Do I ship it?

GamesThird-Person ShooterThird-Person Shooter + Modern

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Modern-Day Third-Person Shooter?

Third-Person Shooter + Modern

Of 24 developers who shipped a Modern-Day Third-Person Shooter 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.. 55 more are announced, ×5.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.3k, ×0.9 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $420; 1 in 20 cleared $830k, ×556 the market median. Revenue is down 50% on the market; 55 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 0.9 times the market baseline, revenue down 50% on the market, 55 announced, ×5.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Third-Person Shooter + Modern
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 24
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $78k → $1.8k → $1.8k → $419 → $6.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Third-Person Shooter + Modern: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 24
Bottom 30% $419 (exactly $419)
Median $1.3k (exactly $1,319)
Top 25% $13k (exactly $13,486)
Top 5% $833k (exactly $833,166)
Developers, 2 yr 24
Released games 80
Announced 55
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
Typical price $7.99

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 50% on the market, supply 15% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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.

Third-Person Shooter
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Modern
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
Third-Person Shooter; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Shooter, Adventure
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Realistic, Cinematic
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $7.99.

The top 10 games average 94% positive over 112,932 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $420, median $1.3k, 1 in 4 over $13k, 1 in 20 over $830k.

3 in 10 developers made under $420. 8 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 55 games are announced against 11 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Third-Person Shooter with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + RhythmStrong odds6 devs · median $3.3k · 6 announced
  2. + WesternFair15 devs · median $1.4k · 16 announced
  3. + CollectathonLong shot19 devs · median $599 · 20 announced
  4. + Time ManagementLong shot15 devs · median $538 · 12 announced
  5. + Walking SimulatorLong shot27 devs · median $479 · 27 announced
  6. + Class-BasedPoor odds11 devs · median $13k · 53 announced
  7. + Creature CollectorPoor odds12 devs · median $13k · 15 announced
  8. + DinosaursPoor odds8 devs · median $9.0k · 14 announced
  9. + MechsPoor odds38 devs · median $7.2k · 63 announced
  10. + Alternate HistoryPoor odds12 devs · median $6.9k · 70 announced
  11. + Level EditorPoor odds10 devs · median $6.9k · 14 announced
  12. + CraftingPoor odds65 devs · median $5.1k · 156 announced

All 163 pairs on the Third-Person Shooter page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Resident Evil Requiem $69.99 106,931 95% 3.2M $225M (exactly $224,523,021) CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® II older $69.99 26,543 45% 796k $56M (exactly $55,732,337) Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Beenox,… (Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Beenox, Treyarch, High Moon Studios, Sledgehammer Games, Demonware, Toys for Bob)
Alpha Protocol™ older $19.99 3,420 83% 103k $2.1M (exactly $2,050,974) Obsidian Entertainment
Tomb Raider: Legend older $6.99 5,430 87% 163k $1.1M (exactly $1,138,671) Crystal Dynamics
Into The Flames older $19.99 1,548 80% 46k $928k (exactly $928,336) Fully Involved Game Studios
Instruments of Destruction older $19.99 1,429 91% 43k $857k (exactly $856,971) Radiangames
近畿霊務局 - Kinki Spiritual Affairs Bureau $9.99 2,780 92% 83k $833k (exactly $833,166) Noto Muteki
Last Remains · EA $19.99 914 51% 27k $548k (exactly $548,126) Earn Alliance
Grandpa High on Retro $7.99 2,068 88% 62k $496k (exactly $495,700) Ashnell Games
GunSoul Girl 2 · EA older $9.99 939 73% 28k $281k (exactly $281,418) MoeGame
Antikiller $8.99 56 64% 1.7k $15k (exactly $15,103) Qbik Interactive
Shadows of Soldiers $9.99 45 75% 1.4k $13k (exactly $13,486) Ghost in the Wire
Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins Enhanced $6.99 33 75% 990 $6.9k (exactly $6,920) KDV Games
Great Tough Bikini 6 $2.99 74 70% 2.2k $6.6k (exactly $6,638) nStarcube
Climber Girl $7.99 19 36% 570 $4.6k (exactly $4,554) AlterLab Development
Bridge Hunter · EA $9.99 12 100% 360 $3.6k (exactly $3,596) Double Light

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