Do I ship it?

GamesClass-BasedClass-Based + Third-Person Shooter

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Class-Based Third-Person Shooter?

Class-Based + Third-Person Shooter

Only 11 developers shipped a Class-Based Third-Person Shooter 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, Heroes of Valor, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 53 more are announced, ×8.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $13k, ×9.0 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $780; 1 in 20 cleared $590k, ×397 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 53 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 9.0 times the market baseline, revenue flat on the market, 53 announced, ×8.8 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Class-Based + Third-Person Shooter
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 11
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $659 → $2.8k → $2.1k → $296k → $33k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Class-Based + Third-Person Shooter: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 11
Bottom 30% $779 (exactly $779)
Median $13k (exactly $13,486)
Top 25% $132k (exactly $131,568)
Top 5% $595k (exactly $595,403)
Developers, 2 yr 11
Released games 47
Announced 53
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 flat on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 30%, 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
Third-Person Shooter
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low 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, Third-Person Shooter
Price point
$9.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 2,493 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $780, median $13k, 1 in 4 over $130k, 1 in 20 over $590k.

3 in 10 developers made under $780. 7 in 10 of the 9 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 53 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×8.8 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. + WargamePoor odds14 devs · median $9.4k · 28 announced
  12. + ManagementPoor odds26 devs · median $8.1k · 64 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
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 older $59.99 9,375 93% 281k $17M (exactly $16,872,188) SANDLOT
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: IRON RAIN older $59.99 1,256 58% 38k $2.3M (exactly $2,260,423) YUKE'S
Heroes of Valor · EA $14.99 1,324 90% 40k $595k (exactly $595,403) Fancy Cat Interactive
Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks $19.99 493 85% 15k $296k (exactly $295,652) Caged Element
Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West older $9.99 907 70% 27k $272k (exactly $271,828) Fatshark
Apewar · EA older $0.99 6,890 92% 207k $205k (exactly $204,633) Radatomic Studios
Birds of War $9.99 439 87% 13k $132k (exactly $131,568) HexNest Games
SHRIMP GAME: OVERKRILL $11.99 93 89% 2.8k $33k (exactly $33,452) GasGod Games, GLUE MAN
Ultra Mega Cats · EA $11.99 70 74% 2.1k $25k (exactly $25,179) Fallen Leaf, Unseen Silence, Black Drak… (Fallen Leaf, Unseen Silence, Black Drakkar Games)
SPECTRE · EA older $9.99 76 55% 2.3k $23k (exactly $22,777) Symbiosis Games
Shadows of Soldiers $9.99 45 75% 1.4k $13k (exactly $13,486) Ghost in the Wire
North Hunt $6.50 24 75% 720 $4.7k (exactly $4,680) NewGen
Horde Together · EA $12.99 2 100% 60 $779 (exactly $779) Fluffers Interactive
Ashbound Expanse $9.99 1 100% 30 $300 (exactly $300) AxionDriftGame
Wildlife Warfare · EA $3.99 2 100% 60 $239 (exactly $239) Jerome Craig

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