Do I ship it?

Games › Action RPG › Action RPG + Destruction

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Destruction Action RPG?

Action RPG + Destruction

Of 22 developers who shipped a Destruction 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.. 53 more are announced, ×3.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $360, ×0.2 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $59. 53 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.5 per shipper, while revenue is up 260% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 260% on the market, 53 announced, ×3.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + Destruction
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 22
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $750 → $18k → $18k → $420 → $150 → $839 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RPG + Destruction: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 22
Bottom 30% $59 (exactly $59)
Median $359 (exactly $359)
Top 25% $2.4k (exactly $2,395)
Top 5% $2.6M (exactly $2,589,464)
Developers, 2 yr 22
Released games 72
Announced 53
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $4.99

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 260% on the market, supply 115% 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Action RPG
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Destruction
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 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, Destruction; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Action Roguelike, RPG
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $34.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Isometric, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $34.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 10,590 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $59, median $360, 1 in 4 over $2.3k, 1 in 20 over $2.5M.

3 in 10 developers made under $59. 9 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 53 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action RPG with a different second tag, 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

Diablo II: Resurrected – Infernal Edition 2026 · $7.0M Everwind 2026 · EA · $2.6M Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Prophecy 2019 · $2.2M 9 Days 2024 · $988k Actraiser Renaissance 2021 · $637k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Diablo II: Resurrected – Infernal Edition $39.99 5,855 86% 176k $7.0M (exactly $7,024,244) Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
Everwind · EA $24.99 3,454 81% 104k $2.6M (exactly $2,589,464) Enjoy Studio S.A.
Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Prophecy older $24.99 2,884 79% 87k $2.2M (exactly $2,162,135) NeocoreGames
9 Days older $14.99 2,198 72% 66k $988k (exactly $988,441) MVR
Actraiser Renaissance older $29.99 708 74% 21k $637k (exactly $636,988) Square Enix, Sonic Powered
Star Fire: Eternal Cycle $16.99 1,012 91% 30k $516k (exactly $515,816) Ethereal Fish Studio
我在地球修仙有系统 older $14.99 959 70% 29k $431k (exactly $431,262) 红星
Fictorum older $9.99 1,034 78% 31k $310k (exactly $309,890) Scraping Bottom Games
Tornado: Research and Rescue · EA older $12.99 356 85% 11k $139k (exactly $138,733) Sam Kennedy
Wartorn $34.99 130 73% 3.9k $136k (exactly $136,461) Stray Kite Studios
Masks of the Void: Origins $14.99 108 97% 3.2k $49k (exactly $48,568) ROLLDBOX GAMES
Aevalore $4.99 16 81% 480 $2.4k (exactly $2,395) Aevalore
Last Stronghold $3.99 8 62% 240 $958 (exactly $958) skR1me
Gravity Break · EA $13.99 2 100% 60 $839 (exactly $839) bakspace interactive, Kristian Bak, Dan… (bakspace interactive, Kristian Bak, Daniel Clifton, Nanna Fjord)
SCP: Pale Weaver $5.99 4 0% 120 $719 (exactly $719) why so serious?
Year 2031 $13.99 1 100% 30 $420 (exactly $420) Cestmir Kocian

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