Do I ship it?

Games › Strategy RPG › Strategy RPG + Roguelite

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Roguelite Strategy RPG?

Strategy RPG + Roguelite

Of 273 developers who shipped a Roguelite Strategy RPG 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.. 439 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $2.1k, ×3.3 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $330k, ×536 the market median. Revenue is down 55% on the market; 439 games are announced against 164 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 3.3 times the market baseline, revenue down 55% on the market, 439 announced, ×2.7 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Strategy RPG + Roguelite
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 273
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.6k → $13k → $24k → $13k → $2.0k → $3.1k → $1.1k (still earning) → $599 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Strategy RPG + Roguelite: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 273
Bottom 30% $359 (exactly $359)
Median $2.1k (exactly $2,098)
Top 25% $20k (exactly $20,380)
Top 5% $336k (exactly $336,432)
Developers, 2 yr 273
Released games 544
Announced 439
Effort 5 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 55% on the market, supply 50% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 9%, 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.

Strategy RPG
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
Roguelite
effort 3 / 10 · high · effort 3 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
Systems
Strategy RPG, Roguelite; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, RPG, Roguelike
Price point
$7.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
3 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Pixel Graphics
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 71% positive over 87,078 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $360, median $2.1k, 1 in 4 over $20k, 1 in 20 over $330k.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 8 in 10 of the 121 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 439 games are announced against 164 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Strategy RPG with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + SportsFair23 devs · median $4.7k · 26 announced
  2. + SwordplayFair22 devs · median $2.7k · 28 announced
  3. + Bullet HellFair40 devs · median $2.0k · 31 announced
  4. + EconomyFair95 devs · median $2.0k · 128 announced
  5. + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair8 devs · median $1.6k · 13 announced
  6. + ConspiracyFair19 devs · median $1.2k · 21 announced
  7. + Shop KeeperFair21 devs · median $987 · 25 announced
  8. + 2D PlatformerFair108 devs · median $479 · 113 announced
  9. + Point & ClickFair43 devs · median $450 · 47 announced
  10. + Turn-BasedPoor odds58 devs · median $63k · 76 announced
  11. + Dating SimPoor odds30 devs · median $35k · 41 announced
  12. + 4XPoor odds15 devs · median $31k · 33 announced

All 158 pairs on the Strategy RPG page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

The Scroll of Taiwu : Beyond The Dome 2026 · $51M For The King 2018 · $19M Loop Hero 2021 · $15M 觅长生 2023 · $12M The Last Spell 2023 · $9.9M
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
The Scroll of Taiwu : Beyond The Dome $29.99 56,535 65% 1.7M $51M (exactly $50,864,540) ConchShip Games
For The King older $19.99 31,038 87% 931k $19M (exactly $18,613,489) IronOak Games
Loop Hero older $14.99 33,816 92% 1.0M $15M (exactly $15,207,055) Four Quarters
觅长生 older $14.99 27,072 93% 812k $12M (exactly $12,174,278) Chalcedony Network
The Last Spell older $24.99 13,260 91% 398k $9.9M (exactly $9,941,022) Ishtar Games
King Arthur: Knight's Tale older $44.99 6,722 83% 202k $9.1M (exactly $9,072,683) NeocoreGames
Magicraft $15.99 15,051 92% 452k $7.2M (exactly $7,219,965) Wave Games
Black Book older $24.99 5,306 93% 159k $4.0M (exactly $3,977,908) Morteshka
Inkbound older $29.99 3,592 86% 108k $3.2M (exactly $3,231,722) Shiny Shoe
Shogun Showdown older $14.99 6,197 95% 186k $2.8M (exactly $2,786,791) Roboatino
Dwarves: Glory, Death and Loot $14.99 2,588 82% 78k $1.2M (exactly $1,163,824) Hamma Studios
Lost Eidolons: Veil of the Witch $24.99 1,293 81% 39k $969k (exactly $969,362) Ocean Drive Studio, Inc.
Multiverse Loot Hunter $11.99 2,585 80% 78k $930k (exactly $929,824) 游戏养家工作室
Metal Slug Tactics $24.99 1,152 76% 35k $864k (exactly $863,654) Leikir Studio
再刷一把2：金色传说 $9.99 2,748 44% 82k $824k (exactly $823,576) 滑稽工作室
Destiny of Immortal · EA $11.99 1,763 80% 53k $634k (exactly $634,151) LeiYun Games
Dream of Corpse Lady $9.99 2,115 93% 63k $634k (exactly $633,866) HT3 Studio
Lootbound $14.99 1,248 77% 37k $561k (exactly $561,226) ArtDock

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