Do I ship it?

Games › RTS › RTS + Tabletop

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Tabletop RTS?

RTS + Tabletop

Of 25 developers who shipped a Tabletop RTS 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.. 33 more are announced.

Verdict: fair, for a 7 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $1.9k, ×1.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, with 3 in 10 under $90. Revenue is up 860% on the market; 33 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.3 times the market baseline, revenue up 860% on the market, 33 announced, ×1.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
RTS + Tabletop
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 25
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $3.0k → $13k → $1.9k → $90 → $1.9k (still earning) → $505 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for RTS + Tabletop: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 25
Bottom 30% $90 (exactly $90)
Median $1.9k (exactly $1,918)
Top 25% $4.3k (exactly $4,341)
Top 5% $175k (exactly $174,680)
Developers, 2 yr 25
Released games 59
Announced 33
Effort 7 / 10
AI-buildability Low
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 860% on the market, supply 90% 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 low: the lowest rating among its tags.

RTS
effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
Tabletop
effort 2 / 10 · high · effort 2 sits in the high band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
Systems
RTS, Tabletop; 7 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Real Time Tactics, Tactical
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $19.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $19.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 86% positive over 2,649 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $90, median $1.9k, 1 in 4 over $4.3k, 1 in 20 over $170k.

3 in 10 developers made under $90. All of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 33 games are announced against 17 developers who shipped in the last year.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + RomeFair12 devs · median $64k · 13 announced
  2. + Outbreak SimFair16 devs · median $2.6k · 14 announced
  3. + HorrorFair20 devs · median $2.4k · 27 announced
  4. + NavalFair15 devs · median $2.4k · 21 announced
  5. + SportsLong shot19 devs · median $861 · 9 announced
  6. + PuzzleLong shot48 devs · median $479 · 40 announced
  7. + World War IIPoor odds23 devs · median $105k · 38 announced
  8. + Real-Time with PausePoor odds28 devs · median $64k · 41 announced
  9. + Open WorldPoor odds45 devs · median $35k · 100 announced
  10. + Colony SimPoor odds87 devs · median $31k · 159 announced
  11. + HistoricalPoor odds108 devs · median $30k · 180 announced
  12. + DiplomacyPoor odds23 devs · median $22k · 48 announced

All 149 pairs on the RTS page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Ultimate General: Civil War 2017 · $7.5M Tabletop Tavern 2026 · $1.2M Radio Commander: Vietnam '64 2019 · $1.1M Big Bia 2022 · $583k Strategos 2026 · EA · $175k
Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Ultimate General: Civil War older $29.99 8,331 88% 250k $7.5M (exactly $7,495,401) Game-Labs
Tabletop Tavern $19.99 2,049 89% 61k $1.2M (exactly $1,228,785) TJ
Radio Commander: Vietnam '64 older $19.99 1,764 72% 53k $1.1M (exactly $1,057,871) Serious Sim
Big Bia older $14.99 1,296 69% 39k $583k (exactly $582,811) Pixel House Games
Strategos · EA $24.99 233 85% 7.0k $175k (exactly $174,680) Strategos Games
The Deadly Path $12.99 84 39% 2.5k $33k (exactly $32,735) Owlskip Enterprises
Combat Directive : Napoleonic Wars $19.99 36 88% 1.1k $22k (exactly $21,589) Fatice Games
It's time, Your Majesty $6.99 77 64% 2.3k $16k (exactly $16,147) String studio
Glassbreakers: Champions of Moss $19.99 22 63% 660 $13k (exactly $13,193) Polyarc
Vox Populi: Brazil 2022 older $4.99 88 94% 2.6k $13k (exactly $13,174) Velsin
Guandan $4.99 29 89% 870 $4.3k (exactly $4,341) Pixel Dance
Vox Populi: USA 2024 $7.99 15 80% 450 $3.6k (exactly $3,596) Velsin
Buttons Up! $1.99 53 84% 1.6k $3.2k (exactly $3,164) Jestercraft
即时象棋：旧棋新弈 Hyper Chinese Chess $1.99 51 76% 1.5k $3.0k (exactly $3,045) 上弦月工作室AscentGames

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