Do I ship it?

GamesAction RPGAction RPG + Time Management

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Time Management Action RPG?

Action RPG + Time Management

Of 20 developers who shipped a Time Management 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.. 43 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $690, ×0.5 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300. 43 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper, while revenue is down 75% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.5 times the market baseline, revenue down 75% on the market, 43 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RPG + Time Management
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 20
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $22k → $802 → $5.8k → $3.0k → $419 (still earning) → $4.8k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RPG + Time Management: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 20
Bottom 30% $300 (exactly $300)
Median $693 (exactly $693)
Top 25% $10k (exactly $10,190)
Top 5% $53M (exactly $52,962,833)
Developers, 2 yr 20
Released games 50
Announced 43
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $9.99

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 75% on the market, supply 300% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 16%, 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
Time Management
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high 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, Time Management; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Adventure, Action
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $69.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Atmospheric, Realistic
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $69.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 42,204 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $690, 1 in 4 over $10k, 1 in 20 over $52M.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 43 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 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
Metaphor: ReFantazio $69.99 25,224 89% 757k $53M (exactly $52,962,833) ATLUS
The Blood of Dawnwalker $69.99 15,789 86% 474k $33M (exactly $33,152,163) Rebel Wolves
道衍诀 · EA older $11.99 988 49% 30k $355k (exactly $355,384) 宁德动游网络科技有限公司
Eventide Matter $5.99 927 95% 28k $167k (exactly $166,582) Ottropi Games
Tavern Legends $24.99 160 91% 4.8k $120k (exactly $119,952) CROWFORGE Games
Innchanted older $19.99 117 84% 3.5k $70k (exactly $70,165) DragonBear Studios
TryAndLove older $6.99 208 48% 6.2k $44k (exactly $43,618) MYSTERY CROWN
Sapper - Defuse The Bomb Simulator older $9.99 73 34% 2.2k $22k (exactly $21,878) Live Motion Games
Witch and Hero(魔女と勇者) older $4.99 103 82% 3.1k $15k (exactly $15,419) FK Digital, Flyhigh Works
The Emerald Tablet older $19.99 21 57% 630 $13k (exactly $12,594) {uni}
Giant’s Heart $9.99 34 91% 1.0k $10k (exactly $10,190) sqqqwer
Clockfall · EA $9.99 18 94% 540 $5.4k (exactly $5,395) Rever Games GmbH
Prison Life Sim 2026 - Survival · EA $9.99 16 0% 480 $4.8k (exactly $4,795) Great Escape Games Publishing
Grim Pastures · EA $3.99 25 96% 750 $3.0k (exactly $2,992) 7hgamestudio
Cooking Cat-astrophe $3.99 8 87% 240 $958 (exactly $958) MIYU artlab
Cook Saga · EA $7.70 3 66% 90 $693 (exactly $693) Nasus Solution

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