Do I ship it?

Games › Tower Defense › Tower Defense + Magic

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Magic Tower Defense?

Tower Defense + Magic

Of 144 developers who shipped a Magic Tower Defense 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.. 295 more are announced, ×3.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 4 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $900, ×1.9 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $280k, ×606 the market median. Revenue is up 20% on the market; 295 games are announced against 91 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.9 times the market baseline, revenue up 20% on the market, 295 announced, ×3.2 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Tower Defense + Magic
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 144
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $359 → $3.4k → $599 → $896 → $2.2k → $900 → $1.1k (still earning) → $716 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Tower Defense + Magic: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 144
Bottom 30% $180 (exactly $180)
Median $897 (exactly $897)
Top 25% $6.5k (exactly $6,534)
Top 5% $288k (exactly $287,856)
Developers, 2 yr 144
Released games 355
Announced 295
Effort 4 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $7.49

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 65% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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.

Tower Defense
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Magic
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
4 / 10 · mid 2D, writing-heavy, or simple 3D
Systems
Tower Defense; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Roguelite, Roguelike
Price point
$7.49 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Top-Down
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $7.49.

The top 10 games average 79% positive over 17,855 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $180, median $900, 1 in 4 over $6.5k, 1 in 20 over $280k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 66 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 295 games are announced against 91 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.2 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Tower Defense with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + DwarvesStrong odds10 devs · median $6.7k · 9 announced
  2. + MiningFair33 devs · median $6.3k · 45 announced
  3. + Survival HorrorFair14 devs · median $1.9k · 16 announced
  4. + CapitalismFair15 devs · median $1.6k · 20 announced
  5. + TanksFair14 devs · median $1.5k · 13 announced
  6. + MechsFair24 devs · median $1.5k · 24 announced
  7. + IdlerFair108 devs · median $1.2k · 136 announced
  8. + PuzzleFair64 devs · median $1.0k · 67 announced
  9. + Gun CustomizationFair26 devs · median $958 · 32 announced
  10. + LogicFair40 devs · median $955 · 44 announced
  11. + On-Rails ShooterFair11 devs · median $899 · 12 announced
  12. + Psychological HorrorFair8 devs · median $897 · 8 announced

All 150 pairs on the Tower Defense page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Legion TD 2 - Multiplayer Tower Defense 2021 · $9.5M Kingdom Rush 5: Alliance TD 2024 · $6.2M Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap 2025 · $3.6M Becastled 2025 · $3.2M Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense 2016 · $3.0M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Legion TD 2 - Multiplayer Tower Defense older $24.99 12,607 86% 378k $9.5M (exactly $9,451,468) AutoAttack Games
Kingdom Rush 5: Alliance TD older $19.99 10,363 87% 311k $6.2M (exactly $6,214,691) Ironhide Game Studio
Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap $29.99 4,053 69% 122k $3.6M (exactly $3,646,484) Robot Entertainment
Becastled $19.99 5,349 81% 160k $3.2M (exactly $3,207,795) Mana Potion Studios
Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense older $9.99 10,011 96% 300k $3.0M (exactly $3,000,297) Ironhide Game Studio
Rogue Tower older $14.99 5,772 82% 173k $2.6M (exactly $2,595,668) Die of Death Games
Lessaria: Fantasy Kingdom Sim $24.90 2,938 77% 88k $2.2M (exactly $2,194,686) Rockbee Team
Orcs Must Die! older $9.99 6,663 95% 200k $2.0M (exactly $1,996,901) Robot Entertainment
Deathtrap older $19.99 1,858 84% 56k $1.1M (exactly $1,114,243) NeocoreGames
GemCraft - Chasing Shadows older $9.99 3,659 95% 110k $1.1M (exactly $1,096,602) Game in a Bottle
Titanium Court $14.99 1,094 94% 33k $492k (exactly $491,972) AP Thomson
Crown of Greed $19.99 680 60% 20k $408k (exactly $407,796) BLUM Entertainment
Cubic Cosmos $12.99 941 92% 28k $367k (exactly $366,708) Inkstone Atelier
There Are No Orcs $8.99 1,188 93% 36k $320k (exactly $320,404) BaseTrade Studio
Castle Craft $19.99 480 82% 14k $288k (exactly $287,856) Twin Earth
Poly TD $7.99 587 82% 18k $141k (exactly $140,704) Naroot
Legacy of Defense $7.99 545 72% 16k $131k (exactly $130,636) Enter the Game Studios

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