Games › Grand Strategy › Grand Strategy + Crafting
Should I ship a Crafting Grand Strategy?
Grand Strategy + Crafting
Only 15 developers shipped a Crafting Grand Strategy 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, Knights of the Crusades, 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, ×6.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $450, ×0.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180. 39 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×6.5 per shipper, while revenue is down 15% on the market.
| Bottom 30% | $179 (exactly $179) |
|---|---|
| Median | $449 (exactly $449) |
| Top 25% | $4.5k (exactly $4,499) |
| Top 5% | $100k (exactly $99,550) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 15 |
| Released games | 53 |
| Announced | 39 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| 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 15% on the market, supply 35% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 21%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Grand Strategy
- effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
- Crafting
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- Grand Strategy, Crafting; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Strategy, Base Building
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $49.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $49.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 76% positive over 644 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 39 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×6.5 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Grand Strategy with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RoguelikeFair
- + SportsFair
- + RogueliteFair
- + CrimeFair
- + RacingFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceLong shot
- + TabletopLong shot
- + Turn-BasedPoor odds
- + SandboxPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
Comparable games
SpellForce: Conquest of Eo 2023 · $1.9M 
Fantasy Map Simulator 2024 · EA · $1.0M 
Medieval Kingdom Wars 2019 · $1.0M 
Floodland 2022 · $552k 
Goblins of Elderstone 2023 · $183k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | SpellForce: Conquest of Eo | older | $29.99 | 2,149 80% | 64k | $1.9M (exactly $1,933,455) | Owned by Gravity |
| | Fantasy Map Simulator | · EA older | $7.99 | 4,190 89% | 126k | $1.0M (exactly $1,004,343) | The Stranger |
| | Medieval Kingdom Wars | older | $14.99 | 2,233 76% | 67k | $1.0M (exactly $1,004,180) | Reverie World Studios |
| | Floodland | older | $19.99 | 921 54% | 28k | $552k (exactly $552,324) | Vile Monarch |
| | Goblins of Elderstone | older | $19.99 | 305 69% | 9.2k | $183k (exactly $182,908) | Outerdawn, Lost Goblin |
 | Raiders! Forsaken Earth | older | $19.99 | 268 80% | 8.0k | $161k (exactly $160,720) | Creative Storm Entertainment |
 | Deadwater Saloon | older | $19.99 | 186 63% | 5.6k | $112k (exactly $111,544) | Tanglefoot Games |
 | Knights of the Crusades | $19.99 | 166 69% | 5.0k | $100k (exactly $99,550) | Reverie World Studios | |
 | An Ankou | · EA older | $4.99 | 604 67% | 18k | $90k (exactly $90,419) | Alkemi |
 | Idle Deepcore | $6.99 | 365 85% | 11k | $77k (exactly $76,540) | Bluehood Games | |
 | Post-Apo Builder | $9.99 | 54 37% | 1.6k | $16k (exactly $16,184) | Septarian Games | |
 | Pharma R&D Manager | $49.99 | 3 66% | 90 | $4.5k (exactly $4,499) | Innopede GmbH | |
 | Artillery Tycoon | · EA | $7.99 | 18 94% | 540 | $4.3k (exactly $4,315) | Awful Waffle Studio |
 | Medievaly: Battle Simulator | $8.99 | 13 76% | 390 | $3.5k (exactly $3,506) | Steelkrill Studio | |
 | Government Contractors: Arms of Influence | · EA | $6.00 | 5 20% | 150 | $900 (exactly $900) | Dan K. |
 | Crazy Shipping | $4.99 | 3 100% | 90 | $449 (exactly $449) | ADB Games | |
 | Ludus Manager | $4.99 | 3 33% | 90 | $449 (exactly $449) | WARSONG ENTERTAINMENT | |
 | Hearth & Shadow | $0.99 | 14 100% | 420 | $416 (exactly $416) | Ilya873 |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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