Do I ship it?

GamesAction RPGAction RPG + Alternate History

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Alternate-History Action RPG?

Action RPG + Alternate History

Of 41 developers who shipped an Alternate-History Action RPG 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.. 120 more are announced, ×8.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.0k, ×1.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $660k, ×447 the market median. Revenue is up 30% on the market; 120 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 30% on the market, 120 announced, ×8.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + Alternate History
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 41
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $750 → $330 → $14k → $3.6k → $2.6k → $450 → $2.3k (still earning) → $1.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RPG + Alternate History: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 41
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $2.0k (exactly $1,973)
Top 25% $15k (exactly $14,679)
Top 5% $669k (exactly $668,930)
Developers, 2 yr 41
Released games 131
Announced 120
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 30% on the market, supply 45% fewer 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action RPG
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Alternate History
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Action RPG; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, RPG, Adventure
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich
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 85% positive over 10,588 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $2.0k, 1 in 4 over $14k, 1 in 20 over $660k.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 33 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 120 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year, ×8.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action RPG with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + NavalFair17 devs · median $15k · 11 announced
  2. + Local Co-OpFair68 devs · median $6.0k · 82 announced
  3. + WesternFair13 devs · median $5.5k · 15 announced
  4. + Local MultiplayerFair43 devs · median $5.5k · 56 announced
  5. + Walking SimulatorLong shot35 devs · median $450 · 33 announced
  6. + WuxiaPoor odds7 devs · median $198k · 28 announced
  7. + Character Action GamePoor odds14 devs · median $105k · 55 announced
  8. + MechsPoor odds21 devs · median $59k · 43 announced
  9. + Colony SimPoor odds11 devs · median $58k · 35 announced
  10. + Dating SimPoor odds31 devs · median $44k · 47 announced
  11. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds23 devs · median $26k · 69 announced
  12. + Bullet HeavenPoor odds77 devs · median $25k · 91 announced

All 211 pairs on the Action RPG page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Assassin's Creed® III Remastered older $39.99 14,646 63% 439k $18M (exactly $17,570,806) Ubisoft Entertainment
SD GUNDAM BATTLE ALLIANCE older $59.99 4,892 62% 147k $8.8M (exactly $8,804,132) ARTDINK
Steelrising older $49.99 4,568 73% 137k $6.9M (exactly $6,850,630) Spiders
Hell Clock $19.99 3,535 82% 106k $2.1M (exactly $2,119,940) Rogue Snail
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn older $39.99 1,362 75% 41k $1.6M (exactly $1,633,991) A44 Games
Conquest Dark · EA $9.99 2,530 89% 76k $758k (exactly $758,241) Eldritch Sword Games
Tunguska: The Visitation - Final Cut older $14.99 1,682 87% 50k $756k (exactly $756,395) Rotorist Workshop
LIZARDS MUST DIE 2 $9.99 2,232 94% 67k $669k (exactly $668,930) the Bratans, Smola Game Studio
BDSM: Big Drunk Satanic Massacre older $19.99 1,114 87% 33k $668k (exactly $668,066) Big Way Games
Corsairs Legacy - Pirate Action RPG & Sea Battles · EA older $19.99 1,094 74% 33k $656k (exactly $656,072) Mauris, Tech-5 UG
Nigate Tale $19.99 678 67% 20k $407k (exactly $406,597) Hermit Games, 2P Games
Crimson Oath $14.99 750 82% 23k $337k (exactly $337,275) Parry Frames Team
Arisen Force: HeroTest $10.99 374 82% 11k $123k (exactly $123,308) Lemport
The Last FARMER $12.99 258 56% 7.7k $101k (exactly $100,543) Geekon
Deadrock Redemption 2 $14.99 123 86% 3.7k $55k (exactly $55,313) Entropy Digital Entertainment
Core Awaken Rurumu's will $12.99 58 96% 1.7k $23k (exactly $22,603) CelLab
Geo Mythica $14.99 50 100% 1.5k $22k (exactly $22,485) Guin Entertainment, LLC

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