Do I ship it?

Games › Action Roguelike › Action Roguelike + Capitalism

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Capitalist Action Roguelike?

Action Roguelike + Capitalism

Of 26 developers who shipped a Capitalist 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.. 59 more are announced, ×3.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×5.0 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $600; 1 in 20 cleared $480k, ×1016 the market median. Revenue is down 70% on the market; 59 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 5.0 times the market baseline, revenue down 70% on the market, 59 announced, ×3.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action Roguelike + Capitalism
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 26
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $119 → $12k → $5.2k → $2.4k → $2.1k (still earning) → $2.5k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action Roguelike + Capitalism: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 26
Bottom 30% $599 (exactly $599)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,397)
Top 25% $12k (exactly $11,826)
Top 5% $482k (exactly $482,483)
Developers, 2 yr 26
Released games 46
Announced 59
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $6.99

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 down 70% on the market, supply 60% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 20%, 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
Capitalism
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; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Bullet Hell, Roguelite
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 8,461 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $600, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $11k, 1 in 20 over $480k.

3 in 10 developers made under $600. 5 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 59 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action Roguelike with a different setting or mood, 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

Brigador: Up-Armored Edition 2016 · $3.4M Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault 2026 · $2.8M Astro Prospector 2025 · $482k ORDER 13 2025 · $330k GIRLDIVERS 2024 · $81k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Brigador: Up-Armored Edition older $24.99 4,580 93% 137k $3.4M (exactly $3,433,626) Stellar Jockeys, Gausswerks
Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault $29.99 3,146 80% 94k $2.8M (exactly $2,830,456) Digital Sun
Astro Prospector $4.99 3,223 91% 97k $482k (exactly $482,483) Incrementalist
ORDER 13 $8.99 1,224 87% 37k $330k (exactly $330,113) Cybernetic Walrus
GIRLDIVERS $14.99 181 80% 5.4k $81k (exactly $81,396) Sweet Cakes Games
FISH FEAR ME $9.99 214 84% 6.4k $64k (exactly $64,136) HEATHER FLOWERS
Duncrush $3.99 321 82% 9.6k $38k (exactly $38,424) Golden Pick Games
SNAKE FARM older $2.99 392 94% 12k $35k (exactly $35,162) HEATHER FLOWERS
BloodDome99 $4.99 79 94% 2.4k $12k (exactly $11,826) Halftone Gaming
PARA♰BELLUM ~ 魔弹帕菈 older $2.99 117 95% 3.5k $10k (exactly $10,495) ChronoYuki
Funfair Billionaire $5.99 29 82% 870 $5.2k (exactly $5,211) Yunogames
Push & Plunder $9.99 13 84% 390 $3.9k (exactly $3,896) Skylor Beck
HorSteal $3.99 31 93% 930 $3.7k (exactly $3,711) JebiDeungDeung, Jebi Studio

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