Do I ship it?

Games › Action Roguelike › Action Roguelike + Mechs

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Mech Action Roguelike?

Action Roguelike + Mechs

Of 44 developers who shipped a Mech 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.. 85 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $12k, ×19 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $660; 1 in 20 cleared $660k, ×1059 the market median. Revenue is down 70% on the market; 85 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 19.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 70% on the market, 85 announced, ×3.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action Roguelike + Mechs
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 44
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $6.1k → $37k → $10k → $16k → $25k → $12k → $4.3k (still earning) → $32k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action Roguelike + Mechs: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 44
Bottom 30% $657 (exactly $657)
Median $12k (exactly $11,988)
Top 25% $88k (exactly $87,715)
Top 5% $665k (exactly $665,067)
Developers, 2 yr 44
Released games 106
Announced 85
Effort 6 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 down 70% on the market, supply 30% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 8%, 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
Mechs
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Action Roguelike; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Roguelite, Action, Roguelike
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 12,970 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $660, median $12k, 1 in 4 over $87k, 1 in 20 over $660k.

3 in 10 developers made under $660. 5 in 10 of the 21 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 85 games are announced against 25 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 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. + Visual NovelPoor odds23 devs · median $12k · 23 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 Pax Autocratica 2026 · EA · $2.9M UNDERDOGS 2024 · $2.5M R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program 2026 · $1.2M Metal Unit 2021 · $925k
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
Pax Autocratica · EA $29.99 3,202 91% 96k $2.9M (exactly $2,880,839) Multiverse
UNDERDOGS older $29.99 2,788 97% 84k $2.5M (exactly $2,508,364) One Hamsa
R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program $14.99 2,727 76% 82k $1.2M (exactly $1,226,332) WarmCore Studio
Metal Unit older $14.99 2,056 82% 62k $925k (exactly $924,583) JellySnow Studio
Oblivion Override older $17.99 1,692 90% 51k $913k (exactly $913,172) Humble Mill
METALLIC CHILD older $24.99 1,131 84% 34k $848k (exactly $847,911) Action Square(STUDIO HG)
Metal Bringer $19.99 1,109 87% 33k $665k (exactly $665,067) ALPHAWING Inc.
TerraTech Legion $9.99 2,109 81% 63k $632k (exactly $632,067) Payload Studios
CRYPTARK older $14.99 912 83% 27k $410k (exactly $410,126) Alientrap
Granvir $14.99 842 90% 25k $379k (exactly $378,647) Airborne Games
Vital Shell $5.99 1,752 96% 53k $315k (exactly $314,834) MarvinWizard
Grit and Valor - 1949 $19.99 274 75% 8.2k $164k (exactly $164,318) Milky Tea Studios
Gigantes Ex Machina · EA $14.99 300 84% 9.0k $135k (exactly $134,910) AcrylByte, SEO INSEOK
RIG Riot $19.99 195 94% 5.9k $117k (exactly $116,941) Sage Boatman
Demon Hunt · EA $6.99 460 77% 14k $96k (exactly $96,462) Massive Hug

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