Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Simulation / Military
Simulation + Military: a typical launch earns $2,912 in its first year
That is the median of 47 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 13 of 82 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 8.3 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 74% on the year before: 94 against 54.
- Price
- $2,912 median of 47 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- +33.4% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 94 54 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 169 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 582 carrying both tags
Boards
as of 30 Sep 2026Where this pair stands on each board of the front page. Every value carries its 90% interval and its sample.
| Board | Value | Interval | Sample | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most anticipatedShare of all upcoming wishlist heat on Steam, with the number of upcoming games beside it. | 0.32%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.16% to 0.50% | 24 ranked of 170 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #725 of 7,193pairs on this board |
| Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter. | 1.41xhits against expected | 1.01x to 1.97x | 82 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #949 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | −2%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −29% to +35% | 37 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,500 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | +22%review growth against same-age games | +7% to +37% | 37 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #17 of 2,461pairs on this board |
Pairs are noisier than genres: the demand boards at pair level are indicative only.
Launch success
launches 6 to 30 months oldMatured indie paid launches that earned an estimated $100k or more, against the number expected for games at the same price tier and launch quarter.
- Launches
- 82
- Hit rate
- 15.9%9.1% to 25.1%
- Expected rate
- 10.1%
- Against expected
- 1.41x1.01x to 1.97x
Launch window: indie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old). Hit odds are shrunk toward the Steam-wide rate by 3 expected hits.
Revenue spread
82 launchesEstimated lifetime gross of the same matured launches. Half earned less than the median; one in ten earned more than the top figure.
- Bottom tenth
- $40
- Median
- $2,913
- Top tenth
- $324,542
Estimated from Steam review counts. Lifetime to date, so it differs from the first-year price above.
Supply
raw release countsGames released with both tags, last 12 months against the 12 before.
- Change
- +74%
- Against Steam
- +24%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- SimulationGenre pageRanked on every board, with its best pairs.
- MilitaryNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
Comparable games
8 indie titlesThe biggest indie games in this pair by estimated lifetime gross. Revenue is shown as a number at 50 or more reviews, as a range at 10 to 49, and not at all below 10.
- Gray Zone Warfare (opens the Steam store)2024 · 69,275 reviews, 72% positiveest. $55M
- Bodycam (opens the Steam store)2024 · 63,261 reviews, 80% positiveest. $42M
- GROUND BRANCH (opens the Steam store)2026 · 22,430 reviews, 83% positiveest. $13M
- Hell Let Loose: Vietnam (opens the Steam store)2026 · 11,087 reviews, 61% positiveest. $8.9M
- IRON NEST: Heavy Turret Simulator (opens the Steam store)2026 · 13,930 reviews, 97% positiveest. $5.3M
- Quarantine Zone: The Last Check (opens the Steam store)2026 · 11,911 reviews, 81% positiveest. $4.7M
- Nuclear Option (opens the Steam store)2023 · 10,455 reviews, 95% positiveest. $4.2M
- Gallipoli (opens the Steam store)2026 · 4,191 reviews, 77% positiveest. $2.5M
More with Simulation
pairs with Simulation- Simulation + Shop Keeper$32,26936 launches priced, 330 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Cozy$15,70676 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Online Co-Op$11,02868 launches priced, 133 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Multiplayer$8,980122 launches priced, 253 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Base Building$7,38289 launches priced, 173 releases in 12 months
- Simulation + Economy$6,979210 launches priced, 540 releases in 12 months
More with Military
pairs with Military- War + Military$2,15564 launches priced, 90 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Military$1,45661 launches priced, 118 releases in 12 months
- Military + Wargame$1,21466 launches priced, 94 releases in 12 months
- First-Person + Military$97133 launches priced, 47 releases in 12 months
- Action + Military$80987 launches priced, 123 releases in 12 months
- Shooter + Military$54557 launches priced, 97 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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