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Should I ship an Online Co-Op Action RTS?
Online Co-Op + Action RTS
Of 25 developers who shipped an Online 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.. 54 more are announced, ×4.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 8 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $18k, ×12 the market's $1.5k for a 8 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $600; 1 in 20 cleared $11M, ×7379 the market median. Revenue is up 105% on the market; 54 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $599 (exactly $599) |
|---|---|
| Median | $18k (exactly $17,810) |
| Top 25% | $104k (exactly $103,660) |
| Top 5% | $11M (exactly $11,053,714) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 25 |
| Released games | 79 |
| Announced | 54 |
| Effort | 8 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $17.99 |
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 105% on the market, supply 15% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 32%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Online Co-Op
- effort 8 / 10 · low · netcode, lobbies and state sync across machines
- Action RTS
- effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
What it takes
- Effort
- 8 / 10 · online systems, open world
- Systems
- Online Co-Op, Action RTS; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RTS, Co-op, Strategy
- Price point
- $17.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
- Art
- 8 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $17.99.
The top 10 games average 73% positive over 57,855 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $600. 8 in 10 of the 20 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 54 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.5 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Online Co-Op with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Bullet HeavenStrong odds
- + Escape RoomFair
- + TypingFair
- + GamblingFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + Extraction ShooterPoor odds
- + TransportationPoor odds
- + JRPGPoor odds
- + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds
- + World War IIPoor odds
- + City BuilderPoor odds
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
Comparable games
Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition 2021 · $87M 
REMATCH 2025 · $36M 
Age of Mythology: Retold 2024 · $19M 
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Definitive Edition 2025 · $11M 
War Mongrels 2021 · $2.5M | 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) |
| | REMATCH | $29.99 | 39,905 70% | 1.2M | $36M (exactly $35,902,528) | Sloclap | |
| | 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 | |
| | War Mongrels | older | $44.99 | 1,826 72% | 55k | $2.5M (exactly $2,464,552) | Destructive Creations |
 | ERA ONE | · EA | $29.99 | 1,575 86% | 47k | $1.4M (exactly $1,417,028) | Team Complex LTD |
 | 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 | |
 | SpellForce 3 Fallen God | older | $19.99 | 1,335 86% | 40k | $801k (exactly $800,599) | Grimlore Games |
 | Godsworn | · EA older | $29.99 | 805 93% | 24k | $724k (exactly $724,258) | Thunderoak Interactive |
 | 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 | |
 | Chip ‘n Clawz vs. The Brainioids | $29.99 | 90 83% | 2.7k | $81k (exactly $80,973) | Snapshot Games Inc. | |
 | Red Chaos - The Strict Order | · EA | $17.99 | 79 81% | 2.4k | $43k (exactly $42,636) | Squarecut Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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