Do I ship it?

Games › Class-Based › Class-Based + Sci-fi

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Sci-fi Class-Based game?

Class-Based + Sci-fi

Of 49 developers who shipped a Sci-fi 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.. 145 more are announced, ×5.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $900, ×0.6 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180. 145 games are announced against 29 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.0 per shipper, while revenue is down 10% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.6 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 145 announced, ×5.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Class-Based + Sci-fi
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: $4.5k → $9.0k → $899 → $719 → $6.9k → $360 → $839 (still earning) → $1.7k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Class-Based + Sci-fi: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 49
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $897 (exactly $897)
Top 25% $7.2k (exactly $7,191)
Top 5% $2.7M (exactly $2,684,890)
Developers, 2 yr 49
Released games 144
Announced 145
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 10% on the market, supply 45% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 22%, 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
Sci-fi
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 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
Class-Based; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelike, Roguelite
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 81% positive over 83,625 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $900, 1 in 4 over $7.1k, 1 in 20 over $2.6M.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 8 in 10 of the 25 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 145 games are announced against 29 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Class-Based with a different setting or mood, 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

Deep Rock Galactic 2020 · $273M Marathon 2026 · $54M Starship Troopers: Extermination 2024 · $27M EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 2019 · $17M Risk of Rain Returns 2023 · $11M
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
Marathon $39.99 44,919 81% 1.3M $54M (exactly $53,889,324) Bungie
Starship Troopers: Extermination $29.99 29,724 80% 892k $27M (exactly $26,742,683) Offworld
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 older $59.99 9,375 93% 281k $17M (exactly $16,872,188) SANDLOT
Risk of Rain Returns older $14.99 24,795 89% 744k $11M (exactly $11,150,312) Hopoo Games
GNOSIA older $24.99 4,855 93% 146k $3.6M (exactly $3,639,794) Petit Depotto
Tower Dominion $17.49 5,117 85% 154k $2.7M (exactly $2,684,890) Parallel 45 Games
PULSAR: Lost Colony older $19.99 4,409 89% 132k $2.6M (exactly $2,644,077) Leafy Games
Satellite Reign older $29.99 2,619 75% 79k $2.4M (exactly $2,356,314) 5 Lives Studios
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: IRON RAIN older $59.99 1,256 58% 38k $2.3M (exactly $2,260,423) YUKE'S
FBC: Firebreak $19.99 1,985 65% 60k $1.2M (exactly $1,190,404) Remedy Entertainment
Down with the Ship · EA $14.99 817 93% 25k $367k (exactly $367,405) Iron Anchor Games
Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks $19.99 493 85% 15k $296k (exactly $295,652) Caged Element
Kingdom of Night $19.99 326 86% 9.8k $196k (exactly $195,502) Friends of Safety
Relic Abyss · EA $8.99 94 80% 2.8k $25k (exactly $25,352) Reverse Loop
Deadlock Station $9.99 55 80% 1.7k $16k (exactly $16,484) Luxorix Games
Hacky $4.99 95 93% 2.9k $14k (exactly $14,222) Cuddle Code

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