Games › Chess › Chess + Fantasy
Should I ship a Fantasy Chess game?
Chess + Fantasy
Only 18 developers shipped a Fantasy Chess game 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, Humiliation Dungeon Survivors, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 39 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $600, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $97k, ×205 the market median. Revenue is down 90% on the market; 39 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $239 (exactly $239) |
|---|---|
| Median | $599 (exactly $599) |
| Top 25% | $4.6k (exactly $4,585) |
| Top 5% | $97k (exactly $97,402) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 18 |
| Released games | 50 |
| Announced | 39 |
| 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 down 90% on the market, supply 160% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 30%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
- Systems
- Chess; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Roguelike, Roguelite
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Pixel Graphics, 2D, Anime
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 86% positive over 511 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $240. 6 in 10 of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 13 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Chess with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + SimulationFair
- + Turn-BasedFair
- + PuzzleFair
- + Turn-Based StrategyFair
- + Choices MatterFair
- + StrategyLong shot
- + ArcadeLong shot
- + RoguelikePoor odds
- + RoguelitePoor odds
- + DeckbuildingPoor odds
- + MedievalPoor odds
- + Card GamePoor odds
Comparable games
King of the Bridge 2024 · $150k 
The Ouroboros King 2023 · $141k 
Humiliation Dungeon Survivors 2025 · $97k 
Chessaria: The Tactical Adventure (Chess) 2018 · $59k 
Urja 2015 · $28k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | King of the Bridge | older | $2.99 | 1,667 95% | 50k | $150k (exactly $149,530) | Finn Schuuring |
| | The Ouroboros King | older | $9.99 | 471 80% | 14k | $141k (exactly $141,159) | Oriol Cosp Games |
| | Humiliation Dungeon Survivors | $9.99 | 325 87% | 9.8k | $97k (exactly $97,402) | Naku Kinoko | |
| | Chessaria: The Tactical Adventure (Chess) | older | $19.99 | 99 74% | 3.0k | $59k (exactly $59,370) | Pixel Wizards |
| | Urja | older | $9.99 | 95 53% | 2.9k | $28k (exactly $28,472) | Breaking Fourth |
 | WizardChess | $14.99 | 56 83% | 1.7k | $25k (exactly $25,183) | TwoPM Studios | |
 | Yes, My Queen | $12.99 | 50 82% | 1.5k | $19k (exactly $19,485) | Wall Spaghetti | |
 | Militia | older | $5.99 | 90 94% | 2.7k | $16k (exactly $16,173) | BrainGoodGames |
 | Pawn of the Dead | older | $6.99 | 44 93% | 1.3k | $9.2k (exactly $9,227) | Aslan Game Studio |
 | Who Takes The Crown? | $7.99 | 37 83% | 1.1k | $8.9k (exactly $8,869) | devthedoug | |
 | Chess of Mana | $8.99 | 17 88% | 510 | $4.6k (exactly $4,585) | Monk Monkey | |
 | Chessman Adventures | · EA | $4.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $1.5k (exactly $1,497) | DVK Games |
 | A Game of Chaess | $9.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $1.2k (exactly $1,199) | Yohan Fabre (Gamezel) | |
 | Unto Deepest Depths | $6.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $1.0k (exactly $1,048) | McCollum Games | |
 | CHESST | $9.99 | 2 100% | 60 | $599 (exactly $599) | ANCIENT MOAI COOPERATIVE | |
 | Mind Over Monarchy | $3.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $598 (exactly $598) | Wise Puppy |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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