Do I ship it?

GamesTradingTrading + Medieval

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Medieval Trading game?

Trading + Medieval

Of 56 developers who shipped a Medieval Trading game 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.. 154 more are announced, ×3.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $7.2k, ×15 the market's $480 for a 4 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $2.3k; 1 in 20 cleared $370k, ×794 the market median. Revenue is down 20% on the market; 154 games are announced against 39 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 15.1 times the market baseline, revenue down 20% on the market, 154 announced, ×3.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Trading + Medieval
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 56
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $4.0k → $5.4k → $4.6k → $142k → $40k → $7.2k → $5.2k (still earning) → $5.4k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Trading + Medieval: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 56
Bottom 30% $2.2k (exactly $2,249)
Median $7.2k (exactly $7,194)
Top 25% $40k (exactly $39,927)
Top 5% $377k (exactly $377,211)
Developers, 2 yr 56
Released games 136
Announced 154
Effort 4 / 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 20% on the market, supply 130% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 24%, 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.

Trading
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Medieval
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
Trading; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Resource Management, Simulation, Economy
Price point
$9.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 83% positive over 10,268 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $2.3k, median $7.2k, 1 in 4 over $39k, 1 in 20 over $370k.

3 in 10 developers made under $2.3k. 6 in 10 of the 21 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 154 games are announced against 39 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + MiningFair32 devs · median $12k · 33 announced
  2. + Score AttackFair13 devs · median $600 · 13 announced
  3. + MMORPGPoor odds6 devs · median $206k · 42 announced
  4. + Character CustomizationPoor odds26 devs · median $60k · 137 announced
  5. + Online Co-OpPoor odds23 devs · median $47k · 84 announced
  6. + Co-opPoor odds24 devs · median $47k · 82 announced
  7. + FlightPoor odds6 devs · median $36k · 21 announced
  8. + SportsPoor odds11 devs · median $34k · 14 announced
  9. + CollectathonPoor odds28 devs · median $30k · 65 announced
  10. + PhysicsPoor odds23 devs · median $27k · 71 announced
  11. + DrivingPoor odds23 devs · median $24k · 48 announced
  12. + LootPoor odds23 devs · median $23k · 60 announced

All 109 pairs on the Trading page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator older $19.99 37,870 92% 1.1M $23M (exactly $22,710,639) niceplay games
The Guild 3 older $29.99 7,120 60% 214k $6.4M (exactly $6,405,864) Purple Lamp, GolemLabs
Old Market Simulator $9.99 4,333 87% 130k $1.3M (exactly $1,298,600) Alcedo Games
The Guild II Renaissance older $9.99 3,540 82% 106k $1.1M (exactly $1,060,938) Runeforge Game Studio
Grand Ages: Medieval older $19.99 1,565 47% 47k $939k (exactly $938,530) Gaming Minds Studios
Let Them Trade $17.99 1,070 84% 32k $577k (exactly $577,479) Spaceflower
SAELIG · EA older $14.99 1,124 86% 34k $505k (exactly $505,463) Atorcoppe Games
Shoppe Keep 2 older $9.99 1,527 57% 46k $458k (exactly $457,642) Strange Fire
Potion Tycoon $19.99 629 71% 19k $377k (exactly $377,211) Snowhound Games
Shoppe Keep older $4.99 2,008 68% 60k $301k (exactly $300,598) Strange Fire
Medieval Crafter: Blacksmith $11.99 745 76% 22k $268k (exactly $267,976) Compact Core Games
Concubine · EA $14.99 517 81% 16k $232k (exactly $232,495) Upgrade Entertainment
TRADESMAN: Deal to Dealer $4.99 1,528 78% 46k $229k (exactly $228,742) AZAMATIKA
Bones and Coins $7.99 638 72% 19k $153k (exactly $152,929) Troyd Games
Cozy Keep: Farm, Craft, Manage · EA $14.99 315 93% 9.5k $142k (exactly $141,656) Unbossed Games
A Merchant's Promise · EA $14.99 300 86% 9.0k $135k (exactly $134,910) Game Draft Studio
Medieval Horse Dealer Simulator $17.99 193 89% 5.8k $104k (exactly $104,162) One Slice of Pizza Games

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