 in 10 of the 51 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 183 games are announced against 72 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RomanceStrong odds22 devs · median $6.5k · 17 announced
  2. + Creature CollectorFair39 devs · median $1.8k · 54 announced
  3. + SportsFair41 devs · median $1.6k · 39 announced
  4. + Boss RushFair20 devs · median $1.6k · 19 announced
  5. + VampiresFair55 devs · median $1.3k · 52 announced
  6. + IdlerFair44 devs · median $1.0k · 55 announced
  7. + DogsFair19 devs · median $899 · 18 announced
  8. + Precision PlatformerFair36 devs · median $629 · 38 announced
  9. + FaithFair16 devs · median $449 · 21 announced
  10. + Character Action GamePoor odds9 devs · median $20k · 40 announced
  11. + Dating SimPoor odds13 devs · median $12k · 14 announced
  12. + MechsPoor odds44 devs · median $12k · 85 announced

All 205 pairs on the Action Roguelike page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Sifu 2023 · $26M Absolum 2025 · $7.0M Rotwood 2026 · $6.7M Lost Castle 2 2026 · $5.9M Lost Castle / 失落城堡 2016 · $5.5M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Sifu older $39.99 21,620 92% 649k $26M (exactly $25,937,514) Sloclap
Absolum $24.99 9,399 91% 282k $7.0M (exactly $7,046,430) Dotemu, Guard Crush Games, Supamonks
Rotwood $29.99 7,459 74% 224k $6.7M (exactly $6,710,862) Klei Entertainment
Lost Castle 2 $17.99 10,851 78% 326k $5.9M (exactly $5,856,285) Hunter Studio
Lost Castle / 失落城堡 older $9.99 18,417 87% 553k $5.5M (exactly $5,519,575) Hunter Studio
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate $29.99 4,143 83% 124k $3.7M (exactly $3,727,457) Super Evil Megacorp
Tears of Metal · EA $24.99 2,359 85% 71k $1.8M (exactly $1,768,542) Paper Cult
Going Under older $19.99 2,702 92% 81k $1.6M (exactly $1,620,389) Aggro Crab
Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise Of The Dragons older $24.99 1,270 86% 38k $952k (exactly $952,119) Secret Base
Alien Hominid Invasion older $19.99 1,572 88% 47k $943k (exactly $942,728) The Behemoth
KIBORG $24.99 1,221 84% 37k $915k (exactly $915,384) Sobaka Studio
GOD FORSAKEN $13.99 1,728 67% 52k $725k (exactly $725,242) insight studio
Star Fire: Eternal Cycle $16.99 1,012 91% 30k $516k (exactly $515,816) Ethereal Fish Studio
GODBREAKERS $19.99 813 70% 24k $488k (exactly $487,556) To The Sky
The Bleakest Keep $9.99 719 90% 22k $215k (exactly $215,484) Cache of Bones

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