Do I ship it?

GamesIncrementalIncremental + Fantasy

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Fantasy Incremental game?

Incremental + Fantasy

Of 364 developers who shipped a Fantasy Incremental game 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.. 519 more are announced, ×2.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.6 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $180k, ×382 the market median. Revenue is up 305% on the market; 519 games are announced against 250 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 305% on the market, 519 announced, ×2.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Incremental + Fantasy
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 364
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $734 → $599 → $959 → $802 → $958 → $1.3k → $1.9k (still earning) → $1.5k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Incremental + Fantasy: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 364
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,258)
Top 25% $8.7k (exactly $8,738)
Top 5% $181k (exactly $181,238)
Developers, 2 yr 364
Released games 870
Announced 519
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $4.99

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 305% on the market, supply 105% 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.

Incremental
effort 1 / 10 · high · formulas and upgrade tables
Fantasy
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Incremental; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Idler, Simulation, RPG
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $8.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Cute
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $8.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 31,118 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 $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $8.7k, 1 in 20 over $180k.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 166 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 519 games are announced against 250 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + FMVStrong odds15 devs · median $11k · 12 announced
  2. + OtomeStrong odds12 devs · median $7.0k · 11 announced
  3. + Martial ArtsFair13 devs · median $6.1k · 15 announced
  4. + FarmingFair21 devs · median $5.9k · 23 announced
  5. + Dynamic NarrationFair19 devs · median $4.0k · 14 announced
  6. + MiningFair141 devs · median $3.9k · 207 announced
  7. + Souls-likeFair9 devs · median $3.9k · 10 announced
  8. + Arena ShooterFair15 devs · median $3.5k · 20 announced
  9. + Dating SimFair140 devs · median $3.1k · 136 announced
  10. + UndergroundFair27 devs · median $3.0k · 35 announced
  11. + LootFair145 devs · median $2.9k · 236 announced
  12. + SupernaturalFair33 devs · median $2.4k · 35 announced

All 188 pairs on the Incremental page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Book of Demons older $24.99 8,010 91% 240k $6.0M (exactly $6,005,097) Thing Trunk
Dragon Cliff older $9.99 7,679 88% 230k $2.3M (exactly $2,301,396) Meta Interaction
Sir, We Have an Orc Problem $9.99 4,123 86% 124k $1.2M (exactly $1,235,663) Mumpitz Games
Swag and Sorcery older $12.99 2,318 54% 70k $903k (exactly $903,325) Lazy Bear Games, Uroboros Games
Fortune Mill $7.99 3,712 81% 111k $890k (exactly $889,766) Lavaflame2
Hero of the Kingdom older $7.99 3,574 94% 107k $857k (exactly $856,688) Lonely Troops
Tower Wizard $2.99 8,787 96% 264k $788k (exactly $788,194) Barribob
Cauldron $14.99 1,678 92% 50k $755k (exactly $754,597) SleepyDad Games
Doors: Paradox older $14.99 1,579 91% 47k $710k (exactly $710,076) Big Loop Studios
Crusaders Quest : Hero Town $6.99 2,564 76% 77k $538k (exactly $537,671) CQ LABS
Chef Knight $5.99 2,433 94% 73k $437k (exactly $437,210) Clover Bite
xiuzhen idle $5.99 2,313 79% 69k $416k (exactly $415,646) 游戏养家工作室
Handyman Fantasy $7.99 1,607 95% 48k $385k (exactly $385,198) SupaShinKen Studio
Click Mage $4.99 2,529 91% 76k $379k (exactly $378,591) Tiny Crow Games
Loot of Baal $8.99 1,372 62% 41k $370k (exactly $370,028) Gleamer Studio

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