Do I ship it?

Games › Turn-Based Strategy › Turn-Based Strategy + Dragons

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Dragon Turn-Based Strategy?

Turn-Based Strategy + Dragons

Of 39 developers who shipped a Dragon Turn-Based Strategy 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.. 75 more are announced, ×3.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $3.0k, ×4.8 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.2k; 1 in 20 cleared $860k, ×1376 the market median. Revenue is up 370% on the market; 75 games are announced against 24 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 4.8 times the market baseline, revenue up 370% on the market, 75 announced, ×3.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Turn-Based Strategy + Dragons
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 39
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $87k → $839 → $809 → $20k → $3.0k → $1.7k → $7.8k (still earning) → $10k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Turn-Based Strategy + Dragons: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 39
Bottom 30% $1.2k (exactly $1,198)
Median $3.0k (exactly $2,992)
Top 25% $26k (exactly $26,422)
Top 5% $864k (exactly $863,827)
Developers, 2 yr 39
Released games 117
Announced 75
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 up 370% on the market, supply 40% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 21%, 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.

Turn-Based Strategy
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
Turn-Based Strategy; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, RPG, Strategy RPG
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Story Rich
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 5,022 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.2k, median $3.0k, 1 in 4 over $26k, 1 in 20 over $860k.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.2k. 8 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 75 games are announced against 24 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Turn-Based Strategy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + WuxiaFair12 devs · median $19k · 17 announced
  2. + Cold WarFair18 devs · median $9.9k · 22 announced
  3. + RomeFair15 devs · median $9.0k · 18 announced
  4. + LootFair86 devs · median $6.3k · 97 announced
  5. + MiningFair10 devs · median $4.5k · 14 announced
  6. + DwarvesFair7 devs · median $3.7k · 12 announced
  7. + IdlerFair50 devs · median $3.6k · 45 announced
  8. + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair43 devs · median $3.6k · 54 announced
  9. + TanksFair25 devs · median $3.0k · 24 announced
  10. + SokobanFair11 devs · median $2.1k · 11 announced
  11. + Top-Down ShooterFair13 devs · median $1.6k · 13 announced
  12. + SpaceFair107 devs · median $1.5k · 143 announced

All 187 pairs on the Turn-Based Strategy page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Brigandine The Legend of Runersia 2022 · $1.6M Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord 2024 · $1.3M Fallen Enchantress: Legendary Heroes 2013 · $1.2M The Nameless: Slay Dragon 2024 · $1.1M LUNAR Remastered Collection 2025 · $864k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Brigandine The Legend of Runersia older $39.99 1,331 85% 40k $1.6M (exactly $1,596,801) Happinet, Matrix
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord older $34.99 1,209 77% 36k $1.3M (exactly $1,269,087) Digital Eclipse
Fallen Enchantress: Legendary Heroes older $24.99 1,655 78% 50k $1.2M (exactly $1,240,754) Stardock Entertainment
The Nameless: Slay Dragon $17.99 2,050 91% 62k $1.1M (exactly $1,106,385) The Nameless Epic
LUNAR Remastered Collection $49.99 576 91% 17k $864k (exactly $863,827) ASHIBI Co., Ltd., GAME ARTS Co., Ltd.
Slice & Dice older $8.99 2,484 96% 75k $670k (exactly $669,935) Tann
Munchkin Digital older $14.99 1,352 76% 41k $608k (exactly $607,994) Dire Wolf
Elemental: Reforged $29.99 478 73% 14k $430k (exactly $430,057) Stardock Entertainment
VenusBlood HOLLOW International older $44.99 287 96% 8.6k $387k (exactly $387,364) Ninetail, Dualtail
Clank! $22.99 542 92% 16k $374k (exactly $373,817) Dire Wolf
BRIGANDINE ABYSS $49.99 248 35% 7.4k $372k (exactly $371,926) Adglobe
Feed the Scorchpot $14.99 371 87% 11k $167k (exactly $166,839) Moravian
Dark Quest 4 $19.99 136 75% 4.1k $82k (exactly $81,559) Brain Seal Ltd
Gargadusa's Tower $8.99 294 90% 8.8k $79k (exactly $79,292) The Math Team
Prophecy of Ashen $9.99 201 76% 6.0k $60k (exactly $60,240) hhyuGame
Three Kingdoms Heroes $6.99 126 81% 3.8k $26k (exactly $26,422) 青衣工作室

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