Do I ship it?

GamesAction RTSAction RTS + Co-op

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Co-op Action RTS?

Action RTS + Co-op

Of 39 developers who shipped a Co-op 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.. 56 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 $4.5k, ×3.0 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $480; 1 in 20 cleared $9.2M, ×6168 the market median. Revenue is up 1210% on the market; 56 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 1210% on the market, 56 announced, ×3.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RTS + Co-op
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 39
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.6M → $483k → $82k → $748 → $20k → $43k → $2.4k (still earning) → $14k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RTS + Co-op: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 39
Bottom 30% $479 (exactly $479)
Median $4.5k (exactly $4,497)
Top 25% $81k (exactly $80,973)
Top 5% $9.2M (exactly $9,239,303)
Developers, 2 yr 39
Released games 96
Announced 56
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $11.99

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 1210% on the market, supply 25% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 22%, 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
Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Action RTS, Co-op; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RTS, Strategy, Action
Price point
$11.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Top-Down
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $11.99.

The top 10 games average 84% positive over 57,008 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $480, median $4.5k, 1 in 4 over $80k, 1 in 20 over $9.2M.

3 in 10 developers made under $480. 8 in 10 of the 30 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 56 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition older $39.99 72,275 85% 2.2M $87M (exactly $86,708,318) World's Edge, Relic Entertainment, Forg… (World's Edge, Relic Entertainment, Forgotten Empires, Climax Studios)
Company of Heroes 3 older $59.99 24,516 59% 735k $44M (exactly $44,121,445) Relic Entertainment
Age of Mythology: Retold older $29.99 20,943 90% 628k $19M (exactly $18,842,417) World's Edge, Forgotten Empires, Tantal… (World's Edge, Forgotten Empires, Tantalus Media, CaptureAge, Virtuos Games)
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Definitive Edition $29.99 12,286 85% 369k $11M (exactly $11,053,714) Relic Entertainment
Door Kickers 2: Task Force North $24.99 12,324 96% 370k $9.2M (exactly $9,239,303) KillHouse Games
Mechabellum $14.99 17,856 84% 536k $8.0M (exactly $8,029,843) Game River
Age of Darkness: Final Stand $27.99 9,486 74% 285k $8.0M (exactly $7,965,394) PlaySide
Cossacks 3 older $19.99 12,406 82% 372k $7.4M (exactly $7,439,878) GSC Game World
Total Conflict: Resistance · EA older $29.99 5,089 74% 153k $4.6M (exactly $4,578,573) Thunder Devs.
War Mongrels older $44.99 1,826 72% 55k $2.5M (exactly $2,464,552) Destructive Creations
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
The Scouring · EA $24.99 1,136 88% 34k $852k (exactly $851,659) Orc Group
TDS - Tower Defense Strategy $17.99 315 81% 9.5k $170k (exactly $170,005) Blockage
7 Days Blood Moons · EA $9.99 418 40% 13k $125k (exactly $125,275) iLLOGIKA
Circle Empires 2 $12.99 266 72% 8.0k $104k (exactly $103,660) Luminous

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