Should I ship a Hacking RPG?
RPG + Hacking
Of 29 developers who shipped a Hacking RPG 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.. 77 more are announced, ×5.1 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $7.8k, ×12 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $720; 1 in 20 cleared $2.3M, ×3725 the market median. Revenue is down 55% on the market; 77 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $719 (exactly $719) |
|---|---|
| Median | $7.8k (exactly $7,759) |
| Top 25% | $69k (exactly $69,252) |
| Top 5% | $2.3M (exactly $2,339,064) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 29 |
| Released games | 85 |
| Announced | 77 |
| Effort | 6 / 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 55% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 9%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
- Systems
- RPG; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Immersive Sim, Action, Stealth
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Atmospheric, First-Person, Story Rich
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 85% positive over 25,074 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $720. 6 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 77 games are announced against 15 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.1 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
RPG with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + IdlerFair
- + Boss RushFair
- + SportsFair
- + Combat RacingFair
- + Split ScreenFair
- + Precision PlatformerFair
- + SamuraiPoor odds
- + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds
- + 4XPoor odds
- + MinigamesPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
Comparable games
Watch_Dogs™ 2014 · $30M 
Watch Dogs®: Legion 2023 · $21M 
Shadows of Doubt 2024 · $11M 
Cyber Manhunt 2021 · $4.4M 
Peripeteia 2025 · EA · $2.3M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Watch_Dogs™ | older | $19.99 | 49,193 79% | 1.5M | $30M (exactly $29,501,042) | Ubisoft |
| | Watch Dogs®: Legion | older | $59.99 | 11,891 56% | 357k | $21M (exactly $21,400,233) | Ubisoft Toronto |
| | Shadows of Doubt | $24.99 | 14,646 82% | 439k | $11M (exactly $10,980,106) | ColePowered Games | |
| | Cyber Manhunt | older | $9.99 | 14,520 92% | 436k | $4.4M (exactly $4,351,644) | Aluba Van+ |
| | Peripeteia | · EA | $24.99 | 3,120 86% | 94k | $2.3M (exactly $2,339,064) | Ninth Exodus |
 | Cyber Manhunt 2: New World - The Hacking Simulator | $12.99 | 5,191 92% | 156k | $2.0M (exactly $2,022,933) | Aluba Van+ | |
 | E.Y.E: Divine Cybermancy | older | $9.99 | 6,303 84% | 189k | $1.9M (exactly $1,889,009) | Streum On Studio |
 | Cogmind | · EA older | $24.99 | 1,560 95% | 47k | $1.2M (exactly $1,169,532) | Grid Sage Games |
 | CaseCracker | older | $9.99 | 3,314 89% | 99k | $993k (exactly $993,206) | BlackRobe |
 | Jack Move | older | $19.99 | 813 80% | 24k | $488k (exactly $487,556) | So Romantic |
 | Deadeye Deepfake Simulacrum | $12.99 | 839 98% | 25k | $327k (exactly $326,958) | nodayshalleraseyou | |
 | 侦探，请守护我的秘密吧！ | $8.99 | 525 88% | 16k | $142k (exactly $141,592) | 喜瑞互娱工作室 | |
 | Into The Grid | · EA | $14.99 | 195 83% | 5.9k | $88k (exactly $87,692) | Flatline Studios |
 | PARKSIDE: DECAYED SOUL MANIPULATION | $13.99 | 178 87% | 5.3k | $75k (exactly $74,707) | Banana Hardsoft | |
 | HeistGeist | $19.90 | 116 95% | 3.5k | $69k (exactly $69,252) | Doublequote Studio | |
 | GRIDbeat! | $19.99 | 93 100% | 2.8k | $56k (exactly $55,772) | Ridiculous Games | |
 | Decision Legacy Collection | $9.99 | 171 83% | 5.1k | $51k (exactly $51,249) | FlyAnvil |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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