Do I ship it?

Games › Action Roguelike › Action Roguelike + Underground

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Underground Action Roguelike?

Action Roguelike + Underground

Of 44 developers who shipped an Underground 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.. 81 more are announced, ×3.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.5k, ×3.2 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $41k, ×86 the market median. Revenue is up 150% on the market; 81 games are announced against 23 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 150% on the market, 81 announced, ×3.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action Roguelike + Underground
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: $16k → $5.8k → $1.2k → $1.0k → $479 → $2.7k → $4.8k (still earning) → $899 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action Roguelike + Underground: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 44
Bottom 30% $180 (exactly $180)
Median $1.5k (exactly $1,498)
Top 25% $8.4k (exactly $8,392)
Top 5% $41k (exactly $41,083)
Developers, 2 yr 44
Released games 91
Announced 81
Effort 4 / 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 up 150% on the market, supply 10% 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
Underground
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, Adventure, Roguelike
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
6 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 $7.99.

The top 10 games average 90% positive over 2,706 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $1.5k, 1 in 4 over $8.3k, 1 in 20 over $41k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 24 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 81 games are announced against 23 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.5 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

Dungeons of Blood and Dream 2024 · $668k Lumencraft 2023 · $651k Million Depth 2025 · $343k Below the Stone 2023 · EA · $176k Ants Took My Eyeball 2024 · $97k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Dungeons of Blood and Dream $18.99 1,173 93% 35k $668k (exactly $668,258) Lori Vornoy
Lumencraft older $19.99 1,086 75% 33k $651k (exactly $651,274) 2Dynamic Games
Million Depth $16.99 673 93% 20k $343k (exactly $343,028) Cyber Space Biotope
Below the Stone · EA older $14.99 391 83% 12k $176k (exactly $175,833) Strollart
Ants Took My Eyeball older $12.99 248 93% 7.4k $97k (exactly $96,646) Bosmic Forge
Skeletal Avenger older $16.99 158 82% 4.7k $81k (exactly $80,533) 10tons Ltd
Footgun: Underground older $14.99 102 85% 3.1k $46k (exactly $45,869) Turtle Knight Games
DUNGEON RAZE $2.99 458 85% 14k $41k (exactly $41,083) KOTARO YOSHIDA
Soulbind: Tales Of The Underworld $7.99 88 73% 2.6k $21k (exactly $21,094) Rubedo Games
Cthulhu's Reach: Devil Reef $9.99 68 80% 2.0k $20k (exactly $20,380) The Fine Arc
Dark Bone Prison $5.99 84 95% 2.5k $15k (exactly $15,095) Bunny Moon Shady
Rusty Rangers $14.99 27 88% 810 $12k (exactly $12,142) Fantastica!
Deepest Dungeons $11.99 27 74% 810 $9.7k (exactly $9,712) Unmade Games
OREBLAZE $4.99 64 92% 1.9k $9.6k (exactly $9,581) Ludiminal Games
Loot Dungeon $6.99 44 54% 1.3k $9.2k (exactly $9,227) Electric Kite

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