Do I ship it?

Games › Action RPG › Action RPG + Hidden Object

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Hidden Object Action RPG?

Action RPG + Hidden Object

Of 46 developers who shipped a Hidden Object 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.. 85 more are announced, ×3.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $540, ×0.4 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150. 85 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 per shipper, while revenue is flat on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.4 times the market baseline, revenue flat on the market, 85 announced, ×3.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + Hidden Object
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 46
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.4k → $1.8k → $150 → $900 → $1.3k → $356 → $1.6k (still earning) → $239 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RPG + Hidden Object: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 46
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $538 (exactly $538)
Top 25% $3.3k (exactly $3,293)
Top 5% $101k (exactly $100,543)
Developers, 2 yr 46
Released games 140
Announced 85
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 flat on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 9%, 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
Hidden Object
effort 2 / 10 · high · static scenes with click targets

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Action RPG, Hidden Object; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Action, RPG
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $12.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Anime, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $12.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 82% positive over 1,986 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $540, 1 in 4 over $3.2k, 1 in 20 over $100k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. Nearly all of the 23 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 85 games are announced against 26 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 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

West Hunt 2023 · $456k holoVillage: Our Cozy Days 2026 · $388k DRAGON QUEST TREASURES 2023 · $385k Shattered Divinities 2026 · $272k Peekaboo 2019 · $249k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
West Hunt older $9.99 1,522 84% 46k $456k (exactly $456,143) NewGen
holoVillage: Our Cozy Days $24.99 518 83% 16k $388k (exactly $388,345) Roboqlo
DRAGON QUEST TREASURES older $49.99 257 77% 7.7k $385k (exactly $385,423) Square Enix, TOSE CO., LTD.
Shattered Divinities $9.99 906 94% 27k $272k (exactly $271,528) 星魂游戏
Peekaboo older $2.99 2,780 79% 83k $249k (exactly $249,366) Redaster Studio
The Last FARMER $12.99 258 56% 7.7k $101k (exactly $100,543) Geekon
Era of Miracles older $29.99 106 75% 3.2k $95k (exactly $95,368) Argentum Gaming
ScrewUp older $9.99 259 68% 7.8k $78k (exactly $77,622) 199 Cents STUDIO
恶魔迷宫 | Evil Maze older $1.99 807 76% 24k $48k (exactly $48,178) ZOV GAME STUDIO
Cypress Inheritance: The Beginning older $59.99 15 13% 450 $27k (exactly $26,996) Cypress Inheritance, LLC
Ortharion : The Last Battle $9.99 83 63% 2.5k $25k (exactly $24,875) Ortharion project
Niktophobia $7.99 63 66% 1.9k $15k (exactly $15,101) OldYacht
DOOMED Detective Game $6.99 65 46% 2.0k $14k (exactly $13,630) Azikton Studio
Castle Dark $19.99 19 94% 570 $11k (exactly $11,394) Wolfs Moon Studios
Prison Life Sim 2026 - Survival · EA $9.99 16 0% 480 $4.8k (exactly $4,795) Great Escape Games Publishing
The Legend of Shiande $2.99 46 100% 1.4k $4.1k (exactly $4,126) Thales Caus
Forsaken Valley $9.99 12 91% 360 $3.6k (exactly $3,596) KineticFox

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