Do I ship it?

GamesSurvival HorrorSurvival Horror + Turn-Based Strategy

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a Turn-Based Strategy Survival Horror?

Survival Horror + Turn-Based Strategy

Only 14 developers shipped a Turn-Based Strategy Survival Horror 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, Sultan's Game, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 31 more are announced, ×3.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

Verdict: poor odds, for a 6 / 10 build.

The middle developer here made $900, ×1.4 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $360; 1 in 20 cleared $18M, ×29918 the market median. Revenue is down 40% on the market; 31 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.4 times the market baseline, revenue down 40% on the market, 31 announced, ×3.9 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Survival Horror + Turn-Based Strategy
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 14
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $1.5k → $9.8k → $359 → $6.3k → $2.7k (still earning) → $0 (still earning)
The last cohort is still earning.
Outcomes for Survival Horror + Turn-Based Strategy: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 14
Bottom 30% $360 (exactly $360)
Median $898 (exactly $898)
Top 25% $6.3k (exactly $6,287)
Top 5% $19M (exactly $18,788,232)
Developers, 2 yr 14
Released games 39
Announced 31
Effort 6 / 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 down 40% on the market, supply 35% more developers than the period before.

Free games: 10%, 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.

Survival Horror
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
Turn-Based Strategy
effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band

How the rubric works →

Plate 3 · the cost side

What it takes

Effort
6 / 10 · full 3D single-player, physics sims, content-heavy RPG
Systems
Survival Horror, Turn-Based Strategy; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Card Game, Strategy, Adventure
Price point
$4.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D, Hand-drawn
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $4.99.

The top 10 games average 93% positive over 25,229 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 $900, 1 in 4 over $6.2k, 1 in 20 over $18M.

3 in 10 developers made under $360. 9 in 10 of the 7 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 31 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×3.9 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

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

  1. + FMVFair13 devs · median $31k · 14 announced
  2. + DrivingFair20 devs · median $4.9k · 25 announced
  3. + Tower DefenseFair14 devs · median $1.9k · 16 announced
  4. + IncrementalFair16 devs · median $1.6k · 19 announced
  5. + SnowFair17 devs · median $1.2k · 15 announced
  6. + SportsFair5 devs · median $959 · 3 announced
  7. + Outbreak SimFair22 devs · median $958 · 24 announced
  8. + 3D PlatformerFair111 devs · median $539 · 104 announced
  9. + Boomer ShooterFair27 devs · median $449 · 28 announced
  10. + Turn-Based CombatPoor odds10 devs · median $64k · 42 announced
  11. + LGBTQ+Poor odds17 devs · median $52k · 21 announced
  12. + Spectacle fighterPoor odds8 devs · median $52k · 12 announced

All 159 pairs on the Survival Horror page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
Sultan's Game $24.99 25,061 93% 752k $19M (exactly $18,788,232) Double Cross
Dead State: Reanimated older $19.99 2,100 73% 63k $1.3M (exactly $1,259,370) DoubleBear Productions
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville older $14.99 1,486 86% 45k $668k (exactly $668,254) Northway Games, Sarah Northway
Nemesis: Lockdown older $24.99 732 68% 22k $549k (exactly $548,780) InterStudio
Ogre older $24.99 223 66% 6.7k $167k (exactly $167,183) Auroch Digital
Draft of Darkness older $14.99 336 94% 10k $151k (exactly $151,099) Crawly Games
Sorry We're Open older $7.99 140 95% 4.2k $34k (exactly $33,558) oates
Zafehouse Diaries 2 older $6.99 133 72% 4.0k $28k (exactly $27,890) Screwfly Studios
Don't Freeze: A Winter Card Survival · EA $17.99 31 74% 930 $17k (exactly $16,731) YOLO35GAMES
1 Bit Survivor older $3.99 82 97% 2.5k $9.8k (exactly $9,815) Chaz Acheronti
Paracom $10.99 21 90% 630 $6.9k (exactly $6,924) Steel Widow Klan
DEMONS $4.99 42 71% 1.3k $6.3k (exactly $6,287) Andrew Fender, Alastair Headden
Blackjack Roulette $2.99 30 83% 900 $2.7k (exactly $2,691) DreamArk Lab
Silent $2.99 27 44% 810 $2.4k (exactly $2,422) GenemesicX
Troubled Waters $5.99 5 80% 150 $898 (exactly $898) BaleYc Studios
Grave Stakes · EA $2.99 9 44% 270 $807 (exactly $807) Wild West Games
Iron Graves $9.99 2 100% 60 $599 (exactly $599) Commoditech
We Don't Cry: Zombie Survival $11.99 1 0% 30 $360 (exactly $360) Bored Alchemist

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