Games › Grand Strategy › Grand Strategy + Modern
Should I ship a Modern-Day Grand Strategy?
Grand Strategy + Modern
Only 19 developers shipped a Modern-Day Grand Strategy 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, ICBM: Escalation, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 22 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $13k, ×8.6 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.0k; 1 in 20 cleared $1.1M, ×750 the market median. Revenue is down 80% on the market; 22 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $1.9k (exactly $1,946) |
|---|---|
| Median | $13k (exactly $12,946) |
| Top 25% | $146k (exactly $145,908) |
| Top 5% | $1.1M (exactly $1,122,826) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 19 |
| Released games | 53 |
| Announced | 22 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $14.99 |
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 20% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 11%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Grand Strategy
- effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
- Modern
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- Grand Strategy; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Management, Strategy, Political Sim
- Price point
- $14.99 typical · top 25% priced $59.99 or above
- Art
- 7 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $59.99 or above; the middle game at $14.99.
The top 10 games average 71% positive over 3,123 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $2.0k. 4 in 10 of the 11 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 22 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Grand Strategy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RoguelikeFair
- + SportsFair
- + RogueliteFair
- + CrimeFair
- + RacingFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceLong shot
- + TabletopLong shot
- + Turn-BasedPoor odds
- + SandboxPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
Comparable games
Democracy 4 2022 · $5.3M 
Power & Revolution 2020 Edition 2020 · $1.2M 
ICBM: Escalation 2024 · $1.1M 
SuperPower 3 2022 · $884k 
Geo-Political Simulator 5 2024 · $704k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Democracy 4 | older | $29.99 | 5,891 81% | 177k | $5.3M (exactly $5,300,133) | Positech Games |
| | Power & Revolution 2020 Edition | older | $49.99 | 769 63% | 23k | $1.2M (exactly $1,153,269) | Eversim |
| | ICBM: Escalation | $29.99 | 1,248 86% | 37k | $1.1M (exactly $1,122,826) | SoftWarWare | |
| | SuperPower 3 | older | $29.99 | 982 10% | 29k | $884k (exactly $883,505) | GolemLabs |
| | Geo-Political Simulator 5 | $59.99 | 391 34% | 12k | $704k (exactly $703,683) | Eversim | |
 | Supreme Ruler Ultimate | older | $19.99 | 1,169 77% | 35k | $701k (exactly $701,049) | BattleGoat Studios |
 | Supreme Ruler 2030 | older | $29.99 | 532 65% | 16k | $479k (exactly $478,640) | BattleGoat Studios |
 | Geo-Political Simulator 2026 Edition | $59.99 | 249 48% | 7.5k | $448k (exactly $448,125) | Eversim | |
 | Realpolitiks II | older | $24.99 | 537 46% | 16k | $403k (exactly $402,589) | Jujubee S.A. |
 | Supermarket & Internet Cafe Simulator | older | $14.99 | 847 79% | 25k | $381k (exactly $380,896) | SmartPlayGames |
 | Solar Nations 2 | · EA | $14.99 | 609 85% | 18k | $274k (exactly $273,867) | Flomgus Games |
 | Realpolitiks 3: Earth and Beyond | $24.99 | 253 39% | 7.6k | $190k (exactly $189,674) | Jujubee | |
 | AfterWar | $34.99 | 139 72% | 4.2k | $146k (exactly $145,908) | Dmytro Lumen | |
 | 大戦略SSB2 | $59.99 | 36 66% | 1.1k | $65k (exactly $64,789) | Systemsoft beta, Inc. | |
 | Trade Conquest | $14.99 | 75 69% | 2.3k | $34k (exactly $33,728) | GrandPaw Games | |
 | Skyline Urban Story | $6.99 | 106 90% | 3.2k | $22k (exactly $22,228) | PandaUpStudio | |
 | Globalism | · EA | $29.99 | 17 52% | 510 | $15k (exactly $15,295) | igelanium games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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