Do I ship it?

Games › Turn-Based Combat › Turn-Based Combat + Dynamic Narration

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Dynamic Narration Turn-Based Combat game?

Turn-Based Combat + Dynamic Narration

Only 14 developers shipped a Dynamic Narration Turn-Based Combat 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, Dustgrave: A Sandbox RPG, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 30 more are announced, ×4.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.8k, ×3.8 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $62k, ×131 the market median. Revenue is down 80% on the market; 30 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.8 times the market baseline, revenue down 80% on the market, 30 announced, ×4.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Turn-Based Combat + Dynamic Narration
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 14
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $270 → $24k → $3.0k → $989 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Turn-Based Combat + Dynamic Narration: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 14
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $1.8k (exactly $1,798)
Top 25% $5.0k (exactly $5,034)
Top 5% $62k (exactly $62,012)
Developers, 2 yr 14
Released games 38
Announced 30
Effort 4 / 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 down 80% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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 Combat
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Dynamic Narration
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Turn-Based Combat, Dynamic Narration
Price point
$9.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 381 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $1.8k, 1 in 4 over $5.0k, 1 in 20 over $62k.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 9 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 30 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Turn-Based Combat with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + WuxiaStrong odds20 devs · median $19k · 21 announced
  2. + Hack and SlashStrong odds28 devs · median $3.7k · 27 announced
  3. + RomeFair8 devs · median $16k · 13 announced
  4. + CookingFair15 devs · median $6.0k · 22 announced
  5. + UndergroundFair18 devs · median $4.2k · 29 announced
  6. + IdlerFair52 devs · median $4.0k · 41 announced
  7. + DiceFair49 devs · median $2.2k · 59 announced
  8. + Traditional RoguelikeFair81 devs · median $1.4k · 107 announced
  9. + ArcadeFair59 devs · median $1.3k · 71 announced
  10. + Tower DefenseFair28 devs · median $839 · 34 announced
  11. + Artificial IntelligenceFair46 devs · median $719 · 52 announced
  12. + SolitaireFair26 devs · median $450 · 31 announced

All 175 pairs on the Turn-Based Combat page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Curious Expedition 2 2021 · $2.3M All Quiet in the Trenches 2024 · EA · $690k Invincible Presents: Atom Eve 2023 · $165k AETHERIS 2023 · $124k Wizards and Warlords 2020 · $76k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Curious Expedition 2 older $19.99 3,861 88% 116k $2.3M (exactly $2,315,442) Maschinen-Mensch
All Quiet in the Trenches · EA older $24.99 921 90% 28k $690k (exactly $690,474) Totally Not Aliens
Invincible Presents: Atom Eve older $9.99 550 96% 17k $165k (exactly $164,835) Terrible Posture Games
AETHERIS older $24.99 166 75% 5.0k $124k (exactly $124,450) WILD WITS
Wizards and Warlords older $9.99 253 82% 7.6k $76k (exactly $75,824) Valravn Games
Dustgrave: A Sandbox RPG · EA $21.99 94 71% 2.8k $62k (exactly $62,012) Innervoid Interactive
Throne of Monsters 怪物的王座 $12.99 130 92% 3.9k $51k (exactly $50,661) 雏形游戏
Reigns: Three Kingdoms older $2.99 337 52% 10k $30k (exactly $30,229) Nerial
Once Upon a Rogue's Tale · EA older $12.49 65 92% 2.0k $24k (exactly $24,356) PolyPirates UG, Lizard Child
Flan's BN $5.99 78 97% 2.3k $14k (exactly $14,017) Geism
Neverspring Chronicles $7.99 21 95% 630 $5.0k (exactly $5,034) Durance Gaming
RolemIAster · EA $5.99 23 56% 690 $4.1k (exactly $4,133) ABAFE
Ostera : The curse of... · EA $4.99 20 85% 600 $3.0k (exactly $2,994) Profits Troll Studio
Cataclysm Wars $9.99 6 100% 180 $1.8k (exactly $1,798) Chicken Cabal Games
Null State $9.99 4 100% 120 $1.2k (exactly $1,199) Triple Eye Games
SIM Election USA $10.99 3 66% 90 $989 (exactly $989) SunsixStudios
Fading Voices $5.99 2 50% 60 $359 (exactly $359) Mad Harter Studio

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