Should I ship a Life Sim RTS?
RTS + Life Sim
Of 25 developers who shipped a Life Sim RTS 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.. 31 more are announced.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $390, ×0.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $90. Revenue is down 75% on the market, with 31 games announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $90 (exactly $90) |
|---|---|
| Median | $390 (exactly $390) |
| Top 25% | $4.5k (exactly $4,491) |
| Top 5% | $165k (exactly $164,918) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 25 |
| Released games | 66 |
| Announced | 31 |
| Effort | 7 / 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 75% on the market, supply 80% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 6%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- RTS, Life Sim; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Management, Simulation, Strategy
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with Relaxing, 2D, 3D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 89% positive over 8,537 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $90. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 31 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
RTS with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomeFair
- + Outbreak SimFair
- + HorrorFair
- + NavalFair
- + TabletopFair
- + SportsLong shot
- + PuzzleLong shot
- + World War IIPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + Open WorldPoor odds
- + Colony SimPoor odds
- + HistoricalPoor odds
Comparable games
Crusader Kings III 2020 · $142M 
The Wandering Village 2025 · $7.0M 
The Guild 3 2022 · $6.4M 
The Pioneers: Surviving Desolation 2023 · EA · $357k 
Startopia 2013 · $177k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Crusader Kings III | older | $49.99 | 94,615 90% | 2.8M | $142M (exactly $141,894,116) | Paradox Development Studio |
| | The Wandering Village | $29.99 | 7,734 91% | 232k | $7.0M (exactly $6,958,280) | Stray Fawn Studio | |
| | The Guild 3 | older | $29.99 | 7,120 60% | 214k | $6.4M (exactly $6,405,864) | Purple Lamp, GolemLabs |
| | The Pioneers: Surviving Desolation | · EA older | $29.99 | 397 63% | 12k | $357k (exactly $357,181) | Supercube |
| | Startopia | older | $6.99 | 844 91% | 25k | $177k (exactly $176,987) | My Little Planet Ltd, Mucky Foot Produc… (My Little Planet Ltd, Mucky Foot Productions Ltd) |
 | King of Retail 2 | · EA | $19.99 | 275 79% | 8.3k | $165k (exactly $164,918) | Freaking Games |
 | Unholy Heights | older | $3.99 | 1,129 90% | 34k | $135k (exactly $135,141) | Petit Depotto |
 | Convenience Stories | older | $12.99 | 268 91% | 8.0k | $104k (exactly $104,440) | Kairosoft Co.,Ltd |
 | Laptop Tycoon | older | $7.99 | 400 74% | 12k | $96k (exactly $95,880) | Roastery Games |
 | SERIES MAKERS TYCOON | older | $4.99 | 514 71% | 15k | $77k (exactly $76,946) | CREW Studio Krüger UG |
 | Colonize | $9.99 | 192 39% | 5.8k | $58k (exactly $57,542) | Rembrosoft | |
 | Eufloria Classic | $7.99 | 104 73% | 3.1k | $25k (exactly $24,929) | Omni Systems | |
 | East Trade Tycoon: Inheritance | $2.99 | 92 92% | 2.8k | $8.3k (exactly $8,252) | PandaUpStudio | |
 | Wet beach adventure | $3.99 | 38 86% | 1.1k | $4.5k (exactly $4,549) | Inspite, Bow GFA | |
 | Idle Streaming Bonanza | $4.99 | 30 93% | 900 | $4.5k (exactly $4,491) | Anarky Games | |
 | Central Bank | $18.99 | 5 0% | 150 | $2.8k (exactly $2,848) | Nabiulina software, Jerome Powerr studi… (Nabiulina software, Jerome Powerr studio, Rusalka Unreal Labs) | |
 | Gym Empire - Idle Gym Tycoon Management | $4.99 | 14 71% | 420 | $2.1k (exactly $2,096) | Chronik Spartan | |
 | Earth Simulator | $0.99 | 53 81% | 1.6k | $1.6k (exactly $1,574) | Gamesforfarm |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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