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Should I ship a Turn-Based Combat Wargame?
Wargame + Turn-Based Combat
Of 106 developers who shipped a Turn-Based Combat Wargame 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.. 164 more are announced, ×2.7 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $1.6k, ×2.6 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $300; 1 in 20 cleared $66k, ×106 the market median. Revenue is up 170% on the market; 164 games are announced against 60 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $300 (exactly $300) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.6k (exactly $1,617) |
| Top 25% | $9.0k (exactly $8,994) |
| Top 5% | $67k (exactly $66,758) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 106 |
| Released games | 347 |
| Announced | 164 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| Typical price | $9.99 |
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 170% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 13%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Wargame
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
- Turn-Based Combat
- effort 4 / 10 · medium · effort 4 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Wargame, Turn-Based Combat; 8 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Turn-Based Strategy, Turn-Based Tactics
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $22.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $22.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 86% positive over 8,993 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $300. 9 in 10 of the 57 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 164 games are announced against 60 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.7 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Wargame with a different second tag, ranked by verdict then median.
- + Inventory ManagementFair
- + Local MultiplayerFair
- + NavalFair
- + TabletopFair
- + LogicFair
- + Real-Time with PausePoor odds
- + Real-TimePoor odds
- + Co-opPoor odds
- + StealthPoor odds
- + DiplomacyPoor odds
- + Colony SimPoor odds
- + SandboxPoor odds
Comparable games
Total War: ROME REMASTERED 2021 · $11M 
Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Relics of War 2018 · $9.8M 
TROUBLESHOOTER: Abandoned Children 2020 · $7.1M 
Panzer Corps 2 2020 · $4.2M 
Heroes' Vow: Three Kingdoms 2025 · EA · $4.0M | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Total War: ROME REMASTERED | older | $29.99 | 12,627 77% | 379k | $11M (exactly $11,360,512) | Creative Assembly, Feral Interactive |
| | Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Relics of War | older | $39.99 | 8,148 82% | 244k | $9.8M (exactly $9,775,156) | Proxy Studios |
| | TROUBLESHOOTER: Abandoned Children | older | $24.99 | 9,464 93% | 284k | $7.1M (exactly $7,095,161) | Dandylion |
| | Panzer Corps 2 | older | $39.99 | 3,512 84% | 105k | $4.2M (exactly $4,213,346) | Flashback Games |
| | Heroes' Vow: Three Kingdoms | · EA | $19.99 | 6,652 88% | 200k | $4.0M (exactly $3,989,204) | Free Wing |
 | Unity of Command II | older | $29.99 | 2,042 79% | 61k | $1.8M (exactly $1,837,187) | 2x2 Games, Croteam |
 | Shadow Empire | older | $39.99 | 1,431 82% | 43k | $1.7M (exactly $1,716,771) | VR Designs |
 | Fantasy General II | older | $39.99 | 1,034 82% | 31k | $1.2M (exactly $1,240,490) | Owned by Gravity |
 | Combat Mission Shock Force 2 | older | $59.99 | 624 80% | 19k | $1.1M (exactly $1,123,013) | Battlefront |
 | Urtuk: The Desolation | older | $13.99 | 2,408 87% | 72k | $1.0M (exactly $1,010,638) | David Kaleta |
 | Burden of Command™ | $24.99 | 628 83% | 19k | $471k (exactly $470,812) | Green Tree Games LLC | |
 | Warside | $24.99 | 547 68% | 16k | $410k (exactly $410,086) | LAVABIRD | |
 | NationWar2:Chronicle | $16.99 | 378 78% | 11k | $193k (exactly $192,667) | Yiming | |
 | Flashpoint Campaigns: Cold War | $49.99 | 107 99% | 3.2k | $160k (exactly $160,468) | On Target Simulations | |
 | STRANGER SAGA -Stranger Bach and Iskiyeld's Ambition- | $9.89 | 225 86% | 6.8k | $67k (exactly $66,758) | Retro Game Balance & Mechanics -レトロ… (Retro Game Balance & Mechanics -レトロゲームの手応えとバランスを追求するデザイン工房-) | |
 | Emperor of the Fading Suns Enhanced | $9.99 | 174 95% | 5.2k | $52k (exactly $52,148) | Holistic Design, Inc. | |
 | Global Protocol: New World Order | · EA | $19.99 | 85 71% | 2.6k | $51k (exactly $50,974) | Dorlion Interactive |
 | Three Kingdoms Classic | $12.99 | 127 88% | 3.8k | $49k (exactly $49,492) | SEEAT | |
 | Space Imperia 4X | $22.99 | 70 92% | 2.1k | $48k (exactly $48,279) | Breich Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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