Do I ship it?

Games › Hack and Slash › Hack and Slash + Rhythm

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Rhythm Hack and Slash game?

Hack and Slash + Rhythm

Of 24 developers who shipped a Rhythm Hack and Slash 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.. 28 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $2.1k, ×3.3 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $59; 1 in 20 cleared $1.8M, ×2996 the market median. Revenue is up 415% on the market; 28 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 415% on the market, 28 announced, ×2.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hack and Slash + Rhythm
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 24
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.5k → $300 → $6.0k → $59 → $6.0k → $179 (still earning) → $1.2k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hack and Slash + Rhythm: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 24
Bottom 30% $59 (exactly $59)
Median $2.1k (exactly $2,098)
Top 25% $13k (exactly $13,486)
Top 5% $1.9M (exactly $1,881,273)
Developers, 2 yr 24
Released games 69
Announced 28
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 up 415% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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.

Hack and Slash
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Rhythm
effort 3 / 10 · medium · audio sync, timing precision and music rights

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Hack and Slash, Rhythm; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Beat 'em up, Combat
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Stylized
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 93% positive over 15,264 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $59, median $2.1k, 1 in 4 over $13k, 1 in 20 over $1.8M.

3 in 10 developers made under $59. 7 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 28 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Hack and Slash with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Turn-BasedStrong odds8 devs · median $14k · 1 announced
  2. + Turn-Based CombatStrong odds28 devs · median $3.7k · 27 announced
  3. + VampiresFair32 devs · median $7.2k · 37 announced
  4. + ModernFair13 devs · median $7.2k · 20 announced
  5. + IdlerFair32 devs · median $6.4k · 50 announced
  6. + IncrementalFair40 devs · median $1.7k · 57 announced
  7. + RomancePoor odds11 devs · median $119k · 25 announced
  8. + Visual NovelPoor odds11 devs · median $85k · 22 announced
  9. + Character Action GamePoor odds27 devs · median $58k · 80 announced
  10. + DestructionPoor odds19 devs · median $43k · 57 announced
  11. + LGBTQ+Poor odds17 devs · median $33k · 20 announced
  12. + AutomationPoor odds12 devs · median $21k · 26 announced

All 175 pairs on the Hack and Slash page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Sekiro™: Shadows Die Twice - GOTY Edition 2019 · $467M Hi-Fi RUSH 2023 · $25M Dead as Disco 2026 · EA · $9.3M PATAPON 1+2 REPLAY 2025 · $1.9M FIGHT KNIGHT 2021 · $928k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Sekiro™: Shadows Die Twice - GOTY Edition older $59.99 259,508 95% 7.8M $467M (exactly $467,036,548) FromSoftware, Inc.
Hi-Fi RUSH older $29.99 27,454 97% 824k $25M (exactly $24,700,364) Tango Gameworks
Dead as Disco · EA $24.99 12,354 96% 371k $9.3M (exactly $9,261,794) Brain Jar Games, Inc.
PATAPON 1+2 REPLAY $29.99 2,091 83% 63k $1.9M (exactly $1,881,273) SAS CO.,LTD.
FIGHT KNIGHT older $19.99 1,547 91% 46k $928k (exactly $927,736) Team Sorcerobe
Soundfall older $29.99 996 73% 30k $896k (exactly $896,101) Drastic Games
Archons $9.99 406 92% 12k $122k (exactly $121,678) BulletHell Studios
Dismantling Workshop of Bio-Girl $29.99 120 61% 3.6k $108k (exactly $107,964) 渡里laboratory
Project: Mirror older $4.99 444 76% 13k $66k (exactly $66,467) 430Games, ArtistBOA
CYBRID · EA older $14.99 139 89% 4.2k $63k (exactly $62,508) Tom Reason
DrumBeats VR $14.99 128 65% 3.8k $58k (exactly $57,562) Marcel Eissens, VRROOM Ultimate VR Expe… (Marcel Eissens, VRROOM Ultimate VR Experiences BV)
Disco Samurai $9.99 45 88% 1.4k $13k (exactly $13,486) Pixel Fiber Games
RHYTHMKILL $9.99 45 82% 1.4k $13k (exactly $13,486) GETTAKE
Soulbound Roguelike $9.99 34 82% 1.0k $10k (exactly $10,190) DuDu Games
RAGER $19.99 16 100% 480 $9.6k (exactly $9,595) Insane Prey
Tides of The Endless · EA $7.99 25 84% 750 $6.0k (exactly $5,992) Shimmer High Sea

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