Games › Deckbuilding › Deckbuilding + Robots
Should I ship a Robot Deckbuilding?
Deckbuilding + Robots
Only 19 developers shipped a Robot Deckbuilding 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, Mineral Defense, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 36 more are announced, ×3.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.7k, ×2.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $120; 1 in 20 cleared $98k, ×158 the market median. Revenue is flat on the market; 36 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $120 (exactly $120) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.7k (exactly $1,679) |
| Top 25% | $22k (exactly $22,178) |
| Top 5% | $99k (exactly $98,934) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 19 |
| Released games | 41 |
| Announced | 36 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $8.99 |
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 70% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 22%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Deckbuilding
- effort 3 / 10 · high · card pools and run logic
- Robots
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Deckbuilding; all of the top 25% also carry Card Game, Roguelike, Roguelite
- Price point
- $8.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $8.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 838 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $120. 9 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 36 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.0 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Deckbuilding with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + AutomationFair
- + Inventory ManagementFair
- + ArcadeFair
- + 2D FighterFair
- + Party GameFair
- + SwordplayFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
- + LogicFair
- + LovecraftianPoor odds
- + Dating SimPoor odds
- + Visual NovelPoor odds
Comparable games
SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech 2019 · $1.5M 
Colony City 27λ 2024 · $131k 
Ironclad Tactics 2013 · $107k 
Mineral Defense 2024 · $99k 
Theseus Protocol 2023 · $95k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech | older | $24.99 | 1,953 87% | 59k | $1.5M (exactly $1,464,164) | Image & Form Games |
| | Colony City 27λ | older | $10.99 | 398 87% | 12k | $131k (exactly $131,221) | Bunny Eats Tiger |
| | Ironclad Tactics | older | $14.99 | 237 75% | 7.1k | $107k (exactly $106,579) | Zachtronics |
| | Mineral Defense | $14.99 | 220 90% | 6.6k | $99k (exactly $98,934) | Corestone Games | |
| | Theseus Protocol | older | $9.99 | 317 65% | 9.5k | $95k (exactly $95,005) | YueTang(Xiamen) |
 | Roulette Hero | $9.99 | 260 92% | 7.8k | $78k (exactly $77,922) | CLLC Studio | |
 | ACE Strategy: Mecha Nova | $14.99 | 115 78% | 3.5k | $52k (exactly $51,716) | EMINA STUDIO | |
 | ARC SEED | $14.99 | 89 74% | 2.7k | $40k (exactly $40,023) | Massive Galaxy Studios | |
 | The Last Craftsman | $9.99 | 74 94% | 2.2k | $22k (exactly $22,178) | AuraTummyache | |
 | Ctrl Alt Deal | $19.99 | 28 85% | 840 | $17k (exactly $16,792) | Only By Midnight Ltd. | |
 | Bot Loop | $8.99 | 11 81% | 330 | $3.0k (exactly $2,967) | ciego | |
 | Burnstation | $11.99 | 8 100% | 240 | $2.9k (exactly $2,878) | Klafti Studio | |
 | Maid Mech | $2.99 | 29 96% | 870 | $2.6k (exactly $2,601) | Dark Arrow Studio | |
 | MegaBattle | $13.99 | 4 100% | 120 | $1.7k (exactly $1,679) | MadCat Corp, Cavylabs |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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