Games › Action RPG › Action RPG + Investigation
Should I ship an Investigation Action RPG?
Action RPG + Investigation
Of 33 developers who shipped an Investigation 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.. 83 more are announced, ×5.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $720, ×0.5 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240. 83 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.2 per shipper, while revenue is up 35% on the market.
| Bottom 30% | $239 (exactly $239) |
|---|---|
| Median | $719 (exactly $719) |
| Top 25% | $8.7k (exactly $8,691) |
| Top 5% | $106k (exactly $106,457) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 33 |
| Released games | 91 |
| Announced | 83 |
| 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 35% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Investigation
- effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- Action RPG, Investigation; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Action, Action-Adventure
- Price point
- $7.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
- Art
- 3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Story Rich, 3D, Anime
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 1,595 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. 9 in 10 of the 23 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 83 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Action RPG with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + NavalFair
- + Local Co-OpFair
- + WesternFair
- + Local MultiplayerFair
- + Walking SimulatorLong shot
- + WuxiaPoor odds
- + Character Action GamePoor odds
- + MechsPoor odds
- + Colony SimPoor odds
- + Dating SimPoor odds
- + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds
- + Bullet HeavenPoor odds
Comparable games
Lost Judgment 2022 · $9.0M 
Fate Seeker II 2021 · $7.7M 
The Sinking City Remastered 2021 · $6.4M 
RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army 2025 · $1.6M 
HellSign 2021 · $1.3M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Lost Judgment | older | $39.99 | 7,461 93% | 224k | $9.0M (exactly $8,950,962) | RGG Studio |
| | Fate Seeker II | older | $22.60 | 11,360 88% | 341k | $7.7M (exactly $7,702,080) | JSL Entertainment |
| | The Sinking City Remastered | older | $39.99 | 5,361 75% | 161k | $6.4M (exactly $6,431,592) | Frogwares |
| | RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army | $49.99 | 1,045 93% | 31k | $1.6M (exactly $1,567,186) | ATLUS | |
| | HellSign | older | $19.99 | 2,147 67% | 64k | $1.3M (exactly $1,287,556) | Ballistic Interactive |
 | PAGUI打鬼 | older | $19.99 | 1,189 82% | 36k | $713k (exactly $713,043) | padendon |
 | The Inquisitor | older | $39.99 | 277 66% | 8.3k | $332k (exactly $332,317) | The Dust S.A. |
 | Inspector Schmidt - A Bavarian Tale | older | $17.99 | 340 77% | 10k | $183k (exactly $183,498) | Active Fungus Studios |
 | Troublemaker 2: Beyond Dream | $24.99 | 142 95% | 4.3k | $106k (exactly $106,457) | Gamecom Team | |
 | Miami Paradise 2 | $14.99 | 131 94% | 3.9k | $59k (exactly $58,911) | Entropy Digital Entertainment | |
 | Emergency Call 112 - The Attack Squad | $14.99 | 86 48% | 2.6k | $39k (exactly $38,674) | Crenetic | |
 | DOOMED Detective Game | $6.99 | 65 46% | 2.0k | $14k (exactly $13,630) | Azikton Studio | |
 | BeatRider | $11.99 | 32 53% | 960 | $12k (exactly $11,510) | 无限电玩, Combo X Camp | |
 | Deadrock Salvation | $9.99 | 38 86% | 1.1k | $11k (exactly $11,389) | Ghost Machine | |
 | Beanrise | $17.99 | 20 75% | 600 | $11k (exactly $10,794) | RGB Entertainment | |
 | Mind Control: Bloody Renaissance | $9.99 | 29 100% | 870 | $8.7k (exactly $8,691) | BYYONI Entertainment | |
 | One Way Mirror: AI | · EA | $14.99 | 7 85% | 210 | $3.1k (exactly $3,148) | Pigi the Wizard and the Feral Yellow Sh… (Pigi the Wizard and the Feral Yellow Sheep) |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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