Do I ship it?

Games › Action RTS › Action RTS + Turn-Based Strategy

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Turn-Based Strategy Action RTS?

Action RTS + Turn-Based Strategy

Only 12 developers shipped a Turn-Based Strategy Action RTS 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, STAR WARS Zero Company™, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 16 more are announced.

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

The middle developer here made $85k, ×56 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.8k; 1 in 20 cleared $29M, ×19543 the market median. Revenue is down 85% on the market; 16 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 56.4 times the market baseline, revenue down 85% on the market, 16 announced, ×1.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Action RTS + Turn-Based Strategy
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 12
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $479 → $67k → $1.8k (still earning) → $913k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Action RTS + Turn-Based Strategy: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 12
Bottom 30% $1.8k (exactly $1,799)
Median $85k (exactly $84,558)
Top 25% $5.8M (exactly $5,822,144)
Top 5% $29M (exactly $29,275,644)
Developers, 2 yr 12
Released games 37
Announced 16
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $19.99

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 85% on the market, supply 200% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, excluded from money figures.

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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
Turn-Based Strategy
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 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, Turn-Based Strategy
Price point
$19.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 82% positive over 44,154 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.8k, median $85k, 1 in 4 over $5.8M, 1 in 20 over $29M.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.8k. 7 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 16 games are announced against 9 developers who shipped in the last year.

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 TacticsPoor odds9 devs · median $85k · 18 announced
  5. + Real-TimePoor odds12 devs · median $31k · 18 announced
  6. + HistoricalPoor odds26 devs · median $29k · 57 announced
  7. + Online Co-OpPoor odds25 devs · median $18k · 54 announced
  8. + SandboxPoor odds30 devs · median $13k · 50 announced
  9. + Procedural GenerationPoor odds22 devs · median $11k · 51 announced
  10. + Grand StrategyPoor odds25 devs · median $7.5k · 41 announced
  11. + 4XPoor odds10 devs · median $7.2k · 23 announced
  12. + CraftingPoor odds19 devs · median $7.2k · 35 announced

All 89 pairs on the Action RTS page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Company of Heroes 3 2023 · $44M STAR WARS Zero Company™ 2026 · $29M Mechabellum 2024 · $8.0M Xenonauts 2 2026 · $5.8M The Battle of Polytopia 2020 · $2.1M
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
STAR WARS Zero Company™ $49.99 19,521 82% 586k $29M (exactly $29,275,644) Bit Reactor
Mechabellum $14.99 17,856 84% 536k $8.0M (exactly $8,029,843) Game River
Xenonauts 2 $39.99 4,853 81% 146k $5.8M (exactly $5,822,144) Goldhawk Interactive
The Battle of Polytopia older $14.99 4,731 94% 142k $2.1M (exactly $2,127,531) Midjiwan AB
Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand $29.99 1,015 49% 30k $913k (exactly $913,196) Relic Entertainment
Warhounds $34.99 735 71% 22k $772k (exactly $771,530) Everplay DMCC
Home Wars older $9.99 1,141 78% 34k $342k (exactly $341,958) Insane Dreamers
Bellfortis $19.99 141 90% 4.2k $85k (exactly $84,558) Rake in Grass
Anno 1602 History Edition older $9.99 278 78% 8.3k $83k (exactly $83,317) Ubisoft Mainz
Misty Land $8.99 24 79% 720 $6.5k (exactly $6,473) Branches Games
LouveSystems' Realms $12.99 5 100% 150 $1.9k (exactly $1,948) LouveSystems
Hired Stars · EA $19.99 3 66% 90 $1.8k (exactly $1,799) Mark Kaps
Silent Howl $3.99 1 100% 30 $120 (exactly $120) Yorbi

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