Do I ship it?

GamesHack and SlashHack and Slash + Space

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Space Hack and Slash game?

Hack and Slash + Space

Of 38 developers who shipped a Space 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.. 73 more are announced, ×4.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $660, level with the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $140k, ×232 the market median. Revenue is up 215% on the market; 73 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 215% on the market, 73 announced, ×4.1 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hack and Slash + Space
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 38
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.8k → $30 → $239 → $449 → $359 → $2.1k → $239 (still earning) → $3.6k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hack and Slash + Space: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 38
Bottom 30% $300 (exactly $300)
Median $657 (exactly $657)
Top 25% $4.3k (exactly $4,315)
Top 5% $146k (exactly $145,954)
Developers, 2 yr 38
Released games 124
Announced 73
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $6.99

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 215% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 13%, 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
Space
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Hack and Slash; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Arcade, Combat
Price point
$6.99 typical · top 25% priced $12.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D, Colorful
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $12.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.

The top 10 games average 85% positive over 1,633 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $660, 1 in 4 over $4.3k, 1 in 20 over $140k.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 25 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 73 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.1 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Hack and Slash with a different setting or mood, 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

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
STAR WARS Jedi: Fallen Order™ older $39.99 153,782 88% 4.6M $184M (exactly $184,492,265) Respawn Entertainment
Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Martyr older $49.99 19,552 75% 587k $29M (exactly $29,322,134) NeocoreGames
HELLDIVERS™ Dive Harder Edition older $19.99 25,663 90% 770k $15M (exactly $15,390,101) Arrowhead Game Studios
SD GUNDAM BATTLE ALLIANCE older $59.99 4,892 62% 147k $8.8M (exactly $8,804,132) ARTDINK
STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition older $19.99 8,732 77% 262k $5.2M (exactly $5,236,580) LucasArts
STAR WARS™: The Force Unleashed™ II older $19.99 5,854 63% 176k $3.5M (exactly $3,510,644) Aspyr Studios
Solar Ash older $39.99 1,354 90% 41k $1.6M (exactly $1,624,394) Heart Machine
STAR WARS™ Jedi Knight II - Jedi Outcast™ older $9.99 4,048 91% 121k $1.2M (exactly $1,213,186) Raven Software
METALLIC CHILD older $24.99 1,131 84% 34k $848k (exactly $847,911) Action Square(STUDIO HG)
UFO ROBOT GRENDIZER – The Feast of the Wolves older $39.99 559 84% 17k $671k (exactly $670,632) Endroad
STAR WARS™: Episode I: Jedi Power Battles™ $19.99 355 78% 11k $213k (exactly $212,893) Aspyr
Entropy Survivors $9.99 487 80% 15k $146k (exactly $145,954) Moving Pieces Interactive
Astroloot · EA $6.99 587 92% 18k $123k (exactly $123,094) Andreas Hager Gaming
METAL SUITS: Counter-attack $9.99 71 77% 2.1k $21k (exactly $21,279) Gonggamore Contents
Astropods: Starside Glaze $12.50 28 100% 840 $11k (exactly $10,500) CheesiMoon, Breadbinbran
XENO WIPEOUT! $9.99 34 79% 1.0k $10k (exactly $10,190) Rama Studio
RAGER $19.99 16 100% 480 $9.6k (exactly $9,595) Insane Prey
Stellar Destiny: The Last Survivor · EA $9.99 24 91% 720 $7.2k (exactly $7,193) Amazing Vibes
Baseless $12.99 15 93% 450 $5.8k (exactly $5,846) Fermenter Games
Guardians Of Restoration $8.99 16 87% 480 $4.3k (exactly $4,315) Creative Gorae

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