Do I ship it?

Games › MOBA › MOBA + Sci-fi

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Sci-fi MOBA?

MOBA + Sci-fi

Only 12 developers shipped a paid Sci-fi MOBA in the last 2 years, too few for firm odds: the middle one made est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.; the top game by est. revenue, STARVAULT VR, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 5 in 10 of the games here are free to play and sit outside these figures. 38 more are announced, ×6.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: dead, for a 9 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $360 in the last 2 years and $360 over 4, against a market of $1.3k for a 9 / 10 build. 6 developers shipped in the last year and 38 games are announced.

Deciding numbers: median 0.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 975% on the market, 38 announced, ×6.3 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
MOBA + Sci-fi
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 12
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $446 → $179 → $299 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for MOBA + Sci-fi: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 12
Bottom 30% $179 (exactly $179)
Median $359 (exactly $359)
Top 25% $3.9k (exactly $3,897)
Top 5% $49k (exactly $49,480)
Developers, 2 yr 12
Released games 69
Announced 38
Effort 9 / 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 up 975% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.

Free games: 54%, 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

MOBA
effort 9 / 10 · low · competitive netcode plus a balanced hero roster
Sci-fi
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
9 / 10 · studio only
Systems
MOBA
Price point
$4.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 10 games average 79% positive over 167 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 $360, 1 in 4 over $3.8k, 1 in 20 over $49k.

3 in 10 developers made under $180. 7 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 38 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×6.3 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RoguelitePoor odds10 devs · median $3.9k · 15 announced
  2. + AdventurePoor odds12 devs · median $3.1k · 44 announced
  3. + Tower DefensePoor odds7 devs · median $3.1k · 15 announced
  4. + FantasyPoor odds18 devs · median $2.7k · 85 announced
  5. + Character CustomizationPoor odds10 devs · median $1.8k · 40 announced
  6. + Online Co-OpPoor odds19 devs · median $600 · 57 announced
  7. + Co-opPoor odds21 devs · median $479 · 53 announced
  8. + ActionPoor odds53 devs · median $359 · 170 announced
  9. + SimulationPoor odds12 devs · median $359 · 33 announced
  10. + RPGPoor odds23 devs · median $180 · 73 announced
  11. + Hero ShooterDead5 devs · median $49k · 24 announced
  12. + SurvivalDead6 devs · median $31k · 22 announced

All 50 pairs on the MOBA page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III 2017 · $17M Awesomenauts 2012 · $7.1M Command & Conquer™ 4 Tiberian Twilight 2010 · $1.0M WARSHIFT 2016 · $193k VOIDCRISIS 2022 · $110k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III older $39.99 14,436 50% 433k $17M (exactly $17,318,869) Relic Entertainment, Feral Interactive… (Relic Entertainment, Feral Interactive (Mac), Feral Interactive (Linux))
Awesomenauts older $19.99 11,822 84% 355k $7.1M (exactly $7,089,653) Ronimo Games
Command & Conquer™ 4 Tiberian Twilight older $6.96 4,832 16% 145k $1.0M (exactly $1,008,922) EA Los Angeles
WARSHIFT older $9.99 643 71% 19k $193k (exactly $192,707) Cyril Megem
VOIDCRISIS older $29.99 122 54% 3.7k $110k (exactly $109,763) HEXADRIVE Inc.
SPACECOM older $9.99 197 62% 5.9k $59k (exactly $59,041) Flow Combine
GoD Factory: Wingmen older $9.99 189 62% 5.7k $57k (exactly $56,643) Nine Dots Studio
STARVAULT VR $24.99 66 89% 2.0k $49k (exactly $49,480) Theia Games
Girl Frame $14.99 69 68% 2.1k $31k (exactly $31,029) Meow Run, Cat Shine
VOLTED older $4.99 151 85% 4.5k $23k (exactly $22,605) Betterburg
Enemy Inside · EA $12.99 10 100% 300 $3.9k (exactly $3,897) Six Ways Games
Harpoon Arena $5.99 10 90% 300 $1.8k (exactly $1,797) FairGoose
Inkoid $4.99 3 100% 90 $449 (exactly $449) Spacecowboy
Attack on Steel $3.99 3 0% 90 $359 (exactly $359) Filet Studio
War to the Core · EA $9.99 1 100% 30 $300 (exactly $300) Forgotten Mines
星宇战舰 Astral-Battlecraft $4.99 2 0% 60 $299 (exactly $299) Jilin Code Rabbit Network Game Co.,Ltd.
Over Heroes $2.99 2 100% 60 $179 (exactly $179) Dog On God
Droned $1.99 1 100% 30 $60 (exactly $60) Stonegauge Studios

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