Do I ship it?

GamesCRPGCRPG + RTS

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a CRPG RTS?

CRPG + RTS

Only 10 developers shipped a CRPG RTS 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, Age of Reforging: The Freelands, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 18 more are announced, ×4.5 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 7 / 10 build.

Only 4 developers shipped this in the last year, under the 5 a verdict needs; over 2 years the middle one made $20k against a market of $1.5k. 18 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 13.2 times the market baseline, revenue down 30% on the market, 18 announced, ×4.5 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
CRPG + RTS
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 10
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $0 → $11k → $11k → $51k
Outcomes for CRPG + RTS: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 10
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $20k (exactly $19,780)
Top 25% $52k (exactly $52,220)
Top 5% $2.1M (exactly $2,061,213)
Developers, 2 yr 10
Released games 37
Announced 18
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 down 30% on the market, supply 35% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 11%, 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.

CRPG
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
RTS
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
CRPG, RTS
Price point
$9.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 6 games average 73% positive over 2,818 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $20k, 1 in 4 over $52k, 1 in 20 over $2.0M.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 5 in 10 of the 6 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 18 games are announced against 4 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.5 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Martial ArtsFair13 devs · median $26k · 14 announced
  2. + Female ProtagonistFair84 devs · median $2.4k · 95 announced
  3. + TabletopFair22 devs · median $1.9k · 26 announced
  4. + Traditional RoguelikeFair12 devs · median $1.9k · 13 announced
  5. + 2D PlatformerFair62 devs · median $1.2k · 76 announced
  6. + IncrementalLong shot32 devs · median $449 · 27 announced
  7. + FMVPoor odds16 devs · median $58k · 14 announced
  8. + Card BattlerPoor odds15 devs · median $25k · 28 announced
  9. + Grid-Based MovementPoor odds26 devs · median $23k · 46 announced
  10. + SpacePoor odds11 devs · median $22k · 23 announced
  11. + Online Co-OpPoor odds13 devs · median $22k · 23 announced
  12. + Souls-likePoor odds12 devs · median $20k · 24 announced

All 123 pairs on the CRPG page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
SpellForce 3 Reforced older $39.99 5,784 76% 174k $6.9M (exactly $6,939,065) Grimlore Games
Age of Reforging: The Freelands $29.99 2,291 71% 69k $2.1M (exactly $2,061,213) PersonaeGame Studio
Han Xiongnu Wars older $6.99 2,200 67% 66k $461k (exactly $461,340) Shangshi Studio
Bahamut2-dragon's bride older $9.99 584 97% 18k $175k (exactly $175,025) 王韋
REAL ESTATE Simulator - FROM BUM TO MILLIONAIRE older $12.99 175 44% 5.3k $68k (exactly $68,198) Geekon
PuPu's Adventure Park $14.99 130 64% 3.9k $58k (exactly $58,461) 西梅树工作室
XiuzhenWorld2 $12.99 134 67% 4.0k $52k (exactly $52,220) Noforgetit
巴哈姆特1-REMAKE(BAHAMUT1-REMAKE) $9.99 170 95% 5.1k $51k (exactly $50,949) 王韋
Cossacks: Art of War older $4.99 330 83% 9.9k $49k (exactly $49,401) GSC Game World
Adventure Academia: The Fractured Continent older $39.99 34 26% 1.0k $41k (exactly $40,790) ACQUIRE Corp.
Sea Walker Saga · EA $9.99 66 93% 2.0k $20k (exactly $19,780) Antelus Games
Warlordocracy $4.99 27 96% 810 $4.0k (exactly $4,042) Brian J. Lancaster, Laughing Coyote Sof… (Brian J. Lancaster, Laughing Coyote Software)
电脑进化史 $4.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) 大幻想家
Dimensional illusion $4.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) pullluo
破法神谕 $2.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) ShenRui
Amitabha Buddha $9.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) 阿弥陀佛

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