Do I ship it?

GamesRogueliteRoguelite + Science

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Science Roguelite?

Roguelite + Science

Of 26 developers who shipped a Science Roguelite 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.. 47 more are announced, ×2.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 3 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $630, ×1.3 the market's $480 for a 3 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $50; 1 in 20 cleared $190k, ×414 the market median. Revenue is up 180% on the market; 47 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 180% on the market, 47 announced, ×2.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Roguelite + Science
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 26
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.3k → $11k → $2.3k → $628 → $987 (still earning) → $1.9k (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Roguelite + Science: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 26
Bottom 30% $0 (exactly $0)
Median $628 (exactly $628)
Top 25% $4.8k (exactly $4,823)
Top 5% $197k (exactly $196,677)
Developers, 2 yr 26
Released games 58
Announced 47
Effort 3 / 10
AI-buildability High
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 180% on the market, supply 45% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 12%, 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 high: the lowest rating among its tags.

Roguelite
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band
Science
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
3 / 10 · small 2D action, light systems
Systems
Roguelite; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Simulation, Strategy, Roguelike
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $17.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, 3D, Relaxing
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $17.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 92% positive over 3,813 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $50, median $630, 1 in 4 over $4.8k, 1 in 20 over $190k.

3 in 10 developers made under $50. 9 in 10 of the 14 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 47 games are announced against 16 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + Real-TimeFair11 devs · median $11k · 14 announced
  2. + ProgrammingFair24 devs · median $9.3k · 28 announced
  3. + VampiresFair60 devs · median $4.8k · 62 announced
  4. + TypingFair29 devs · median $2.4k · 34 announced
  5. + Grand StrategyFair21 devs · median $2.0k · 23 announced
  6. + IdlerFair166 devs · median $1.5k · 235 announced
  7. + DogsFair30 devs · median $1.3k · 22 announced
  8. + Walking SimulatorFair23 devs · median $1.1k · 23 announced
  9. + Score AttackFair344 devs · median $719 · 450 announced
  10. + Point & ClickFair94 devs · median $600 · 121 announced
  11. + LogicFair144 devs · median $599 · 143 announced
  12. + DwarvesPoor odds21 devs · median $74k · 24 announced

All 229 pairs on the Roguelite page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Star Birds · EA $19.99 2,990 92% 90k $1.8M (exactly $1,793,103) Toukana Interactive
Genesis Alpha One Deluxe Edition older $19.99 1,566 73% 47k $939k (exactly $939,130) Radiation Blue
Scavenger SV-4 older $14.99 653 91% 20k $294k (exactly $293,654) Deric Ruhl
Genome Guardian older $11.99 711 92% 21k $256k (exactly $255,747) Alpherior
Genome Guardian 2 · EA $15.99 410 95% 12k $197k (exactly $196,677) Alpherior
Crawling Lab older $4.99 713 83% 21k $107k (exactly $106,736) eTIRUe
Cell Command $17.99 159 97% 4.8k $86k (exactly $85,812) Alpherior
Tesla Force older $16.99 148 77% 4.4k $75k (exactly $75,436) 10tons Ltd
Evolve Lab · EA $14.99 69 94% 2.1k $31k (exactly $31,029) SiRen Games
Periapsis: Eclipse · EA $14.99 53 71% 1.6k $24k (exactly $23,834) Skytrellis Games
C.A.R.S. - Creating A Ridiculous Shitshow $7.99 40 97% 1.2k $9.6k (exactly $9,588) 3Dads Studios
Orebits $6.99 42 66% 1.3k $8.8k (exactly $8,807) Upgraded Studio
MINERALS: Deep Core Mining $6.99 23 78% 690 $4.8k (exactly $4,823) THINK & FEEL
Virus Rush + Hazard of the Ages $11.99 13 100% 390 $4.7k (exactly $4,676) STRANGER
IMRY $4.99 14 85% 420 $2.1k (exactly $2,096) Igor Yakunin

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