Do I ship it?

GamesSwordplaySwordplay + War

Specimen · observed

Should I ship a War Swordplay game?

Swordplay + War

Only 19 developers shipped a War Swordplay game 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, DYNASTY WARRIORS: ORIGINS, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 48 more are announced, ×6.0 for every developer who shipped in the last year.

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

The middle developer here made $960, ×1.5 the market's $630 for a 6 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $41M, ×65458 the market median. Revenue is up 995% on the market; 48 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.

Deciding numbers: median 1.5 times the market baseline, revenue up 995% on the market, 48 announced, ×6.0 per developer who shipped in the last year.
Nobody has said they are building this yet.
Swordplay + War
Fig. 1 · this niche among 16,100
Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr n = 19
Median est. gross by half-year cohort, 2023 H1 to 2026 H2: $63k → $2.1k → $19k → $148 → $9.0k → $1.4k
Outcomes for Swordplay + War: Plate 1 · outcomes, 2 yr, n = 19
Bottom 30% $299 (exactly $299)
Median $958 (exactly $958)
Top 25% $14k (exactly $13,793)
Top 5% $41M (exactly $41,107,927)
Developers, 2 yr 19
Released games 70
Announced 48
Effort 6 / 10
AI-buildability Medium
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 995% on the market, supply 25% fewer developers than the period before.

Free games: 19%, 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.

Swordplay
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 sits in the medium band
War
effort 6 / 10 · medium · effort 6 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
Swordplay; 6 in 10 of the top 25% also carry RPG, Strategy, Action
Price point
$5.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Art
4 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 3D, Atmospheric, First-Person
Plate 4 · demand

Why players buy here

The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $5.99.

The top 10 games average 91% positive over 20,676 reviews.

Plate 5 · the loss side

What kills games here

Developer outcomes in the last 2 years by share: 3 in 10 under $300, median $960, 1 in 4 over $13k, 1 in 20 over $41M.

3 in 10 developers made under $300. 8 in 10 of the 15 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 48 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×6.0 per shipper.

Plate 6 · same mechanic, other settings

Adjacent niches

Swordplay with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.

  1. + Visual NovelFair13 devs · median $5.7k · 10 announced
  2. + Strategy RPGFair22 devs · median $2.7k · 28 announced
  3. + IdlerFair9 devs · median $2.7k · 4 announced
  4. + Auto BattlerFair13 devs · median $1.1k · 8 announced
  5. + DeckbuildingFair11 devs · median $599 · 13 announced
  6. + Shoot 'Em UpLong shot13 devs · median $300 · 5 announced
  7. + SamuraiPoor odds12 devs · median $80k · 21 announced
  8. + JRPGPoor odds16 devs · median $14k · 22 announced
  9. + Female ProtagonistPoor odds39 devs · median $13k · 79 announced
  10. + FightingPoor odds13 devs · median $13k · 33 announced
  11. + Co-opPoor odds19 devs · median $12k · 53 announced
  12. + Base BuildingPoor odds12 devs · median $9.0k · 26 announced

All 115 pairs on the Swordplay page

Plate 7 · comparable specimens, by est. revenue

Comparable games

Capsule Game Released Price Reviews Est. copies Est. revenue Developer
FOR HONOR™ older $29.99 108,492 69% 3.3M $98M (exactly $97,610,252) Ubisoft Montreal, Ubisoft Quebec, Ubiso… (Ubisoft Montreal, Ubisoft Quebec, Ubisoft Toronto, Blue Byte)
Chivalry 2 older $39.99 46,707 79% 1.4M $56M (exactly $56,034,388) Torn Banner Studios
DYNASTY WARRIORS: ORIGINS $69.99 19,578 92% 587k $41M (exactly $41,107,927) KOEI TECMO GAMES CO., LTD.
Sifu older $39.99 21,620 92% 649k $26M (exactly $25,937,514) Sloclap
下一站江湖Ⅱ older $24.99 8,507 72% 255k $6.4M (exactly $6,377,698) 白玉京工作室
The Bloodline · EA older $19.99 3,769 82% 113k $2.3M (exactly $2,260,269) Shieldbearer Studios
Driftland: The Magic Revival older $19.99 1,439 73% 43k $863k (exactly $862,968) Star Drifters
Voor De Kroon · EA older $29.99 682 87% 20k $614k (exactly $613,595) Future Minimalism
Medieval Blacksmith $19.99 591 79% 18k $354k (exactly $354,423) OGO Play
Tales Of Glory older $10.99 1,042 80% 31k $344k (exactly $343,547) BlackTale Games
Warlord: Awaji $24.99 256 78% 7.7k $192k (exactly $191,923) Darkmatter Games
The Last King · EA $14.99 122 79% 3.7k $55k (exactly $54,863) Mayawi software
Superstar Strategy $19.99 23 95% 690 $14k (exactly $13,793) Talberon Games
Bloodface $7.99 50 70% 1.5k $12k (exactly $11,985) Iron Forge Games
Robin Hood: Sherwood Defenders $11.99 25 44% 750 $9.0k (exactly $8,992) MeanAstronauts
BannerBound · EA $12.99 15 73% 450 $5.8k (exactly $5,846) Cosmic noise
Games of the Monarch's Eye $5.99 8 25% 240 $1.4k (exactly $1,438) Choice of Games
Last Stronghold $3.99 8 62% 240 $958 (exactly $958) skR1me

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