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Should I ship a Word Game Strategy RPG?
Strategy RPG + Word Game
Of 26 developers who shipped a Word Game 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.. 40 more are announced, ×3.3 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $830, ×1.3 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $180; 1 in 20 cleared $35k, ×57 the market median. Revenue is up 225% on the market; 40 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $179 (exactly $179) |
|---|---|
| Median | $832 (exactly $832) |
| Top 25% | $3.5k (exactly $3,522) |
| Top 5% | $36k (exactly $35,778) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 26 |
| Released games | 61 |
| Announced | 40 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 225% on the market, supply 15% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 15%, excluded from money figures.
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
- Word Game
- effort 1 / 10 · high · dictionary logic and simple UI
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Strategy RPG, Word Game; 4 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Idler, RPG, Adventure
- Price point
- $4.99 typical · top 25% priced $10.99 or above
- Art
- 6 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $10.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.
The top 10 games average 75% positive over 890 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $180. 9 in 10 of the 16 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 40 games are announced against 12 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.3 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Strategy RPG with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + SportsFair
- + SwordplayFair
- + Bullet HellFair
- + EconomyFair
- + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair
- + ConspiracyFair
- + Shop KeeperFair
- + 2D PlatformerFair
- + Point & ClickFair
- + Turn-BasedPoor odds
- + Dating SimPoor odds
- + 4XPoor odds
Comparable games
Retirement Simulator 2022 · EA · $1.6M 
Immortal Family 2024 · $509k 
灵墟 2023 · $312k 
Paper Bride 5 Two Lifetimes 2023 · $182k 
Paper Bride 6 Nightmare 2024 · $111k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Retirement Simulator | · EA older | $13.99 | 3,757 34% | 113k | $1.6M (exactly $1,576,813) | DoubleThink Studio |
| | Immortal Family | older | $13.99 | 1,213 54% | 36k | $509k (exactly $509,096) | 一起来修仙工作室 |
| | 灵墟 | older | $10.99 | 946 86% | 28k | $312k (exactly $311,896) | HappyTall Game |
| | Paper Bride 5 Two Lifetimes | older | $9.99 | 606 84% | 18k | $182k (exactly $181,618) | HeartBeat Plus |
| | Paper Bride 6 Nightmare | $9.99 | 369 81% | 11k | $111k (exactly $110,589) | HeartBeat Plus | |
 | Lost:Antinomy | older | $2.99 | 1,042 88% | 31k | $93k (exactly $93,467) | IMaiIna |
 | Idle Land of Exile | $4.99 | 239 68% | 7.2k | $36k (exactly $35,778) | 所以然 | |
 | 場外人生 | · EA older | $2.99 | 315 90% | 9.5k | $28k (exactly $28,256) | YuruOwO |
 | New ZhaoYun | older | $29.99 | 25 44% | 750 | $22k (exactly $22,492) | XBZYZ Game |
 | 神魔山海经 Gods Monster | $11.99 | 57 59% | 1.7k | $21k (exactly $20,503) | 红尘背包客 | |
 | Eternal Sword Tomb | · EA | $8.99 | 68 77% | 2.0k | $18k (exactly $18,340) | 阿郎 |
 | 鸿运修仙传 | $5.99 | 34 76% | 1.0k | $6.1k (exactly $6,110) | 玉米工作室 | |
 | Harem Of Three Thousand | $10.99 | 14 85% | 420 | $4.6k (exactly $4,616) | LumiMaker | |
 | Runren Simulator | $1.99 | 59 91% | 1.8k | $3.5k (exactly $3,522) | K.K. | |
 | 16叠谋杀之谜 | $1.99 | 33 60% | 990 | $2.0k (exactly $1,970) | 糯米团子工作室 | |
 | Idle Hero Siege | $3.99 | 14 42% | 420 | $1.7k (exactly $1,676) | 光鸽 | |
 | FootballLife | $17.99 | 3 33% | 90 | $1.6k (exactly $1,619) | 小伍 |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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