Do I ship it?

Games › Action RPG › Action RPG + FMV

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an FMV Action RPG?

Action RPG + FMV

Only 12 developers shipped an FMV Action RPG 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, FLAM EVAW, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 14 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $20k, ×13 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $410k, ×276 the market median. Revenue is up 570% on the market; 14 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 13.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 570% on the market, 14 announced, ×2.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + FMV
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 12
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $44k → $26k → $44k → $20k → $1.8k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RPG + FMV: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 12
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $20k (exactly $19,712)
Top 25% $113k (exactly $113,087)
Top 5% $413k (exactly $412,987)
Developers, 2 yr 12
Released games 30
Announced 14
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 570% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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
FMV
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 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, FMV
Price point
$7.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 9 games average 85% positive over 2,993 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 $20k, 1 in 4 over $110k, 1 in 20 over $410k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 7 in 10 of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 14 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 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

FLAM EVAW 2025 · $413k Undercover 2026 · $300k Command & Conquer™ Tiberian Sun™ and Firestorm™ 2024 · $269k Latex & Tentacles 2025 · $113k Survivor's Notes 2026 · $74k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
FLAM EVAW $9.99 1,378 95% 41k $413k (exactly $412,987) 北京万合瑞晟文化传媒有限公司
Undercover $14.99 667 77% 20k $300k (exactly $299,950) intiny
Command & Conquer™ Tiberian Sun™ and Firestorm™ older $6.96 1,289 89% 39k $269k (exactly $269,143) Westwood Studios
Latex & Tentacles $10.99 343 67% 10k $113k (exactly $113,087) ZXC, GODNASK
Survivor's Notes $6.99 352 91% 11k $74k (exactly $73,814) MYSTERY CROWN, YESPLAY
Only Whores Survive 🔞 $9.99 148 61% 4.4k $44k (exactly $44,356) BanzaiProject
TryAndLove older $6.99 208 48% 6.2k $44k (exactly $43,618) MYSTERY CROWN
Spy Alliance older $1.99 645 74% 19k $39k (exactly $38,506) ALT Lab
心动满屋 older $3.99 218 75% 6.5k $26k (exactly $26,095) 成都萌创科技有限公司
Bonelords $6.99 94 92% 2.8k $20k (exactly $19,712) Z0 Game Studios
Otaku VR: Sit-ups and Kisses · EA $9.99 6 100% 180 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) LUO WENJUN
Harvester Arno $3.99 3 66% 90 $359 (exactly $359) LAL
Drone:Modern Warfare $2.99 2 0% 60 $179 (exactly $179) AndyKwok008
Interpret $0.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) 臻新

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