Games › Turn-Based Strategy › Turn-Based Strategy + Western
Should I ship a Western Turn-Based Strategy?
Turn-Based Strategy + Western
Only 17 developers shipped a Western Turn-Based Strategy 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, Nightmare Frontier, made about est. revenue: est. copies × today's US list price; gross, before Steam's cut, taxes and refunds. See method.. 20 more are announced, ×2.5 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 $600; 1 in 20 cleared $140k, ×223 the market median. Revenue is down 35% on the market; 20 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $598 (exactly $598) |
|---|---|
| Median | $1.6k (exactly $1,618) |
| Top 25% | $29k (exactly $29,071) |
| Top 5% | $140k (exactly $140,194) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 17 |
| Released games | 42 |
| Announced | 20 |
| Effort | 5 / 10 |
| AI-buildability | Medium |
| 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 down 35% on the market, supply 10% fewer developers than the period before.
Free games: 10%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Turn-Based Strategy
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
- Western
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Systems
- Turn-Based Strategy; 5 in 10 of the top 25% also carry Strategy, Turn-Based Tactics, Roguelike
- Price point
- $6.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
- Art
- 5 in 10 of the top 25% ship with 2D
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $6.99.
The top 10 games average 81% positive over 1,012 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $600. 8 in 10 of the 10 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 20 games are announced against 8 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.5 per shipper.
Adjacent niches
Turn-Based Strategy with a different setting or mood, ranked by verdict then median.
- + WuxiaFair
- + Cold WarFair
- + RomeFair
- + LootFair
- + MiningFair
- + DwarvesFair
- + IdlerFair
- + Asynchronous MultiplayerFair
- + TanksFair
- + SokobanFair
- + Top-Down ShooterFair
- + SpaceFair
Comparable games
West of Loathing 2017 · $3.2M 
Hard West 2015 · $2.5M 
Hard West 2 2022 · $2.4M 
Arco 2024 · $1.3M 
Wild Bastards 2024 · $647k | Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | West of Loathing | older | $10.99 | 9,716 97% | 291k | $3.2M (exactly $3,203,365) | Asymmetric |
| | Hard West | older | $19.99 | 4,103 74% | 123k | $2.5M (exactly $2,460,569) | CreativeForge Games |
| | Hard West 2 | older | $29.99 | 2,717 80% | 82k | $2.4M (exactly $2,444,485) | Ice Code Games |
| | Arco | older | $19.99 | 2,185 96% | 66k | $1.3M (exactly $1,310,344) | Franek, Max Cahill, Bibiki, Fáyer |
| | Wild Bastards | older | $34.99 | 616 74% | 18k | $647k (exactly $646,615) | Blue Manchu |
 | Nightmare Frontier | $24.99 | 187 69% | 5.6k | $140k (exactly $140,194) | Ice Code Games | |
 | DEAD END COLOSSEUM SS | $10.99 | 138 83% | 4.1k | $45k (exactly $45,499) | TLACHTLI | |
 | Brawl To The West | $8.99 | 139 71% | 4.2k | $37k (exactly $37,488) | GagaRush | |
 | Bonesaw | $6.66 | 179 89% | 5.4k | $36k (exactly $35,764) | Blood Pact Studios | |
 | ColdRidge | $9.99 | 97 73% | 2.9k | $29k (exactly $29,071) | Frog Collective | |
 | Barrel Roll | $4.99 | 188 96% | 5.6k | $28k (exactly $28,144) | Barrel Roll | |
 | Boogey Hunters | $6.99 | 46 84% | 1.4k | $9.6k (exactly $9,646) | Keep The Engine Games | |
 | Chess, Texas | $4.99 | 27 81% | 810 | $4.0k (exactly $4,042) | Studio Apollo | |
 | Rootin' Tootin' Lootin' & Shootin' | $8.99 | 6 100% | 180 | $1.6k (exactly $1,618) | Raspberry Jam | |
 | Risk & Riches | $9.99 | 5 100% | 150 | $1.5k (exactly $1,498) | Growlery Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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