Do I ship it?

GamesHero ShooterHero Shooter + Strategy

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Strategy Hero Shooter?

Hero Shooter + Strategy

Of 36 developers who shipped a Strategy Hero Shooter 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.. 67 more are announced, ×3.4 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 9 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $150 in the last 2 years and $360 over 4, against a market of $1.3k for a 9 / 10 build. 20 developers shipped in the last year and 67 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 10% on the market, 67 announced, ×3.4 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Hero Shooter + Strategy
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 36
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.3k → $1.8k → $1.1k → $359 → $150 → $150 → $359 (still earning) → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Hero Shooter + Strategy: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 36
Bottom 30% $59 (exactly $59)
Median $150 (exactly $150)
Top 25% $600 (exactly $600)
Top 5% $49k (exactly $49,480)
Developers, 2 yr 36
Released games 146
Announced 67
Effort 9 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $4.99

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 10% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

Hero Shooter
effort 9 / 10 · low · competitive netcode plus hero balance and content cadence
Strategy
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
9 / 10 · studio only
Systems
Hero Shooter, Strategy; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Shooter, Action-Adventure
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Pixel Graphics
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 70% positive over 4,288 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 $150, 1 in 4 over $600, 1 in 20 over $49k.

3 in 10 developers made under $59. 9 in 10 of the 27 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 67 games are announced against 20 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.4 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Hero Shooter with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SimulationLong shot31 devs · median $478 · 28 announced
  2. + Bullet HellLong shot59 devs · median $449 · 56 announced
  3. + Boomer ShooterLong shot30 devs · median $210 · 21 announced
  4. + MedievalLong shot10 devs · median $150 · 12 announced
  5. + Online Co-OpPoor odds20 devs · median $7.2k · 51 announced
  6. + SuperheroPoor odds6 devs · median $6.3k · 11 announced
  7. + Battle RoyalePoor odds9 devs · median $3.6k · 29 announced
  8. + Co-opPoor odds22 devs · median $3.6k · 53 announced
  9. + PvPPoor odds27 devs · median $2.3k · 127 announced
  10. + PlatformerPoor odds21 devs · median $2.2k · 33 announced
  11. + Character CustomizationPoor odds25 devs · median $2.1k · 68 announced
  12. + PhysicsPoor odds27 devs · median $1.6k · 34 announced

All 87 pairs on the Hero Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville™ older $29.99 15,372 71% 461k $14M (exactly $13,830,188) PopCap
Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap $29.99 4,053 69% 122k $3.6M (exactly $3,646,484) Robot Entertainment
Deceive Inc. older $19.99 4,755 84% 143k $2.9M (exactly $2,851,574) Sweet Bandits Studios
Raw Data older $39.99 2,036 81% 61k $2.4M (exactly $2,442,589) Survios
Nordic Ashes: Survivors of Ragnarok older $9.99 6,180 88% 185k $1.9M (exactly $1,852,146) Noxfall Studios
Perfect Heist 2 older $9.99 3,711 94% 111k $1.1M (exactly $1,112,187) yeswecamp
Wild Bastards older $34.99 616 74% 18k $647k (exactly $646,615) Blue Manchu
Eximius: Seize the Frontline older $19.99 511 74% 15k $306k (exactly $306,447) Ammobox Studios
AXYOS older $4.99 1,629 52% 49k $244k (exactly $243,861) Axyos Games
Monday Night Combat older $4.99 912 81% 27k $137k (exactly $136,526) Uber Entertainment
STARVAULT VR $24.99 66 89% 2.0k $49k (exactly $49,480) Theia Games
Just Skill Shooter 4 $9.99 17 76% 510 $5.1k (exactly $5,095) Gamesforgames
Just Skill Shooter: Catacombs $9.99 17 64% 510 $5.1k (exactly $5,095) Gamesforgames
Idle Zombie Wave: Premium $7.99 21 38% 630 $5.0k (exactly $5,034) Ryki Studio
Survalker $9.99 14 85% 420 $4.2k (exactly $4,196) Gamesforgames
Maniac Path 3 $9.99 12 100% 360 $3.6k (exactly $3,596) Gamesforgames
Doom Survivor: Horde Rush $2.99 38 86% 1.1k $3.4k (exactly $3,409) Crazy Studio
MEMOLOGY: ITALIAN MEME WAR $0.99 45 97% 1.4k $1.3k (exactly $1,336) Piece Of Voxel, Gamesforfarm
Intergalactic Cleaning Squad $4.99 5 80% 150 $748 (exactly $748) Rigid Games

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