Do I ship it?

Games › Hack and Slash › Hack and Slash + Aliens

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Alien Hack and Slash game?

Hack and Slash + Aliens

Of 28 developers who shipped an Alien Hack and Slash game 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.. 60 more are announced, ×4.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $600, level with the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $50; 1 in 20 cleared $130k, ×208 the market median. Revenue is up 295% on the market; 60 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 295% on the market, 60 announced, ×4.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hack and Slash + Aliens
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 28
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.0k → $119 → $239 → $359 → $1.8k → $30 (still earning) → $600 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hack and Slash + Aliens: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 28
Bottom 30% $30 (exactly $30)
Median $600 (exactly $600)
Top 25% $4.3k (exactly $4,315)
Top 5% $131k (exactly $130,735)
Developers, 2 yr 28
Released games 82
Announced 60
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $5.99

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 295% on the market, supply 15% fewer 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Hack and Slash
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Aliens
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Hack and Slash; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Action Roguelike, Roguelite
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $16.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $16.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 1,770 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 $600, 1 in 4 over $4.3k, 1 in 20 over $130k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 9 in 10 of the 20 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 60 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Hack and Slash with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Turn-BasedStrong odds8 devs · median $14k · 1 announced
  2. + Turn-Based CombatStrong odds28 devs · median $3.7k · 27 announced
  3. + VampiresFair32 devs · median $7.2k · 37 announced
  4. + ModernFair13 devs · median $7.2k · 20 announced
  5. + IdlerFair32 devs · median $6.4k · 50 announced
  6. + IncrementalFair40 devs · median $1.7k · 57 announced
  7. + RomancePoor odds11 devs · median $119k · 25 announced
  8. + Visual NovelPoor odds11 devs · median $85k · 22 announced
  9. + Character Action GamePoor odds27 devs · median $58k · 80 announced
  10. + DestructionPoor odds19 devs · median $43k · 57 announced
  11. + LGBTQ+Poor odds17 devs · median $33k · 20 announced
  12. + AutomationPoor odds12 devs · median $21k · 26 announced

All 175 pairs on the Hack and Slash page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 2019 · $17M Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Prophecy 2019 · $2.2M No More Heroes 3 2022 · $1.0M Star Fire: Eternal Cycle 2025 · $516k Genokids 2025 · EA · $131k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 older $59.99 9,375 93% 281k $17M (exactly $16,872,188) SANDLOT
Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Prophecy older $24.99 2,884 79% 87k $2.2M (exactly $2,162,135) NeocoreGames
No More Heroes 3 older $39.99 835 79% 25k $1.0M (exactly $1,001,750) GRASSHOPPER MANUFACTURE INC.
Star Fire: Eternal Cycle $16.99 1,012 91% 30k $516k (exactly $515,816) Ethereal Fish Studio
Genokids · EA $19.99 218 98% 6.5k $131k (exactly $130,735) Nukefist
Mist Slayer older $7.99 305 64% 9.2k $73k (exactly $73,108) Moju Games
9th Sentinel Sisters $7.99 273 69% 8.2k $65k (exactly $65,438) Live Wire
SONOKUNI $14.99 109 98% 3.3k $49k (exactly $49,017) DON YASA CREW
Blackwind older $24.99 46 52% 1.4k $34k (exactly $34,486) Drakkar Dev
METAL SUITS: Counter-attack $9.99 71 77% 2.1k $21k (exactly $21,279) Gonggamore Contents
Stellar Destiny: The Last Survivor · EA $9.99 24 91% 720 $7.2k (exactly $7,193) Amazing Vibes
Guardians Of Restoration $8.99 16 87% 480 $4.3k (exactly $4,315) Creative Gorae
Across the Abyss: Voidborn $2.99 25 72% 750 $2.2k (exactly $2,242) Pixel Hound Game Studio
Ant Guardians · EA $3.99 18 83% 540 $2.2k (exactly $2,155) NotThisTime
HANGRY™ · EA $14.99 4 25% 120 $1.8k (exactly $1,799) Game Pill

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