Games › Hack and Slash › Hack and Slash + Quick-Time Events
Should I ship a Quick-Time Events Hack and Slash game?
Hack and Slash + Quick-Time Events
Only 9 developers shipped a Quick-Time Events Hack and Slash 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, Stellar Blade™, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 24 more are announced, ×4.8 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: dead, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $480 in the last 2 years and $420 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 5 / 10 build. 5 developers shipped in the last year and 24 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $30 (exactly $30) |
|---|---|
| Median | $479 (exactly $479) |
| Top 25% | $13k (exactly $13,486) |
| Top 5% | $110M (exactly $110,301,813) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 9 |
| Released games | 37 |
| Announced | 24 |
| 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 50% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 14%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Hack and Slash
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
- Quick-Time Events
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Hack and Slash, Quick-Time Events
- Price point
- $9.99 typical
Why players buy here
Fewer than 10 games in the last 2 years; sentiment and price figures use the all window.
The top 25% priced at $39.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 88% positive over 120,349 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $50. 7 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 24 games are announced against 5 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.8 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Hack and Slash with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Turn-BasedStrong odds
- + Turn-Based CombatStrong odds
- + VampiresFair
- + ModernFair
- + IdlerFair
- + IncrementalFair
- + RomancePoor odds
- + Visual NovelPoor odds
- + Character Action GamePoor odds
- + DestructionPoor odds
- + LGBTQ+Poor odds
- + AutomationPoor odds
Comparable games
Stellar Blade™ 2025 · $110M 
Ryse: Son of Rome 2014 · $11M 
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Ultimate Edition 2013 · $7.2M 
STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition 2009 · $5.2M 
The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me 2022 · $4.5M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Stellar Blade™ | $59.99 | 61,289 93% | 1.8M | $110M (exactly $110,301,813) | SHIFT UP Corporation | |
| | Ryse: Son of Rome | older | $9.99 | 38,308 87% | 1.1M | $11M (exactly $11,480,908) | Crytek |
| | Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Ultimate Edition | older | $29.99 | 7,998 80% | 240k | $7.2M (exactly $7,195,801) | MercurySteam, Climax Studios |
| | STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition | older | $19.99 | 8,732 77% | 262k | $5.2M (exactly $5,236,580) | LucasArts |
| | The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me | older | $39.99 | 3,778 56% | 113k | $4.5M (exactly $4,532,467) | Supermassive Games |
 | Ragnar | $14.99 | 61 83% | 1.8k | $27k (exactly $27,432) | Fimbulwinter Games | |
 | Disco Samurai | $9.99 | 45 88% | 1.4k | $13k (exactly $13,486) | Pixel Fiber Games | |
 | Agent in Depth | older | $2.99 | 108 93% | 3.2k | $9.7k (exactly $9,688) | Naturepixel Studios, SkyBrave |
 | Womb Defense Force | older | $11.99 | 24 62% | 720 | $8.6k (exactly $8,633) | StudioS |
 | Facing | · EA older | $9.99 | 6 33% | 180 | $1.8k (exactly $1,798) | Zzwei |
 | UNPLUG - The Game | · EA | $10.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $1.6k (exactly $1,648) | GoldLime Studios |
 | Blade of Vengeance: Night Raid at Swift Peak Pass | $7.99 | 2 0% | 60 | $479 (exactly $479) | 几几不小心 | |
 | The Island: Exterminatus | $3.99 | 1 0% | 30 | $120 (exactly $120) | Victor Sardinha Bexiga | |
 | Sword Duel | $0.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $30 (exactly $30) | SwordDuel Games | |
 | Glitchers | $14.99 | 0 0% | 0 | $0 (exactly $0) | PushStart Studio | |
 | Sunrise | · EA | $4.99 | 0 0% | 0 | $0 (exactly $0) | WushR00M Studios |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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