Do I ship it?

GamesRogueliteRoguelite + Incremental

Specimen · observed

Should I ship an Incremental Roguelite?

Roguelite + Incremental

Of 215 developers who shipped an Incremental Roguelite 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.. 358 more are announced, ×2.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×2.6 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $130k, ×275 the market median. Revenue is up 20% on the market; 358 games are announced against 162 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 2.6 times the market baseline, revenue up 20% on the market, 358 announced, ×2.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Roguelite + Incremental
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 215
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.5k → $4.5k → $5.8k → $1.9k → $1.8k → $1.9k → $1.2k (still earning) → $1.3k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Roguelite + Incremental: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 215
Bottom 30% $239 (exactly $239)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,258)
Top 25% $9.6k (exactly $9,590)
Top 5% $131k (exactly $130,636)
Developers, 2 yr 215
Released games 309
Announced 358
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 up 20% on the market, supply 195% 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Roguelite
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Incremental
effort 1 / 10 · high · formulas and upgrade tables

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Roguelite, Incremental; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Roguelike, Idler
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Relaxing, Colorful
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 92% positive over 42,155 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $240, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $9.5k, 1 in 20 over $130k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 8 in 10 of the 57 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 358 games are announced against 162 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Real-TimeFair11 devs · median $11k · 14 announced
  2. + ProgrammingFair24 devs · median $9.3k · 28 announced
  3. + VampiresFair60 devs · median $4.8k · 62 announced
  4. + TypingFair29 devs · median $2.4k · 34 announced
  5. + Grand StrategyFair21 devs · median $2.0k · 23 announced
  6. + IdlerFair166 devs · median $1.5k · 235 announced
  7. + DogsFair30 devs · median $1.3k · 22 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair23 devs · median $1.1k · 23 announced
  9. + Score AttackFair344 devs · median $719 · 450 announced
  10. + Point & ClickFair94 devs · median $600 · 121 announced
  11. + LogicFair144 devs · median $599 · 143 announced
  12. + DwarvesPoor odds21 devs · median $74k · 24 announced

All 229 pairs on the Roguelite page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Scritchy Scratchy $6.99 15,245 94% 457k $3.2M (exactly $3,196,876) Lunch Money Games
Bills Must Be Paid $6.99 9,928 96% 298k $2.1M (exactly $2,081,902) Rike Games
(the) Gnorp Apologue older $6.99 9,613 94% 288k $2.0M (exactly $2,015,846) Myco
How Many Dudes? $14.99 2,948 89% 88k $1.3M (exactly $1,325,716) Butterscotch Shenanigans
Sir, We Have an Orc Problem $9.99 4,123 86% 124k $1.2M (exactly $1,235,663) Mumpitz Games
Swag and Sorcery older $12.99 2,318 54% 70k $903k (exactly $903,325) Lazy Bear Games, Uroboros Games
Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator older $19.99 827 92% 25k $496k (exactly $495,952) Strange Scaffold
Astro Prospector $4.99 3,223 91% 97k $482k (exactly $482,483) Incrementalist
Galactic Mining Corp older $12.99 868 84% 26k $338k (exactly $338,260) Windybeard
Dwarf Eats Mountain $9.99 1,114 80% 33k $334k (exactly $333,866) Green Wizard
Talented $5.99 1,475 91% 44k $265k (exactly $265,058) TurtleFox Games
Desktop Defender $4.99 1,757 92% 53k $263k (exactly $263,023) Conradical Games
Nomad Idle $9.99 852 64% 26k $255k (exactly $255,344) The Fox Knocks
Timber Rush $4.99 1,490 84% 45k $223k (exactly $223,053) Allerton Apps

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