Do I ship it?

Games › Action RTS › Action RTS + Choices Matter

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Choices Matter Action RTS?

Action RTS + Choices Matter

Of 21 developers who shipped a Choices Matter Action RTS 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.. 50 more are announced, ×4.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $480, ×0.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $50. 50 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.2 per shipper, while revenue is up 2595% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 2595% on the market, 50 announced, ×4.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RTS + Choices Matter
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 21
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.6M → $14k → $0 → $959 → $4.0k (still earning) → $11k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RTS + Choices Matter: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 21
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $479 (exactly $479)
Top 25% $13k (exactly $12,946)
Top 5% $913k (exactly $913,196)
Developers, 2 yr 21
Released games 44
Announced 50
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $8.99

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 2595% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 14%, 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 RTS
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Choices Matter
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 RTS, Choices Matter; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RTS, Strategy, Management
Price point
$8.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Top-Down
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.

The top 10 games average 65% positive over 3,717 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 $480, 1 in 4 over $12k, 1 in 20 over $910k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 50 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Action RTS with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Auto BattlerFair24 devs · median $3.0k · 28 announced
  2. + FPSLong shot16 devs · median $899 · 21 announced
  3. + PuzzleLong shot16 devs · median $594 · 16 announced
  4. + Turn-Based StrategyPoor odds12 devs · median $85k · 16 announced
  5. + Turn-Based TacticsPoor odds9 devs · median $85k · 18 announced
  6. + Real-TimePoor odds12 devs · median $31k · 18 announced
  7. + HistoricalPoor odds26 devs · median $29k · 57 announced
  8. + Online Co-OpPoor odds25 devs · median $18k · 54 announced
  9. + SandboxPoor odds30 devs · median $13k · 50 announced
  10. + Procedural GenerationPoor odds22 devs · median $11k · 51 announced
  11. + Grand StrategyPoor odds25 devs · median $7.5k · 41 announced
  12. + 4XPoor odds10 devs · median $7.2k · 23 announced

All 89 pairs on the Action RTS page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Company of Heroes 3 2023 · $44M Total Conflict: Resistance 2023 · EA · $4.6M Gord 2023 · $1.2M EverSiege: Untold Ages 2026 · $1.1M Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand 2026 · $913k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Company of Heroes 3 older $59.99 24,516 59% 735k $44M (exactly $44,121,445) Relic Entertainment
Total Conflict: Resistance · EA older $29.99 5,089 74% 153k $4.6M (exactly $4,578,573) Thunder Devs.
Gord older $49.99 809 53% 24k $1.2M (exactly $1,213,257) Covenant.dev
EverSiege: Untold Ages $19.99 1,906 68% 57k $1.1M (exactly $1,143,028) Tindalos Interactive
Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand $29.99 1,015 49% 30k $913k (exactly $913,196) Relic Entertainment
Here Comes The Swarm · EA $19.99 358 84% 11k $215k (exactly $214,693) CableHook Games
Iron Marines Invasion older $14.99 334 66% 10k $150k (exactly $150,200) Ironhide Game Studio
Victory at Sea Atlantic - World War II Naval Warfare $39.99 92 60% 2.8k $110k (exactly $110,372) Evil Twin Artworks
Welcome Back, Commander $14.99 230 80% 6.9k $103k (exactly $103,431) S.C. 16 BIT NIGHTS S.R.L.
Control Craft 3 older $4.99 235 73% 7.1k $35k (exactly $35,180) Cristian Manolachi, Atomic Fabrik
Car Factory Empire · EA $8.99 48 56% 1.4k $13k (exactly $12,946) RDS Games
Fleetbreakers · EA $14.99 25 96% 750 $11k (exactly $11,242) Last Keep
Marshals of Yore $4.99 30 90% 900 $4.5k (exactly $4,491) One Man Horde
BATTLERCORE: TEAM BLAZER $14.99 9 66% 270 $4.0k (exactly $4,047) SCARLET-G
Capitalist Misadventures $7.99 4 75% 120 $959 (exactly $959) Caramelo Studios

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