Do I ship it?

GamesAction RPGAction RPG + Quick-Time Events

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Quick-Time Events Action RPG?

Action RPG + Quick-Time Events

Only 15 developers shipped a Quick-Time Events 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, Stellar Blade™, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 36 more are announced, ×7.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $300 in the last 2 years and $420 over 4, against a market of $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build. 5 developers shipped in the last year and 36 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 90% on the market, 36 announced, ×7.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + Quick-Time Events
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 15
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $31k → $267 → $3.8k → $693 → $748
Outcomes for Action RPG + Quick-Time Events: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 15
Bottom 30% $30 (exactly $30)
Median $300 (exactly $300)
Top 25% $748 (exactly $748)
Top 5% $110M (exactly $110,301,813)
Developers, 2 yr 15
Released games 47
Announced 36
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $3.99

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 down 90% on the market, supply 55% fewer 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
Quick-Time Events
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, Quick-Time Events; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Adventure, Combat
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $59.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Dark, Hand-drawn
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $59.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 93% positive over 61,511 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $300, 1 in 4 over $740, 1 in 20 over $110M.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 8 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 36 games are announced against 5 developers who shipped in the last year, ×7.2 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Stellar Blade™ $59.99 61,289 93% 1.8M $110M (exactly $110,301,813) SHIFT UP Corporation
Return to abyss 重返深渊 older $4.99 949 79% 28k $142k (exactly $142,065) Wingjoy Games
Twelves:Shadow $12.99 154 35% 4.6k $60k (exactly $60,014) JuLu Studio
A.D. 2047 older $19.99 79 62% 2.4k $47k (exactly $47,376) Leenzee Games
Gripper older $19.99 51 84% 1.5k $31k (exactly $30,585) Heart Core
The Shaman's Ark $9.99 47 97% 1.4k $14k (exactly $14,086) Amortiz Games
life is not auto older $3.99 87 94% 2.6k $10k (exactly $10,414) Bold Fish
Toubatsu older $6.99 18 77% 540 $3.8k (exactly $3,775) ぽんこん堂
DuelVox older $4.99 25 80% 750 $3.7k (exactly $3,742) Piece Of Voxel
Echo older $14.99 5 80% 150 $2.2k (exactly $2,248) Nobody Studio
Widget Warriors $4.99 5 0% 150 $748 (exactly $748) Vespertine Game
Cook Saga · EA $7.70 3 66% 90 $693 (exactly $693) Nasus Solution
Blade of Vengeance: Night Raid at Swift Peak Pass $7.99 2 0% 60 $479 (exactly $479) 几几不小心
Unforgivable $2.99 5 60% 150 $449 (exactly $449) Mario Leal
Silent Ward: Forever Lost $9.99 1 0% 30 $300 (exactly $300) 月下辉煌
Mini Dungeons · EA $2.99 3 66% 90 $269 (exactly $269) Matthew Fong, Minjang Jin
执念Obsession $0.99 2 50% 60 $59 (exactly $59) __落熊__

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