Do I ship it?

GamesProcedural GenerationProcedural Generation + Steampunk

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Steampunk Procedural Generation game?

Procedural Generation + Steampunk

Only 18 developers shipped a Steampunk Procedural Generation 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, Super Mining Mechs, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 57 more are announced, ×5.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $630, level with the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $240; 1 in 20 cleared $120k, ×200 the market median. Revenue is up 760% on the market; 57 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.0 times the market baseline, revenue up 760% on the market, 57 announced, ×5.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Procedural Generation + Steampunk
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 18
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $39k → $90k → $2.4k → $449 → $359 → $629 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Procedural Generation + Steampunk: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 18
Bottom 30% $238 (exactly $238)
Median $629 (exactly $629)
Top 25% $16k (exactly $16,189)
Top 5% $126k (exactly $125,898)
Developers, 2 yr 18
Released games 54
Announced 57
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
Typical price $5.99

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 760% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 7%, 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.

Procedural Generation
effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
Steampunk
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Procedural Generation; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Adventure, Character Customization, Co-op
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics, Atmospheric
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 87% positive over 1,281 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $240, median $630, 1 in 4 over $16k, 1 in 20 over $120k.

3 in 10 developers made under $240. 9 in 10 of the 8 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 57 games are announced against 10 developers who shipped in the last year, ×5.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + SnowFair11 devs · median $3.0k · 16 announced
  2. + Traditional RoguelikeFair71 devs · median $2.0k · 93 announced
  3. + DetectiveFair29 devs · median $1.5k · 30 announced
  4. + Word GameFair22 devs · median $1.3k · 23 announced
  5. + TypingFair26 devs · median $1.1k · 11 announced
  6. + IdlerFair98 devs · median $807 · 107 announced
  7. + LogicFair137 devs · median $478 · 149 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair57 devs · median $449 · 62 announced
  9. + Precision PlatformerFair49 devs · median $449 · 42 announced
  10. + Hidden ObjectFair58 devs · median $418 · 56 announced
  11. + Open World Survival CraftPoor odds31 devs · median $77k · 95 announced
  12. + TrainsPoor odds22 devs · median $30k · 35 announced

All 222 pairs on the Procedural Generation page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Sir, You Are Being Hunted older $19.99 2,875 79% 86k $1.7M (exactly $1,724,137) Big Robot Ltd
Black Skylands older $19.99 2,849 82% 85k $1.7M (exactly $1,708,545) Hungry Couch Games
Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles older $19.99 1,381 85% 41k $828k (exactly $828,186) Tomas Sala
Merchant of the Skies older $14.99 1,437 87% 43k $646k (exactly $646,219) Coldwild Games
Dream Engines: Nomad Cities older $29.99 552 73% 17k $497k (exactly $496,634) Suncrash
Swarm Grinder older $7.99 1,163 76% 35k $279k (exactly $278,771) Last Bite Games
Dungeons of Aether older $14.99 609 82% 18k $274k (exactly $273,867) Aether Studios, ampersandbear
The Swindle older $14.99 502 64% 15k $226k (exactly $225,749) Size Five Games
BORE BLASTERS older $9.99 709 80% 21k $212k (exactly $212,487) 8BitSkull
EVERSLAUGHT · EA older $19.99 336 61% 10k $201k (exactly $201,499) MobX GmbH
Super Mining Mechs $4.99 841 86% 25k $126k (exactly $125,898) Delayed Victory
ShipShaper: Falconeer Chronicles · EA $8.99 192 96% 5.8k $52k (exactly $51,782) Tomas Sala
The Last Citadel $14.99 70 85% 2.1k $31k (exactly $31,479) Honest Demon
Break Siege · EA $14.99 66 84% 2.0k $30k (exactly $29,680) FojoGames
Demiurges $14.99 36 88% 1.1k $16k (exactly $16,189) Berih
Reclaim The Sea $11.99 41 75% 1.2k $15k (exactly $14,748) 1LastGame
King’s Well $14.99 17 76% 510 $7.6k (exactly $7,645) Fire Brick Games
Rogue Runner $5.99 12 91% 360 $2.2k (exactly $2,156) 42nd Machine
Robugs $6.99 3 66% 90 $629 (exactly $629) Marcin Rodzon
The Legend of Cyber Cowboy $4.99 3 33% 90 $449 (exactly $449) Eastasiasoft Limited

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