Do I ship it?

GamesHack and SlashHack and Slash + Turn-Based Combat

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Turn-Based Combat Hack and Slash game?

Hack and Slash + Turn-Based Combat

Of 28 developers who shipped a Turn-Based Combat 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.. 27 more are announced.

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

The middle developer here made $3.7k, ×5.9 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 7 in 10 cleared $1.5k. Revenue is up 65% on the market; 27 games are announced against 20 developers who shipped in the last year, ×1.4 per shipper.

Deciding numbers: median 5.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 65% on the market, 27 announced, ×1.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hack and Slash + Turn-Based Combat
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 28
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $2.8k → $2.2k → $5.4k → $449 → $15k → $19k → $6.5k (still earning) → $1.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hack and Slash + Turn-Based Combat: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 28
Bottom 30% $1.5k (exactly $1,529)
Median $3.7k (exactly $3,730)
Top 25% $15k (exactly $14,696)
Top 5% $64k (exactly $64,136)
Developers, 2 yr 28
Released games 89
Announced 27
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 65% on the market, supply 100% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 4%, 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
Turn-Based Combat
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 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, Turn-Based Combat; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Dungeon Crawler, JRPG
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 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 $19.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 1,259 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $1.6k, median $3.7k, 1 in 4 over $14k, 1 in 20 over $64k.

3 in 10 developers made under $1.6k. 9 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 27 games are announced against 20 developers who shipped in the last year.

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. + VampiresFair32 devs · median $7.2k · 37 announced
  3. + ModernFair13 devs · median $7.2k · 20 announced
  4. + IdlerFair32 devs · median $6.4k · 50 announced
  5. + IncrementalFair40 devs · median $1.7k · 57 announced
  6. + RomancePoor odds11 devs · median $119k · 25 announced
  7. + Visual NovelPoor odds11 devs · median $85k · 22 announced
  8. + Character Action GamePoor odds27 devs · median $58k · 80 announced
  9. + DestructionPoor odds19 devs · median $43k · 57 announced
  10. + LGBTQ+Poor odds17 devs · median $33k · 20 announced
  11. + AutomationPoor odds12 devs · median $21k · 26 announced
  12. + MechsPoor odds17 devs · median $16k · 40 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
Dragon Cliff older $9.99 7,679 88% 230k $2.3M (exactly $2,301,396) Meta Interaction
Dice & Fold older $12.99 3,491 83% 105k $1.4M (exactly $1,360,443) Tinymice Entertainment
Swords and Sandals Classic Collection older $9.99 2,905 92% 87k $871k (exactly $870,628) Whiskeybarrel Studios
Wizardry: The Five Ordeals older $39.99 520 85% 16k $624k (exactly $623,844) 59 Studio
Labyrinth of Touhou Tri -The Dreaming Girls & The Mysterious Orbs- $19.99 616 82% 18k $369k (exactly $369,415) Nise-Eikoku Studio
Swords and Sandals 2 Redux older $9.99 552 78% 17k $165k (exactly $165,434) Whiskeybarrel Studios
Dark Bestiary older $8.99 511 88% 15k $138k (exactly $137,817) Qd
Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics older $24.99 153 68% 4.6k $115k (exactly $114,704) Auroch Digital
HAITENAI RPG older $24.99 138 65% 4.1k $103k (exactly $103,459) Yellow Gem
The Chronicles of Dragon Wing - Reborn older $19.99 158 77% 4.7k $95k (exactly $94,753) Dragon Wing Studio
Crescent Tower $9.99 214 89% 6.4k $64k (exactly $64,136) Curry Croquette
Monochrome Echoes - white - $24.99 54 87% 1.6k $40k (exactly $40,484) Thousand Games
Bobo's Big Tower $9.99 93 92% 2.8k $28k (exactly $27,872) SillyKitty
Brave × Junction $10.99 62 83% 1.9k $20k (exactly $20,441) Rideon,Inc., RideonJapan
Arashi Gaiden $9.99 64 95% 1.9k $19k (exactly $19,181) Statera Studio, Wired Dreams Studio
Labyrinth of Aetheria · EA $14.00 44 90% 1.3k $18k (exactly $18,480) Jimineko Games
モンカルファンタ ~勇者と水晶の少女~ $34.99 14 71% 420 $15k (exactly $14,696) Experience Inc.
アウラルと光の竜~Gathering Light~ $9.49 51 100% 1.5k $15k (exactly $14,520) mimuimuworks
戦国英雄譚-Samurai Heroes- $9.99 47 89% 1.4k $14k (exactly $14,086) hizaniya games

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