Should I ship a Roman game?
Rome
Of 68 developers who shipped a Roman game 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.. 109 more are announced, ×2.9 for every developer who shipped in the last year.
Verdict: poor odds, for a 5 / 10 build.
The middle developer here made $3.6k, ×5.7 the market's $630 for a 5 / 10 build, and 3 in 10 made under $1.1k; 1 in 20 cleared $550k, ×886 the market median. Revenue is up 130% on the market; 109 games are announced against 38 developers who shipped in the last year.
| Bottom 30% | $1.0k (exactly $1,048) |
|---|---|
| Median | $3.6k (exactly $3,596) |
| Top 25% | $72k (exactly $71,976) |
| Top 5% | $556k (exactly $556,277) |
| Developers, 2 yr | 68 |
| Released games | 247 |
| Announced | 109 |
| 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 130% on the market, supply 25% more developers than the period before.
Free games: 12%, excluded from money figures.
Can AI deliver it?
AI-buildability for this niche is medium: the lowest rating among its tags.
- Rome
- effort 5 / 10 · medium · effort 5 sits in the medium band
What it takes
- Effort
- 5 / 10 · real systems or entry 3D
- Price point
- $9.99 typical · top 25% priced $24.99 or above
Why players buy here
The top 25% priced at $24.99 or above; the middle game at $9.99.
The top 10 games average 72% positive over 18,178 reviews.
What kills games here
3 in 10 developers made under $1.1k. 8 in 10 of the 35 games released 1 to 2 years ago have fewer than 100 reviews. 109 games are announced against 38 developers who shipped in the last year, ×2.9 per shipper.
All pairs with Rome
No pair with Rome has 25 games yet.
Comparable games
| Capsule | Game | Released | Price | Reviews | Est. copies | Est. revenue | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Total War: ROME II - Emperor Edition | older | $29.99 | 54,547 87% | 1.6M | $49M (exactly $49,075,936) | CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive |
| | Imperator: Rome | older | $39.99 | 19,492 65% | 585k | $23M (exactly $23,384,552) | Paradox Development Studio |
| | Anno 117: Pax Romana | $59.99 | 12,150 69% | 365k | $22M (exactly $21,866,355) | Ubisoft Mainz | |
| | Total War: ATTILA | older | $19.99 | 26,918 82% | 808k | $16M (exactly $16,142,725) | CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive |
| | Assassin’s Creed® Brotherhood | older | $19.99 | 24,958 88% | 749k | $15M (exactly $14,967,313) | Ubisoft Montreal |
| | Ryse: Son of Rome | older | $9.99 | 38,308 87% | 1.1M | $11M (exactly $11,480,908) | Crytek |
| | Total War: ROME REMASTERED | older | $29.99 | 12,627 77% | 379k | $11M (exactly $11,360,512) | Creative Assembly, Feral Interactive |
| | The Forgotten City | older | $24.99 | 11,159 96% | 335k | $8.4M (exactly $8,365,902) | Modern Storyteller |
| | Expeditions: Rome | older | $44.99 | 5,156 86% | 155k | $7.0M (exactly $6,959,053) | Logic Artists |
| | We Who Are About To Die | · EA older | $21.99 | 8,134 88% | 244k | $5.4M (exactly $5,366,000) | Jordy Lakiere |
| | Citadelum | $24.99 | 1,005 83% | 30k | $753k (exactly $753,448) | Abylight Barcelona | |
| | Blackthorn Arena: Reforged | $24.99 | 882 66% | 26k | $661k (exactly $661,235) | PersonaeGame Studio | |
| | Roman Triumph: Survival City Builder | $24.99 | 742 83% | 22k | $556k (exactly $556,277) | Coreffect Interactive | |
| | Ludus Magnatus: Gladiator Manager Simulator | · EA | $24.99 | 612 81% | 18k | $459k (exactly $458,816) | Contec Games |
| | Pax Augusta | $24.99 | 564 69% | 17k | $423k (exactly $422,831) | Roger Gassmann | |
| | Bloodgrounds | $19.99 | 561 77% | 17k | $336k (exactly $336,432) | Exordium Games | |
| | Never Second in Rome | $12.99 | 637 81% | 19k | $248k (exactly $248,239) | Alessandro Roberti | |
| | Gods of Sand | $9.99 | 720 86% | 22k | $216k (exactly $215,784) | Achenar Studios | |
| | Summa Expeditionis | $19.99 | 305 68% | 9.2k | $183k (exactly $182,908) | Lobico Games |
Estimates: copies = reviews × 30, gross = copies × list price.
Five niches a week, one death, one deep dive.
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