Do I ship it?

GamesSwordplaySwordplay + Post-apocalyptic

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Post-apocalyptic Swordplay game?

Swordplay + Post-apocalyptic

Only 9 developers shipped a Post-apocalyptic Swordplay game 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, Beast of Reincarnation, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 41 more are announced, ×5.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $840, ×1.3 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $150; 1 in 20 cleared $7.5M, ×12002 the market median. Revenue is up 699105% on the market; 41 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 699105% on the market, 41 announced, ×5.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Swordplay + Post-apocalyptic
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 9
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $50k → $3.6k → $0 → $35k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Swordplay + Post-apocalyptic: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 9
Bottom 30% $150 (exactly $150)
Median $836 (exactly $836)
Top 25% $35k (exactly $34,783)
Top 5% $7.5M (exactly $7,537,144)
Developers, 2 yr 9
Released games 35
Announced 41
Effort 6 / 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 too few recent games to read momentum, supply 135% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 6%, 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.

Swordplay
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
Post-apocalyptic
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Swordplay
Price point
$9.99 typical
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

Fewer than 10 games in the last 2 years; sentiment and price figures use the all window.

The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.

The top 10 games average 88% positive over 180,046 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $150, median $840, 1 in 4 over $34k, 1 in 20 over $7.5M.

3 in 10 developers made under $150. 41 games are announced against 7 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Visual NovelFair13 devs · median $5.7k · 10 announced
  2. + Strategy RPGFair22 devs · median $2.7k · 28 announced
  3. + IdlerFair9 devs · median $2.7k · 4 announced
  4. + Auto BattlerFair13 devs · median $1.1k · 8 announced
  5. + DeckbuildingFair11 devs · median $599 · 13 announced
  6. + Shoot 'Em UpLong shot13 devs · median $300 · 5 announced
  7. + SamuraiPoor odds12 devs · median $80k · 21 announced
  8. + JRPGPoor odds16 devs · median $14k · 22 announced
  9. + Female ProtagonistPoor odds39 devs · median $13k · 79 announced
  10. + FightingPoor odds13 devs · median $13k · 33 announced
  11. + Co-opPoor odds19 devs · median $12k · 53 announced
  12. + Base BuildingPoor odds12 devs · median $9.0k · 26 announced

All 115 pairs on the Swordplay page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Kenshi older $29.99 98,451 95% 3.0M $89M (exactly $88,576,365) Lo-Fi Games
Ghostrunner older $29.99 46,818 91% 1.4M $42M (exactly $42,122,155) One More Level, 3D Realms, Slipgate Iro… (One More Level, 3D Realms, Slipgate Ironworks™, All in! Games)
Last Oasis · EA older $29.99 20,443 63% 613k $18M (exactly $18,392,567) Donkey Crew
Ghostrunner 2 older $39.99 7,981 80% 239k $9.6M (exactly $9,574,806) One More Level
Beast of Reincarnation $59.99 4,188 56% 126k $7.5M (exactly $7,537,144) GAME FREAK inc.
1348 Ex Voto $24.99 705 53% 21k $529k (exactly $528,538) Sedleo
Project MIKHAIL: A Muv-Luv War Story older $19.99 706 54% 21k $423k (exactly $423,388) aNCHOR Inc., fuzz, Inc.
Unsouled older $19.99 265 72% 8.0k $159k (exactly $158,920) Megusta Game
Feral Blue · EA older $19.99 239 51% 7.2k $143k (exactly $143,328) Snowbird Games
Knights Within · EA older $17.99 250 95% 7.5k $135k (exactly $134,925) Indecision Labs
Sancticide $19.99 58 62% 1.7k $35k (exactly $34,783) Red Square Games, Sylen Studio
ASHGARD: Infinity Mask · EA $9.99 13 84% 390 $3.9k (exactly $3,896) ASHGARD GAMES
One True Path - Part 1 $1.99 14 100% 420 $836 (exactly $836) InnerspaceVR
Fur and Void $9.99 2 0% 60 $599 (exactly $599) DFS
Residual Wilds $4.99 1 100% 30 $150 (exactly $150) Magic Art Hat
Battlement $4.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) Henkdg
Monster Survival $7.99 0 0% 0 $0 (exactly $0) B Rees

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