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Should I ship an RTS Third-Person Shooter?
RTS + Third-Person Shooter
Only 17 developers shipped an RTS Third-Person Shooter 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, WARSHIFT 2, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 25 more are announced, ×4.2 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $450, ×0.3 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $60. 25 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.2 per shipper, while revenue is up 140% on the market.
| Bottom 30% | $60 (exactly $60) |
|---|---|
| Median | $446 (exactly $446) |
| Top 25% | $599 (exactly $599) |
| Top 5% | $32k (exactly $32,384) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 17 |
| Released games | 51 |
| Announced | 25 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $4.99 |
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 140% on the market, supply 45% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 16%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Third-Person Shooter
- effort 7 / 10 · low · effort 7 sits in the low band
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- RTS, Third-Person Shooter; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Action, Wargame
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $9.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Third Person
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $9.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 77% positive over 217 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $60. 9 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 25 games are announced against 6 developers who shipped in the last year, ×4.2 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
RTS with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + RomeFair
- + Outbreak SimFair
- + HorrorFair
- + NavalFair
- + TabletopFair
- + SportsLong shot
- + PuzzleLong shot
- + World War IIPoor odds
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + Open WorldPoor odds
- + Colony SimPoor odds
- + HistoricalPoor odds
Comparable games
Home Wars 2017 · $342k 
Attack on Toys 2021 · EA · $243k 
WARSHIFT 2016 · $193k 
Command & Conquer Renegade™ 2024 · $178k 
Giants: Citizen Kabuto 2016 · $119k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Home Wars | older | $9.99 | 1,141 78% | 34k | $342k (exactly $341,958) | Insane Dreamers |
| | Attack on Toys | · EA older | $6.99 | 1,158 93% | 35k | $243k (exactly $242,833) | N7T-GAMES |
| | WARSHIFT | older | $9.99 | 643 71% | 19k | $193k (exactly $192,707) | Cyril Megem |
| | Command & Conquer Renegade™ | older | $6.96 | 851 83% | 26k | $178k (exactly $177,689) | Westwood Studios |
| | Giants: Citizen Kabuto | older | $19.99 | 198 94% | 5.9k | $119k (exactly $118,741) | Planet Moon Studios |
 | Timemelters | older | $19.99 | 152 92% | 4.6k | $91k (exactly $91,154) | Autoexec Games |
 | McDROID | older | $9.99 | 149 74% | 4.5k | $45k (exactly $44,655) | Elefantopia |
 | WARSHIFT 2 | $19.99 | 54 70% | 1.6k | $32k (exactly $32,384) | Cyril Megem | |
 | Daggan | older | $9.99 | 97 79% | 2.9k | $29k (exactly $29,071) | Malerouille |
 | X-POINT | · EA older | $19.99 | 32 78% | 960 | $19k (exactly $19,190) | Andrey Scanarri (Scanarri) |
 | Tactical Warfare | $9.99 | 52 67% | 1.6k | $16k (exactly $15,584) | Mizrab | |
 | Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins Enhanced | $6.99 | 33 75% | 990 | $6.9k (exactly $6,920) | KDV Games | |
 | MEMOLOGY: ITALIAN MEME WAR | $0.99 | 45 97% | 1.4k | $1.3k (exactly $1,336) | Piece Of Voxel, Gamesforfarm | |
 | Relictor | · EA | $9.99 | 2 50% | 60 | $599 (exactly $599) | AIMTeam |
 | War in the Gulf | $4.99 | 4 75% | 120 | $599 (exactly $599) | Oxford Digital Enterprises | |
 | COSMIC WARFRONT | $1.99 | 10 100% | 300 | $597 (exactly $597) | Gamesforfarm | |
 | Stars And Empires: Colony Defense | $14.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $450 (exactly $450) | Elemental Legion | |
 | Doomvile Brainrot | $0.99 | 15 66% | 450 | $446 (exactly $446) | Gamesforgames | |
 | Domefender | $9.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $300 (exactly $300) | StuffInChest |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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