Do I ship it?

GamesAction RoguelikeAction Roguelike + Time Travel

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Time-Travel Action Roguelike?

Action Roguelike + Time Travel

Only 19 developers shipped a Time-Travel Action Roguelike in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, Million Depth, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 28 more are announced, ×2.8 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 $300; 1 in 20 cleared $340k, ×722 the market median. Revenue is up 3045% on the market; 28 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 5.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 3045% on the market, 28 announced, ×2.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action Roguelike + Time Travel
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 19
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $742 → $300 → $5.4k → $2.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action Roguelike + Time Travel: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 19
Bottom 30% $300 (exactly $300)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,395)
Top 25% $26k (exactly $26,374)
Top 5% $343k (exactly $343,028)
Developers, 2 yr 19
Released games 34
Announced 28
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 up 3045% on the market, supply 10% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 18%, 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
Time Travel
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; all of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelike, Roguelite
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Pixel Graphics, 2D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 2,268 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $26k, 1 in 20 over $340k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 28 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.8 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Million Depth $16.99 673 93% 20k $343k (exactly $343,028) Cyber Space Biotope
Ascend to ZERO $11.99 867 82% 26k $312k (exactly $311,860) Flyway Games, Inc.
Return to abyss 重返深渊 older $4.99 949 79% 28k $142k (exactly $142,065) Wingjoy Games
Time Treker $6.99 399 65% 12k $84k (exactly $83,670) Fuse Game
Mist Slayer older $7.99 305 64% 9.2k $73k (exactly $73,108) Moju Games
PROJECT TACHYON $17.99 117 83% 3.5k $63k (exactly $63,145) STUDIO N9
Time Survivors older $4.99 272 61% 8.2k $41k (exactly $40,718) Lunar Chili
Time Snatcher Handy $9.99 88 96% 2.6k $26k (exactly $26,374) PulleyBun, ClockworkCats
Tale of Immortal Ring $4.99 51 66% 1.5k $7.6k (exactly $7,635) Solo Gaming
BARD'S FAULT $9.99 21 80% 630 $6.3k (exactly $6,294) Sunabi Studios
Panta Rhei - Guardian of Time $9.99 18 94% 540 $5.4k (exactly $5,395) Sappalot Studio, Omme Animation, Nordic… (Sappalot Studio, Omme Animation, Nordic Scoring)
Clockfall · EA $9.99 18 94% 540 $5.4k (exactly $5,395) Rever Games GmbH
Negative Time $4.99 16 100% 480 $2.4k (exactly $2,395) Round Owl

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