Do I ship it?

Games › MOBA › MOBA + Combat

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Combat MOBA?

MOBA + Combat

Of 28 developers who shipped a paid Combat MOBA 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.. 5 in 10 of the games here are free to play and sit outside these figures. 110 more are announced, ×9.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 9 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $360 in the last 2 years and $450 over 4, against a market of $1.3k for a 9 / 10 build. 12 developers shipped in the last year and 110 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 170% on the market, 110 announced, ×9.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
MOBA + Combat
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 28
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $269 → $1.8k → $300 → $299 → $899 → $449 (still earning) → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for MOBA + Combat: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 28
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $359 (exactly $359)
Top 25% $2.7k (exactly $2,695)
Top 5% $100k (exactly $99,697)
Developers, 2 yr 28
Released games 107
Announced 110
Effort 9 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $5.99

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 170% on the market, supply 25% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 51%, 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.

MOBA
effort 9 / 10 · low · competitive netcode plus a balanced hero roster
Combat
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
9 / 10 · studio only
Systems
MOBA, Combat; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, PvP, RPG
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $18.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Top-Down, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $18.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 16,102 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $360, 1 in 4 over $2.6k, 1 in 20 over $99k.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 8 in 10 of the 26 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 110 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×9.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

MOBA with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RoguelitePoor odds10 devs · median $3.9k · 15 announced
  2. + AdventurePoor odds12 devs · median $3.1k · 44 announced
  3. + Tower DefensePoor odds7 devs · median $3.1k · 15 announced
  4. + FantasyPoor odds18 devs · median $2.7k · 85 announced
  5. + Character CustomizationPoor odds10 devs · median $1.8k · 40 announced
  6. + Online Co-OpPoor odds19 devs · median $600 · 57 announced
  7. + Co-opPoor odds21 devs · median $479 · 53 announced
  8. + ActionPoor odds53 devs · median $359 · 170 announced
  9. + SimulationPoor odds12 devs · median $359 · 33 announced
  10. + RPGPoor odds23 devs · median $180 · 73 announced
  11. + Hero ShooterDead5 devs · median $49k · 24 announced
  12. + SurvivalDead6 devs · median $31k · 22 announced

All 50 pairs on the MOBA page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Shape of Dreams 2025 · $12M Gigantic: Rampage Edition 2024 · $2.3M Pennon and Battle 2025 · $100k War of Wizards 2022 · $84k FMTC 2025 · $16k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Shape of Dreams $24.99 15,769 89% 473k $12M (exactly $11,822,019) Lizard Smoothie
Gigantic: Rampage Edition older $19.99 3,795 65% 114k $2.3M (exactly $2,275,862) Abstraction Games
Pennon and Battle $18.99 175 69% 5.3k $100k (exactly $99,697) PB Studio
War of Wizards older $19.99 140 70% 4.2k $84k (exactly $83,958) Arcane Miracle Entertainment
FMTC $7.00 75 78% 2.3k $16k (exactly $15,750) FMTC
SKYRAID · EA older $19.99 10 100% 300 $6.0k (exactly $5,997) Zaidos Games
Goo Goo Grapplers $7.99 20 100% 600 $4.8k (exactly $4,794) Both Good
Enemy Inside · EA $12.99 10 100% 300 $3.9k (exactly $3,897) Six Ways Games
WizardPunk older $9.99 11 90% 330 $3.3k (exactly $3,297) City Wizard Games
Sphere Shootout $4.99 20 100% 600 $3.0k (exactly $2,994) Sphere49
女神試煉 Quest of Goddess $4.99 18 94% 540 $2.7k (exactly $2,695) DNAXCAT CO., LTD.
Harpoon Arena $5.99 10 90% 300 $1.8k (exactly $1,797) FairGoose
Train Trek · EA $14.99 2 100% 60 $899 (exactly $899) Aixceptional
ShadowStrikeVR · EA $9.99 3 0% 90 $899 (exactly $899) Charming Game Studio

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