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Should I ship a Zombie Roguelike?
Roguelike + Zombies
Of 161 developers who shipped a Zombie Roguelike 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.. 213 more are announced, ×2.6 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.5k, ×2.4 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $200k, ×333 the market median. Revenue is down 10% on the market; 213 games are announced against 81 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $299 (exactly $299) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.5k (exactly $1,525) |
| Top 25% | $7.4k (exactly $7,368) |
| Top 5% | $209k (exactly $208,986) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 161 |
| Released games | 385 |
| Announced | 213 |
| 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 down 10% on the market, supply as many developers as the period before.
Free games: 8%, 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
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Roguelike; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Roguelite, Action Roguelike
- Price point
- $5.99 typical · top 25% priced $14.99 or above
- Art
- 4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D, Pixel Graphics
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $14.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.
The top 10 games average 83% positive over 40,918 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 85 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 213 games are announced against 81 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.6 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Roguelike with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + JRPGFair
- + 6DOFFair
- + Grand StrategyFair
- + VampiresFair
- + DogsFair
- + Artificial IntelligenceFair
- + SuperheroFair
- + IdlerFair
- + ArcadeFair
- + Walking SimulatorFair
- + 2D PlatformerFair
- + Traditional RoguelikeFair
Comparable games
Deadzone: Rogue 2025 · $11M 
Yet Another Zombie Survivors 2026 · $6.4M 
Book of Demons 2018 · $6.0M 
Death Road to Canada 2016 · $4.1M 
Terminus: Zombie Survivors 2024 · $2.6M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Deadzone: Rogue | $24.99 | 15,041 82% | 451k | $11M (exactly $11,276,238) | Prophecy Games | |
| | Yet Another Zombie Survivors | $14.99 | 14,123 91% | 424k | $6.4M (exactly $6,351,113) | Awesome Games Studio | |
| | Book of Demons | older | $24.99 | 8,010 91% | 240k | $6.0M (exactly $6,005,097) | Thing Trunk |
| | Death Road to Canada | older | $14.99 | 9,123 92% | 274k | $4.1M (exactly $4,102,613) | Rocketcat Games, Madgarden |
| | Terminus: Zombie Survivors | older | $19.99 | 4,340 94% | 130k | $2.6M (exactly $2,602,698) | Longplay Studios |
 | Dead Estate | older | $14.99 | 5,778 95% | 173k | $2.6M (exactly $2,598,367) | Milkbar Lads |
 | Knock on the Coffin Lid | older | $24.99 | 2,727 82% | 82k | $2.0M (exactly $2,044,432) | RedBoon |
 | Dead Age | older | $14.99 | 4,407 83% | 132k | $2.0M (exactly $1,981,828) | Silent Dreams |
 | ZOMBI | older | $19.99 | 2,964 64% | 89k | $1.8M (exactly $1,777,511) | Straight Right |
 | SKYHILL | older | $9.99 | 4,736 78% | 142k | $1.4M (exactly $1,419,379) | Mandragora |
 | Deadly Days: Roadtrip | · EA | $14.99 | 2,855 87% | 86k | $1.3M (exactly $1,283,894) | Pixelsplit |
 | R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program | $14.99 | 2,727 76% | 82k | $1.2M (exactly $1,226,332) | WarmCore Studio | |
 | GOD FORSAKEN | $13.99 | 1,728 67% | 52k | $725k (exactly $725,242) | insight studio | |
 | Section 13 | $19.99 | 770 70% | 23k | $462k (exactly $461,769) | Ocean Drive Studio, Inc. | |
 | FatalZone | $6.99 | 2,125 66% | 64k | $446k (exactly $445,612) | Midhard Games | |
 | Reap and Rush | $14.99 | 622 77% | 19k | $280k (exactly $279,713) | Beijing Pacifier Technology | |
 | House of Necrosis | $11.99 | 581 94% | 17k | $209k (exactly $208,986) | Warkus | |
 | Dark Light: Survivor | · EA | $16.99 | 346 75% | 10k | $176k (exactly $176,356) | Mirari&Co. |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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