Games › Strategy › Strategy + Superhero
Should I ship a Superhero Strategy game?
Strategy + Superhero
Of 20 developers who shipped a Superhero Strategy game 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.. 27 more are announced, ×2.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 7 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $240, ×0.2 the market's $1.5k for a 7 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $60. 27 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper, while revenue is up 105% on the market.
| Bottom 30% | $60 (exactly $60) |
|---|---|
| Median | $240 (exactly $240) |
| Top 25% | $8.6k (exactly $8,635) |
| Top 5% | $157M (exactly $157,109,213) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 20 |
| Released games | 99 |
| Announced | 27 |
| Effort | 7 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Low |
| Typical price | $6.99 |
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 105% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 19%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is low: the lowest rating among its tags.
What it takes
- Effort
- 7 / 10 · big single-player or serious online
- Systems
- Strategy; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Action, Tower Defense, Visual Novel
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $29.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Story Rich, Stylized
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $29.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 97% positive over 174,993 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $60. 8 in 10 of the 12 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 27 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Strategy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + FMVStrong odds
- + Job SimulatorFair
- + BaseballFair
- + LGBTQ+Fair
- + WuxiaFair
- + FarmingFair
- + Martial ArtsFair
- + SubmarineFair
- + NavalFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Shop KeeperFair
- + HackingFair
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Dispatch | $29.99 | 174,624 97% | 5.2M | $157M (exactly $157,109,213) | AdHoc Studio | |
| | Batman™: Arkham Knight | older | $19.99 | 111,190 92% | 3.3M | $67M (exactly $66,680,643) | Rocksteady Studios |
| | Marvel's Midnight Suns | older | $59.99 | 17,060 82% | 512k | $31M (exactly $30,702,882) | Firaxis Games |
| | Chroma Squad | older | $14.99 | 2,913 95% | 87k | $1.3M (exactly $1,309,976) | Behold Studios |
| | Sairento VR | older | $29.99 | 1,448 86% | 43k | $1.3M (exactly $1,302,766) | Mixed Realms Pte Ltd, Swag Soft Holding… (Mixed Realms Pte Ltd, Swag Soft Holdings Pte Ltd) |
| | Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure | older | $19.99 | 1,941 80% | 58k | $1.2M (exactly $1,164,018) | 5th Cell Media |
| | Capes | older | $39.99 | 446 67% | 13k | $535k (exactly $535,066) | Spitfire Interactive |
| | Sentinels of the Multiverse | older | $9.99 | 1,201 92% | 36k | $360k (exactly $359,940) | Handelabra Games Inc. |
| | X-Angels | older | $10.99 | 614 89% | 18k | $202k (exactly $202,436) | Barance Studio |
| | Sentinels of Freedom | older | $24.99 | 169 66% | 5.1k | $127k (exactly $126,699) | Underbite Games |
| | Nova Hearts | $19.99 | 84 67% | 2.5k | $50k (exactly $50,375) | Lightbulb Crew | |
| | STARVAULT VR | $24.99 | 66 89% | 2.0k | $49k (exactly $49,480) | Theia Games | |
| | Ghosts Keep Out | $3.99 | 130 75% | 3.9k | $16k (exactly $15,561) | Only Fun Games | |
| | Bullet: Surge | $15.99 | 18 94% | 540 | $8.6k (exactly $8,635) | Cerbere Games | |
| | Doom Survivor: Horde Rush | $2.99 | 38 86% | 1.1k | $3.4k (exactly $3,409) | Crazy Studio | |
| | Cowboy Busy: Mowdown | $3.99 | 25 84% | 750 | $3.0k (exactly $2,992) | Only Fun Games | |
| | Sentinel Point Heroes | · EA | $10.99 | 6 100% | 180 | $2.0k (exactly $1,978) | Jellybane |
| | FULL BET - FIGHTING CASINO - | $19.99 | 1 100% | 30 | $600 (exactly $600) | FlatMountain | |
| | Call of Heroes: Tower Defense | $14.99 | 1 0% | 30 | $450 (exactly $450) | Bakart Games - Rômulo |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
Your address goes to Buttondown, which sends the letter, and nowhere else. Every issue has an unsubscribe link. No tracking beyond the open count Buttondown keeps.