Games › Turn-Based Strategy › Turn-Based Strategy + Exploration
Should I ship an Exploration Turn-Based Strategy?
Turn-Based Strategy + Exploration
Of 232 developers who shipped an Exploration 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.. 473 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 $2.2k, ×3.6 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $540; 1 in 20 cleared $290k, ×475 the market median. Revenue is down 45% on the market; 473 games are announced against 130 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $539 (exactly $539) |
|---|---|
| Median | $2.2k (exactly $2,248) |
| Top 25% | $22k (exactly $22,035) |
| Top 5% | $299k (exactly $298,601) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 232 |
| Released games | 680 |
| Announced | 473 |
| 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 down 45% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Exploration
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Turn-Based Strategy, Exploration; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, RPG, Turn-Based Combat
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Story Rich
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 76% positive over 23,258 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $540. 8 in 10 of the 132 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 473 games are announced against 130 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Turn-Based Strategy with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + WuxiaFair
- + Cold WarFair
- + RomeFair
- + LootFair
- + MiningFair
- + DwarvesFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair
- + TanksFair
- + SokobanFair
- + Top-Down ShooterFair
- + SpaceFair
Comparable games
Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition 2017 · $244M 
Wartales 2023 · $34M 
Age of Wonders 4 2023 · $25M 
Sid Meier's Civilization®: Beyond Earth™ 2014 · $17M 
Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance 2024 · $14M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition | older | $44.99 | 180,782 95% | 5.4M | $244M (exactly $244,001,465) | Larian Studios |
| | Wartales | older | $34.99 | 32,118 86% | 964k | $34M (exactly $33,714,265) | Shiro Games |
| | Age of Wonders 4 | older | $49.99 | 16,899 82% | 507k | $25M (exactly $25,343,430) | Triumph Studios |
| | Sid Meier's Civilization®: Beyond Earth™ | older | $39.99 | 14,047 61% | 421k | $17M (exactly $16,852,186) | Firaxis Games, Aspyr (Mac), Aspyr (Linu… (Firaxis Games, Aspyr (Mac), Aspyr (Linux)) |
| | Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance | older | $59.99 | 7,858 91% | 236k | $14M (exactly $14,142,043) | ATLUS |
 | Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden | older | $34.99 | 13,305 89% | 399k | $14M (exactly $13,966,258) | The Bearded Ladies |
 | ENDLESS Legend™ | older | $29.99 | 14,413 83% | 432k | $13M (exactly $12,967,376) | AMPLITUDE Studios |
 | WitchSpring R | older | $34.99 | 6,858 95% | 206k | $7.2M (exactly $7,198,843) | KIWIWALKS |
 | Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew | older | $39.99 | 5,190 91% | 156k | $6.2M (exactly $6,226,443) | Mimimi Games |
 | Wasteland 2: Director's Cut | older | $29.99 | 4,664 82% | 140k | $4.2M (exactly $4,196,201) | inXile Entertainment |
 | The Matchless Kungfu | $19.99 | 6,755 79% | 203k | $4.1M (exactly $4,050,973) | HuanMos Game | |
 | The World of Kungfu: Dragon and Eagle | $17.99 | 4,595 67% | 138k | $2.5M (exactly $2,479,922) | ChillyRoom | |
 | Songs of Silence | $29.99 | 2,367 79% | 71k | $2.1M (exactly $2,129,590) | Chimera Entertainment | |
 | Ascension | · EA | $19.99 | 2,437 60% | 73k | $1.5M (exactly $1,461,469) | Element Game 微元游戏 |
 | The Nameless: Slay Dragon | $17.99 | 2,050 91% | 62k | $1.1M (exactly $1,106,385) | The Nameless Epic | |
 | Destiny of Immortal | · EA | $11.99 | 1,763 80% | 53k | $634k (exactly $634,151) | LeiYun Games |
 | Fretless - The Wrath of Riffson | $14.99 | 1,399 98% | 42k | $629k (exactly $629,130) | Ritual Studios | |
 | Pro Cycling Manager 25 | $39.99 | 496 75% | 15k | $595k (exactly $595,051) | Cyanide Studio | |
 | Elemental: Reforged | $29.99 | 478 73% | 14k | $430k (exactly $430,057) | Stardock Entertainment | |
 | Stray Path | $14.99 | 918 73% | 28k | $413k (exactly $412,825) | zidong games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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