Do I ship it?

GamesManagementManagement + Dragons

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Dragon Management game?

Management + Dragons

Only 17 developers shipped a Dragon Management game 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, Mind Over Magic, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 40 more are announced, ×3.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.7k, ×4.3 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.4k; 1 in 20 cleared $3.2M, ×5150 the market median. Revenue is up 230% on the market; 40 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 4.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 230% on the market, 40 announced, ×3.6 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Management + Dragons
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 17
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $5.9k → $59 → $9.3k → $2.5k → $4.1k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Management + Dragons: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 17
Bottom 30% $1.3k (exactly $1,349)
Median $2.7k (exactly $2,697)
Top 25% $79k (exactly $79,292)
Top 5% $3.2M (exactly $3,234,206)
Developers, 2 yr 17
Released games 43
Announced 40
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 up 230% on the market, supply 55% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 7%, 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 medium: the lowest rating among its tags.

Management
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Dragons
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Management; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Character Customization, Simulation, Action
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 6,137 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.4k, median $2.7k, 1 in 4 over $79k, 1 in 20 over $3.2M.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.4k. 7 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 40 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Management with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RomeFair21 devs · median $64k · 23 announced
  2. + Job SimulatorFair195 devs · median $17k · 225 announced
  3. + WesternFair18 devs · median $13k · 22 announced
  4. + Artificial IntelligenceFair114 devs · median $12k · 154 announced
  5. + JRPGFair37 devs · median $9.4k · 35 announced
  6. + MinigamesFair22 devs · median $7.4k · 15 announced
  7. + RhythmFair19 devs · median $5.9k · 24 announced
  8. + UnderwaterFair37 devs · median $5.0k · 54 announced
  9. + CollectathonFair182 devs · median $3.5k · 230 announced
  10. + DwarvesFair13 devs · median $3.2k · 18 announced
  11. + 3D FighterFair11 devs · median $3.1k · 15 announced
  12. + IncrementalFair611 devs · median $1.9k · 893 announced

All 214 pairs on the Management page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Mind Over Magic $24.99 4,314 86% 129k $3.2M (exactly $3,234,206) Sparkypants
Driftland: The Magic Revival older $19.99 1,439 73% 43k $863k (exactly $862,968) Star Drifters
Aground older $14.99 1,823 94% 55k $820k (exactly $819,803) Fancy Fish Games, SnöBox Studio
Huaxia: Warring States · EA $19.99 701 61% 21k $420k (exactly $420,390) 秦川汉渚
Dragon Song Tavern: Cozy & Adventurous $19.90 274 71% 8.2k $164k (exactly $163,578) Etherous Games Limited
Little Dragons Café older $59.99 77 63% 2.3k $139k (exactly $138,577) Aksys Games, TOYBOX lnc., Picola Inc.
Mage and Monsters older $4.99 903 89% 27k $135k (exactly $135,179) Lasse Zacho Malver
Mage and Monsters II $8.99 372 82% 11k $100k (exactly $100,328) Lasse Zacho Malver
Gargadusa's Tower $8.99 294 90% 8.8k $79k (exactly $79,292) The Math Team
No King No Kingdom older $14.99 126 84% 3.8k $57k (exactly $56,662) Fullmetal Developer
My Infamous Dungeon $14.99 63 76% 1.9k $28k (exactly $28,331) BoxFox Studios
Bathhouse Creatures $4.99 62 98% 1.9k $9.3k (exactly $9,281) Sleepy Rocket
Scale Mail $3.99 34 100% 1.0k $4.1k (exactly $4,070) Jam Jar Game Studio
Dragon Inn $9.99 9 100% 270 $2.7k (exactly $2,697) Nordexa
Deck Vs Doom $5.99 14 100% 420 $2.5k (exactly $2,516) Danial Rashidi

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