Games › Puzzle › Puzzle + Military
Should I ship a Military Puzzle game?
Puzzle + Military
Of 33 developers who shipped a Military Puzzle 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.. 31 more are announced.
Verdict: dead, for a 6 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $150 in the last 2 years and $240 over 4, against a market of $630 for a 6 / 10 build. 18 developers shipped in the last year and 31 games are announced.
| Bottom 30% | $60 (exactly $60) |
|---|---|
| Median | $150 (exactly $150) |
| Top 25% | $2.2k (exactly $2,158) |
| Top 5% | $2.0M (exactly $1,994,749) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 33 |
| Released games | 98 |
| Announced | 31 |
| Effort | 6 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 475% on the market, supply 20% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
- Systems
- Puzzle; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Simulation, Tactical
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Realistic, Atmospheric
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 41% positive over 26,892 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $60. 8 in 10 of the 19 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 31 games are announced against 18 developers who shipped in the last year.
Adjacent niches
Puzzle with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + Medical SimFair
- + Roguelike DeckbuilderFair
- + Escape RoomFair
- + VampiresFair
- + CatsFair
- + DemonsFair
- + God GameFair
- + RomanceFair
- + AutomationFair
- + Tower DefenseFair
- + LemmingsFair
Comparable games
Tactical Breach Wizards 2024 · $6.9M 
Half-Life: Opposing Force 1999 · $3.8M 
Shadow Tactics: Aiko's Choice 2021 · $2.4M 
Gunsmith Simulator 2024 · $2.4M 
BidKing 2026 · $2.0M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Tactical Breach Wizards | older | $19.99 | 11,485 97% | 345k | $6.9M (exactly $6,887,554) | Suspicious Developments |
| | Half-Life: Opposing Force | older | $4.99 | 25,448 95% | 763k | $3.8M (exactly $3,809,566) | Gearbox Software |
| | Shadow Tactics: Aiko's Choice | older | $19.99 | 3,965 93% | 119k | $2.4M (exactly $2,377,810) | Mimimi Games |
| | Gunsmith Simulator | $24.99 | 3,165 84% | 95k | $2.4M (exactly $2,372,800) | GameHunters | |
| | BidKing | $2.99 | 22,238 33% | 667k | $2.0M (exactly $1,994,749) | MindSurge Network & Games | |
 | Unity of Command II | older | $29.99 | 2,042 79% | 61k | $1.8M (exactly $1,837,187) | 2x2 Games, Croteam |
 | NITE Team 4 - Military Hacking Division | older | $19.99 | 1,018 90% | 31k | $610k (exactly $610,495) | Alice & Smith |
 | Gunsmith | · EA older | $19.99 | 1,004 71% | 30k | $602k (exactly $602,099) | SCT |
 | Knights in Tight Spaces | $19.99 | 831 69% | 25k | $498k (exactly $498,351) | Ground Shatter | |
 | 63 Days | $29.99 | 413 72% | 12k | $372k (exactly $371,576) | Destructive Creations | |
 | Shellshock | $2.99 | 104 89% | 3.1k | $9.3k (exactly $9,329) | Man the Barricades Ltd | |
 | Dungeon Dev | $3.99 | 63 85% | 1.9k | $7.5k (exactly $7,541) | Team ETTU | |
 | Paracom | $10.99 | 21 90% | 630 | $6.9k (exactly $6,924) | Steel Widow Klan | |
 | Briefcase | $3.99 | 39 100% | 1.2k | $4.7k (exactly $4,668) | Yuri Antunes | |
 | Terminal Error | $8.99 | 8 12% | 240 | $2.2k (exactly $2,158) | Endspace Studios | |
 | To the Stars Idle | $2.99 | 10 80% | 300 | $897 (exactly $897) | Denys Osypenko |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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