Do I ship it?

Games › Turn-Based Combat › Turn-Based Combat + Arcade

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Arcade Turn-Based Combat game?

Turn-Based Combat + Arcade

Of 59 developers who shipped an Arcade Turn-Based Combat 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.. 71 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.8 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $300. Revenue is up 1100% on the market; 71 games are announced against 36 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.8 times the market baseline, revenue up 1100% on the market, 71 announced, ×2.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Turn-Based Combat + Arcade
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 59
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $89 → $539 → $420 → $899 → $1.2k → $2.3k → $899 (still earning) → $5.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Turn-Based Combat + Arcade: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 59
Bottom 30% $294 (exactly $294)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,349)
Top 25% $9.6k (exactly $9,590)
Top 5% $1.7M (exactly $1,671,085)
Developers, 2 yr 59
Released games 161
Announced 71
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $6.99

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 1100% on the market, supply 55% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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.

Turn-Based Combat
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Arcade
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Turn-Based Combat, Arcade; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, RPG, Turn-Based Strategy
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $20.00 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Cute, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $20.00 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 30,016 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $9.5k, 1 in 20 over $1.6M.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. Nearly all of the 27 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 71 games are announced against 36 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Turn-Based Combat with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + WuxiaStrong odds20 devs · median $19k · 21 announced
  2. + Hack and SlashStrong odds28 devs · median $3.7k · 27 announced
  3. + RomeFair8 devs · median $16k · 13 announced
  4. + CookingFair15 devs · median $6.0k · 22 announced
  5. + UndergroundFair18 devs · median $4.2k · 29 announced
  6. + IdlerFair52 devs · median $4.0k · 41 announced
  7. + DiceFair49 devs · median $2.2k · 59 announced
  8. + Traditional RoguelikeFair81 devs · median $1.4k · 107 announced
  9. + Tower DefenseFair28 devs · median $839 · 34 announced
  10. + Artificial IntelligenceFair46 devs · median $719 · 52 announced
  11. + SolitaireFair26 devs · median $450 · 31 announced
  12. + RhythmPoor odds10 devs · median $86k · 16 announced

All 175 pairs on the Turn-Based Combat page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

STAR WARS Zero Company™ 2026 · $29M Xenonauts 2 2026 · $5.8M Nexomon: Extinction 2020 · $2.2M Dungeon Clawler 2026 · $1.7M Warhounds 2026 · $772k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
STAR WARS Zero Company™ $49.99 19,521 82% 586k $29M (exactly $29,275,644) Bit Reactor
Xenonauts 2 $39.99 4,853 81% 146k $5.8M (exactly $5,822,144) Goldhawk Interactive
Nexomon: Extinction older $19.99 3,713 90% 111k $2.2M (exactly $2,226,686) VEWO Interactive Inc.
Dungeon Clawler $14.99 3,716 88% 111k $1.7M (exactly $1,671,085) Stray Fawn Studio
Warhounds $34.99 735 71% 22k $772k (exactly $771,530) Everplay DMCC
DUSK '82: ULTIMATE EDITION older $6.99 383 95% 11k $80k (exactly $80,315) David Szymanski
The Bluecoats: North & South older $14.99 176 61% 5.3k $79k (exactly $79,147) Appeal Studios
Roulette Hero $9.99 260 92% 7.8k $78k (exactly $77,922) CLLC Studio
Dungeon Deathball older $11.99 193 95% 5.8k $69k (exactly $69,422) Matt Glanville
Retro Arcade Shop Simulator · EA $9.99 208 88% 6.2k $62k (exactly $62,338) Alt Tab Game
Sculplings $10.99 179 99% 5.4k $59k (exactly $59,016) Conor Garity, Liam Kerrigan
Merge Maestro $3.99 384 93% 12k $46k (exactly $45,965) Stingless
Beast Breaker $14.99 67 95% 2.0k $30k (exactly $30,130) Vodeo Games, Huey Games
Bobo's Big Tower $9.99 93 92% 2.8k $28k (exactly $27,872) SillyKitty

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