Do I ship it?

Games › CRPG › CRPG + Word Game

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Word Game CRPG?

CRPG + Word Game

Of 35 developers who shipped a Word Game CRPG 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.. 50 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $300, ×0.2 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $90. 50 games are announced against 23 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper, while revenue is up 20% on the market.

Deciding numbers: median 0.2 times the market baseline, revenue up 20% on the market, 50 announced, ×2.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
CRPG + Word Game
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 35
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.8k → $1.1k → $3.6k → $600 → $59 → $525 → $4.7k (still earning) → $150 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for CRPG + Word Game: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 35
Bottom 30% $90 (exactly $90)
Median $298 (exactly $298)
Top 25% $5.2k (exactly $5,240)
Top 5% $151k (exactly $150,774)
Developers, 2 yr 35
Released games 90
Announced 50
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $3.99

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 20% on the market, supply 90% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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
Word Game
effort 1 / 10 · high · dictionary logic and simple UI

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
CRPG, Word Game; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Visual Novel, Interactive Fiction
Price point
$3.99 typical · top 25% priced $12.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Story Rich, Emotional
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $12.99 or above; the middle game at $3.99.

The top 10 games average 89% positive over 7,269 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $90, median $300, 1 in 4 over $5.2k, 1 in 20 over $150k.

3 in 10 developers made under $90. All of the 16 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 50 games are announced against 23 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 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

Mandate Of Heaven 2025 · $2.4M Immortal Family 2024 · $509k Only You 2026 · $151k CaseCracker3 2026 · $140k 每日亲亲洛丽塔 2026 · $101k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Mandate Of Heaven $14.99 5,446 91% 163k $2.4M (exactly $2,449,066) 木焱工作室
Immortal Family older $13.99 1,213 54% 36k $509k (exactly $509,096) 一起来修仙工作室
Only You $6.99 719 94% 22k $151k (exactly $150,774) 忘雪社
CaseCracker3 $12.99 359 84% 11k $140k (exactly $139,902) BlackRobe
每日亲亲洛丽塔 $8.99 375 74% 11k $101k (exactly $101,138) 夜羊社
孟德大小姐与自爆少年THREE KINGDOM FANTASY older $7.99 307 66% 9.2k $74k (exactly $73,588) 蓝铂工作室
筮灵 SHILING older $7.99 227 71% 6.8k $54k (exactly $54,412) WindField Games
东北往事 $8.99 137 81% 4.1k $37k (exactly $36,949) 二狗科技
4.1.60Co older $4.99 162 85% 4.9k $24k (exactly $24,251) DEADDEVICE
古代人生 Ancient Life older $4.99 158 48% 4.7k $24k (exactly $23,653) Wingjoy Games
Whisper of Y'Ryando $7.99 89 70% 2.7k $21k (exactly $21,333) IndieCain, YuetXD
幻觉病理 $5.99 36 75% 1.1k $6.5k (exactly $6,469) 水仙肉桂
鸿运修仙传 $5.99 34 76% 1.0k $6.1k (exactly $6,110) 玉米工作室
Fulfill Wishes and Save You $4.99 35 74% 1.1k $5.2k (exactly $5,240) HALO CAT
黄油罐头 The Butter Can $3.99 39 74% 1.2k $4.7k (exactly $4,668) 烂荔枝

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