Do I ship it?

GamesClass-BasedClass-Based + Co-op

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Co-op Class-Based game?

Class-Based + Co-op

Of 49 developers who shipped a Co-op Class-Based 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.. 158 more are announced, ×5.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $2.4k, ×1.6 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $1.1M, ×795 the market median. Revenue is up 30% on the market; 158 games are announced against 31 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 30% on the market, 158 announced, ×5.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Class-Based + Co-op
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 49
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $29k → $11k → $10k → $449 → $4.9k → $4.2k → $2.4k (still earning) → $2.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Class-Based + Co-op: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 49
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $2.4k (exactly $2,400)
Top 25% $25k (exactly $25,179)
Top 5% $1.2M (exactly $1,190,404)
Developers, 2 yr 49
Released games 161
Announced 158
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $9.99

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 30% on the market, supply 70% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 31%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Class-Based
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Co-op
effort 7 / 10 · low · co-op on Steam means online sessions and drop-in sync

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Class-Based, Co-op; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Online Co-Op, PvE
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 80% positive over 37,323 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $2.4k, 1 in 4 over $25k, 1 in 20 over $1.1M.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 25 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 158 games are announced against 31 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + AutomationFair19 devs · median $6.6k · 22 announced
  2. + Bullet HeavenFair21 devs · median $2.4k · 38 announced
  3. + SupernaturalLong shot18 devs · median $599 · 21 announced
  4. + 2D PlatformerLong shot26 devs · median $539 · 30 announced
  5. + FPSPoor odds22 devs · median $70k · 70 announced
  6. + MMORPGPoor odds7 devs · median $61k · 57 announced
  7. + Base BuildingPoor odds18 devs · median $33k · 44 announced
  8. + WarPoor odds17 devs · median $32k · 59 announced
  9. + Souls-likePoor odds16 devs · median $18k · 29 announced
  10. + MilitaryPoor odds17 devs · median $13k · 42 announced
  11. + Third-Person ShooterPoor odds11 devs · median $13k · 53 announced
  12. + WargamePoor odds14 devs · median $9.4k · 28 announced

All 111 pairs on the Class-Based page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Deep Rock Galactic older $29.99 303,142 97% 9.1M $273M (exactly $272,736,857) Ghost Ship Games
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide older $39.99 108,477 72% 3.3M $130M (exactly $130,139,857) Fatshark
Chivalry: Medieval Warfare older $24.99 44,486 83% 1.3M $33M (exactly $33,351,154) Torn Banner Studios
Starship Troopers: Extermination $29.99 29,724 80% 892k $27M (exactly $26,742,683) Offworld
Killing Floor older $19.99 39,850 95% 1.2M $24M (exactly $23,898,045) Tripwire Interactive
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 older $59.99 9,375 93% 281k $17M (exactly $16,872,188) SANDLOT
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands older $29.99 17,779 70% 533k $16M (exactly $15,995,766) Gearbox Software
Risk of Rain Returns older $14.99 24,795 89% 744k $11M (exactly $11,150,312) Hopoo Games
Rabbit and Steel older $14.99 10,159 96% 305k $4.6M (exactly $4,568,502) mino_dev
Sunderfolk $49.99 1,890 93% 57k $2.8M (exactly $2,834,433) Secret Door
FBC: Firebreak $19.99 1,985 65% 60k $1.2M (exactly $1,190,404) Remedy Entertainment
Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked $29.99 1,235 82% 37k $1.1M (exactly $1,111,130) Resolution Games
Eslabong · EA $14.99 1,077 95% 32k $484k (exactly $484,327) shirowita
Serpent's Gaze · EA $14.99 737 88% 22k $331k (exactly $331,429) Feeble Minds
Expeditions: Samurai · EA $29.99 267 59% 8.0k $240k (exactly $240,220) Campfire Cabal
Din's Champion $19.99 160 85% 4.8k $96k (exactly $95,952) Soldak Entertainment
Hunters Inc $14.99 155 56% 4.7k $70k (exactly $69,704) WYLDERZONE
SHRIMP GAME: OVERKRILL $11.99 93 89% 2.8k $33k (exactly $33,452) GasGod Games, GLUE MAN

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